Wyred4sound STI - 500 for Magnepan speakers

Calabashack & others,

Good friend has made the decision to purchase & is currently on the wait list for 1.7's. He will also be upgrading amps & preamps & Wyred4Sound products are at the top of his prospects list.

Considerations:1) Despite being an all out tech nerd he wants to maintain the ability to spin vinyl so he will require a phono preamp. Recs or suggestions appreciated!
2) wants the highest quality within reason playback from all apple sources(ipad/ipod/laptop)

well, I plumped for the sti-1000 at long last, and it arrived yesterday - the 500 is backordered and I figured the kilowatt would be sure to be different from the bel canto this integrated replaced.

at low levels, it's resolving, analytical on my magnepans. I heard things I haven't heard this way, not even on headphones. I have not yet added a sub in, just trying to see how the ribbons respond to the w4s control.

playing loud is truly a pleasure, this is where the freshly built w4s sounds a lot better than my 3yr old bel canto did - more headroom, more dynamics, and a sweeter midrange.

posters here and elsewhere on the interwebs assert or allege that ICE modules will differ subtly - and that's true, the switch from BC to W4S is not a co

Clarification:

ICE modules have more in common than differences. Just my opinion. I just think that if you stay in the ICE family from B&O, and specifically the ASP modules, you won't get huge amounts of variation. :: I am ignoring the preamp at this point.......

Hypex? International Rectifier? Spectron? others? All may have a 'house sound'......never heard any of 'em but DO have an International Rectifier stereo module out in the garage awaiting a power supply......(threatening gesture at garage)

If I were a wealthy experimenter, I'd give the Spectron a try.
Than a Pass amp... Maybe the INT-150 since I rarely even touch my 500x2 of the PS.

I'm not a big 'damping' guy, either, I'm afraid. All Magnepans below the 20.1 are single sided and depend a lot on the characteristics of the air / mylar interface to dampen them.(apparently a big impedance mis-match) Also, the edge vibes trying to 'escape' out the edges are treated to a frame made of MDF..... Those who reframe with WOOD report spectacular results. Also, the 1.6 has mild phase angles and a pretty benign impedance curve. Not really a bad load, at all. Some people run them on ridiculously low amounts of power.....I'd have to hear it, myself.

- calabashak: what did you compare this setup to? what does it do particularly well?

- magfan: if I follow you correctly, you're letting a bit of air out of claims about ice power; but what's relevant is damping and control of the big mag panels, right?

are you also arguing, though, that switching from one class D amp to another isn't going to make a big difference?

I have the W4S ST-500 power amp and the W4S STP-SE preamp, driving Magnepan 1.7s. I am extremely pleased with the match.

ICE power amps are all apparently a little different. But, that being said, they have more in common than BIG differences.
My PSAudio uses the same ASP module as the W4S 500 ref'd above so I'd expect 90% similar results with only very subtle differences.....many of which may simply be wiped out by a change in speaker wire or interconnect.

Keep in mind that module is ONLY 200rms FTC method and the 550 is only good for 60 seconds. The nature of real music makes that fine. As a note, the full output in the big ASP module as used in the REF1000's is only 30 seconds.

I like my 1.6/PSAudio combo. The only problem I had, which I suspect is more speaker than amp is it is a little 'hot' on the high end. I fixed that by rotating my panels in place, putting the pole piece to the listener NOT the Mylar.

been wondering the same. I have been using a bel canto integrated for a few years on my 2.5R magnepans, but might try a W4S because I feel that the maggies only sound their best with this amp above a certain volume - around 70 out of 100 (with 50 being the default when it comes on), which is not loud but for some situations and hours it's a bit more than I need.

the reviews I've seen suggest that the bel canto and the w4s implementations of ice power are different but in subtle ways, so I've hesitated to switch - in case it's only a lateral step rather than an improvement here. factors in favor of the w4s are the balanced inputs and the somewhat higher power. keep in mind it also depends on your room - some rooms would be just fine with a lower-power integrated, like the fine ayre amp, on your maggies.

Magnepan 1.7 driven by Bel Canto REF1000 MkII and I couldn't be more pleased. The speakers are just getting broken in but the performance has been superior from the first play. This combination has been very revealing in a DAC comparison currently underway. The class D Bel Cantos and 1.7s are a very good match. I haven't heard the W4S amps but class D does work with magnepans in my experience. Good Luck!

To my ears the Wyred 4 sound amps sound good with Magnepan speakers. I use their monoblocks with my 1.6 magnepan speakers.