2. amps-preamps
  3. 1031019745

Wyetech, thoughts comments on amp.

I am presently demo'ing a atmosphere m1 amps, and compared to the bryston 7's currently in the system, the atmospheres blow the brystons away. It was like taking a burlap bag off the wilson speakers the minute the m1's were turned on. I was truly a euphoric experience. Since this will be my 3rd amp (hopefully the last). I am going to demo a few others and purchase one in about a month, being somewhat more cautious, since selling used audio at 50% is never that exciting. The name wyetech, cary, wavac, came up as possible considerations. Arc has been ruled out after a demo of them it didn't seem to offer much more than the brysons. A demo of a wyetech amp is possible if driving 5 hours each way and back again is not a problem. Some say it is worth trying. Especially the sales person, who also said atmospheres were built poorly. I live in Phila area. Presently have wison 6 (over priced) speakers. Budget 10k. Any info would be appreciated.
eralff

Showing 3 responses by glreno

glreno
224 posts
 
I have a Wyetech Topaz. It is a fabulous amp with the right speakers. As long as your speakers can be driven by 23 watts and has a kind impedence, there isn't much out there that is better. It has great bass power and articulation, and outstanding delineation of instruments and vocals. Unlike other SETs, it is very neutral and natural sounding. Read the TAS review by Scot Markwell, and there are some other comments about it on the internet. I've only heard the Atmosphere M60 Mk2s. They were very good. I'm sure the M1s are very good also. But Atmasphere amps have boo-coo tubes that heat your room and light it up like a nuclear powerplant. The cost of re-tubing must be pretty high.

I've had OTLs in the past. I've always found the in-your-face, crystal clear sound they provide a bit fatiguing after awhile. An exception was the Joule Electra OTL, which is a much more mellow OTL sound. If you like what you are hearing now, stick with it.You probably can't go wrong either way, but I don't think you are going to be able to demo a Wyetech in your system. They are an extremely limited production amplifier (mine is the latest - serial #37 after two years of production). Another consideration would be the Tenor OTLs, if you can find them used. There is (or was) a 15 watter for sale on Audiogon, but I don't think that would drive your speakers. They do make a 75 watt OTL that is supposed to be extremely good. They use fewer tubes than the Atmospheres, and have gotten fabulous reviews.
glreno
224 posts
 
Philefreak:
Perhaps you should clarify which Wyetechs you're talking about. Didn't you own the Onyx amps?
glreno
224 posts
 
The Onyx is a whole different amp than the Topaz. Different output tubes, different design, different price. I have heard some negative comments about the Onyx. I didn't here that they were honky, but did hear that they were thin in the midrange and somewhat sterile sounding. Anyway, I'm not here to flame anybody about their opinions. I appreciate all comments of experiences with different equipment as long as they were done ernestly. And I've never known you to post otherwise. It's only through varied opinions that one can fairly judge what might be best for them. You may want to say what your system was at the time. That way we can all know what to avoid when system matching.
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