cat jl3 signatures vs. atmashere ma2III's

Agree with Spencer.

The Escalante Fremont presents a rather benign load and can be easily driven to paint peeling levels by the MA-1.

The MA-2, in this case, offer nothing more than a higher price and electric bill.

Disclaimer: AS retailer

I will join Sbank and Audiofeil in the belief that the MA-2 is overkill for an 8ohm / 93db sensitivity speaker, provided there are no insane impedance dips. The MA-1 should drive your speakers very well.

On another note, the MkIII updates to the MA-1 and MA-2 made a significant improvement in midrange purity and even lower distortion. Those who have not hear the MkIII upgrade may be surprised by the degree of improvement.
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I have never heard the CAT, so I can not offer any comparisons. I do use the Atma-Sphere MA2 MK III's with Dali Megaline speakers which have a nominal impedance of 6 ohms, and it is the best sound I have ever heard.

In addition to offering unrivaled sound, Atma-Sphere OTL amps are the most flexible and reliable vacuum tube amps I am aware of. For example, if you do not need the full power of the MA2's, you can simply remove some of the power tubes to reduce the power output. If a power tube blows, (and I haven't lost one in 9 months), you can simply remove it and replace with another. That is, since they are not matched pairs, you loose 1 tube, not 2. Uhnlike the 6550 and KT88 based amps I have owned in the past which usually tookk out a resister when a power tube blew, that is not the case with Atma-Sphere OTL amps. They are no muss no fuss power amps, which is remarkable since they use vacuum tubes.

Finally, Ralph, Adam, and Bill offer the best support in the business.

Happy listening,
Dennis

thanks everyone for your input, it was very helpful. I know that the ma2 markIII is probably overkill, but I am a power junky and love amps with great dynamics, great midrange, etc. so that is why I am leaning towards to bigger amps and if down the road I switch speakers than I won't have to buy other amps

Hello Optarchie,

I just spoke with Tierry Budge's distributor, Todd Waldron, who told me that the impedance curve for the Fremont stays between 6.5 ohms and 10 ohms. That is extremely impressive and good news as far as OTL amp matching goes (I'm an Atma-Sphere dealer).

Given their benign impedance and 93 dB sensitivity, I think that not only the MA-1 but also the M-60 would work well on the Fremonts.

At last year's RMAF Ralph and I teamed up a 92 dB speaker with the little S-30. The speaker's impedance stayed between 7 and 12.5 ohms - comparable to the Fremont. In my opinion this combination worked quite well and it could play louder without distortion than I ever normally listen. So I feel confident that even the S-30 could drive the Fremonts.

Best of luck in your quest,

Duke