Lavardin IS Reference or IT - anyone heard?

I own a Lavardin IT and is overwhelming happy with it. I match it with Jean Marie Reynaud`s Orfeo speakers, and it`s a great match. So im in for the french sound, as you can tell. The IT just deliver such great musical joy hour after hour, it will get you want to dust your old records off and just listening for many great hours. I suggest when or if you buying this great amplifier you go with the Lavardin cables or Acoustic Zen cables. That works fine with my set-up. I`m using the AZ Satori Shotgun for my speakers, and the AZ Silver Ref II between my Rega Saturn CD and IT, the Lavardin cable between my Rega Eos Riaa and the IT, with great results.....Iv`e had tried a lot of different cables, but keep returning to the AZ cables. Cables wich cost 3 times more has been used in my system, but the AZ beats them all.

I had the pleasure of owning Lavardin IT few years back. Maybe it was a system mismatch or cabling mismatch, I could never get it to sound right.
It was a disappointment for me but nonetheless it was a good experience having it.
I sold it a few months later.

Lavardin IS Ref: quite finicky about cabling, power cord, grounding, shelf...but when dialed in, startlingly (in a good way) lifelike. Very efficient alternative to tubes, barely warm to the touch. Clean top, liquid mids, solid bottom. Involving, enjoyable, just sounds real.

Wildmonkey,

i think you are right-thats why i never got it to sound as good as the reviews says.

I have the LAVARDIN IT. I got it second hand - it was the first generation version, and whilst reviews say the subsequent version is better - I disagree. Due to a problem with my one I returned it to LAVARDIN, and they upgraded it to the current SPEC. It became a tad more 'robust' in its sound, a bit more defined and a tad less 'liquid'. I use it with DNM speaker cables, and Lavardin's own interconnect. I first had Proac response one sc speakers - they were excellent. Once I got a hold of a mint pair of YAMAHA NS1000M's they have become magical. The Yamaha's, whilst sensitive, transparent, neutral, and very clean, can be a tricky load. The LAVARDIN'S are load tolerant and very transparent, so I thought they would be a good match - I WAS RIGHT. I have heard Krells, Audio Research Amps, KONDO, Conrad Johnson, Zanden, and Karan and many other mega pricey combos, both at shows and at auditions. None seem to match the combination of neutrality, dexterity and sheer excellence of the combo I have - maybe I am biased, but I have tried to do the audiophile thing of box swapping - but I keep coming back to square one again - ahhhh. The only thing that I have heard to genuinely better them top to bottom were: MBL's (with the omni speakers - of course) (over 100,000 UKP); quad valve amps driving Quad 2905's (over 13000 UKP)(I am told that the LAVARDIN is good at driving them as well); a 120,000 UKP Mckintosh set up.