Check out the Quad 306 (not balanced) listed here on A'Gon.
DeKay
Best Amplifier for LS3/5a
Happy New Year All! Seeking advice from LS3/5 enthusiasts! I have tried a number of these speakers (Graham, Harbeth, Falcon and KEF LS50's (if that counts)) - and to me the Falcon Gold Badge really stood out. It's been a while now since I did the comparison, so I don't remember all the details - but I felt that the Falcons were the most musical, engaging, open and did NOT have bloated bass (important for a small room)! I've held on to a pair for my bedroom system, but I don't think that my current bedroom amps (AGD Audions, which I love with my current Raidho XT-1 monitors) are the best match for them. I get a bit too much sizzle on the top and some associated sibilance.
Herb Reichert (Stereophile) seems to love these speakers, and his review notes that the Parasound A21+ was too dry with these speakers, but he really liked the Line Magnetic LM-518 IA. That's not going to work for me! In this bedroom system I keep the amp(s) under the bed and generally leave them on 24/7. If possible, I prefer a balanced design, as I want NO HUM in my bedroom and my DAC/Pre (Weiss 501) has both balanced and RCA outs.
Based on the intended setup, I think balanced solid state would make the most sense. Amp selection might be influenced by the speakers having 15 ohm input impedance.
Any suggestions? Thanks, Peter
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@mijostyn I'm currently using a KEF KC62. To quote the promo "it’s connection options allow it to be used with almost any audio system, with KEF SmartConnect and speaker level inputs eliminating any connection issues. Line output with High Pass Filter (HPF) allows for exceptional fine-tuned integration, and KC62 is also compatible with the KW1 for simple wireless compatibility." With my current system configuration, I'm using the speaker level inputs sourced by my AGD amplifiers. I can't put a high pass filter in front of the AGD's, because it would also affect the subs. I don't believe I can feed the subs with a line level from the Weiss 501 (I believe its "smartconnect" is proprietary). So with my current system, I don't see a way to employ high pass in front of the Falcons. Maybe with another setup - I'm sure I'll be playing with these speakers for a while. Unless you have another suggestion.... Thanks! |
@dekay I'm not sure if this is a bonehead idea, but I'm curious whether the Quads can be bridged into monoblocks and whether bridging can be used to convert them to balanced. |
The solution is to get a stand alone two way crossover either analog such as the JL Audio unit or digital such as the MiniDSP unit. You connect the preamp outs to the crossover then the crossover to the amplifiers and on to the speakers and subs. This is not an imaginary tweak. This is a seriously big improvement. You will gain at least 10 dB in headroom (twice as loud) and lower distortion in the Falcons by an estimated 50%. |
- 31 posts total