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Amp recommendations to drive Martin Logan Prodigy?

I need some input here please. I want to upgrade my Bel Canto 200.2 Evo amps. They are great amps but with the system I have right now: Audiomeca Mephisto II cdp, Wytech tube pre-amp and the ML Prodigy, they seem to have become the weak link.
I am a fan of Atmasphere amps, but since my speakers are low impedance 4 Ohm, this is not the amp to go for. (If I had the funds I would upgrade to the top Soundlab electrostats, which are 8 Ohm. They would be a perfect match for the Atmasphere amps. Well, maybe one day)
But back to my original question: I would love some monoblocks with my power hungry ML Prodigy, so one amp I looked at is the Electrocompaniet Nemo. The Mark Levinson 33 is a nice amps also, but above my budget.
Any other amp ideas to get the most out of my speakers?
tekunda
kirk930's avatar
kirk930
285 posts
 
if i had ml prodigys i would more than likely run the cj premier 12s or 8s. maybe the bat monoblocks. without question the tube research would be the bar none best, but they are hard to aquire and expensive. if it is raw power you want i have a crown macro reference with 760 watts per channel i would sell inexpensively. it just left the auction block not meeting reserve. the prodigys are good speakers, have fun with your quest.
rickjames
24 posts
 
I owned the Prodigy's and used a McIntosh MC2000 & Hovland HP100 combo. The Prodigys took a long time to break-in, but when everything came together, the combo was magical. All quality electrostats will reveal your weakest equipment link. I used Classe electronics with the Prodigy's and my Quad ESL63's. After switching to tube amplification, I could never go back to solid state gear. The Prodigy's sang!
jeffloistarca
1,004 posts
 
I've been through many amps, the BAT VK500 drives my ML Quest Z's very easily. Terrific amp that can be had used for ~$3000.
t_bone
1,182 posts
 
I envy your dilemma. The nominal impedance is probably not an issue for most "big tubes", it's the drop to 1 ohm at the high frequencies which potentially causes problems. I greatly enjoyed the Innersound - very, very fast "clean-sounding" power - with the smaller (and less sensitive but higher min. impedance) SL3s but went with "big tubes" - if min. impedance had been a problem, I would have gone with the Innersound. Better, I think a pair of used Innersound ESL stereo amps bi-amping the Prodigies would sound wonderful and be competitive on price. Perhaps other 'goners could answer this question: Would tubes work if used with an active crossover up to a certain point (say 10kHz) and separately-powered ribbon tweeters taking over the high frequency load above that?
brianw
373 posts
 
I'm with Kirk930. The Tube Research would be your best bet, however, the GT100 Mono-blocks start at $19K. I have a friend that has CLS with GT100's, and it works well.

Soundlab has electrostats that start at around $4K, which is less than the valhalla cable that you've been messing around with. Maybe the entry level Soundlab would more suit your needs and offer more of a choice in amplification. Maybe the Atmasphere amp/inexpensive Soundlab is the way to go? Help anyone?

Good luck in your quest, however, remember that should you make these changes you'll most likely change your opinion of the ultimate cabling, (as cables are system dependant).
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