Apogee vs Soundlab

Strange comments on the vtl amps as albertporters system had the vtl 750 monoblocks driving his soundlabs; when I emailed albert for advice regarding his setup there was never a bad word mentioned; there must have been a weak link else where in Gallant_diva's system.
Jafox: what amp do you prefer with your soundlabs as I have m2's with the tordials and impedance mods?

Rleff: It is all relative. The owner of a Honda Accord may love it but the owner of a Mercedes may not find the Accord attractive enough.

Regarding the Audio chain, I have had a large variety of audio componenents to optimzie the chain of my system before determing the true merits and demerits of one component. The VTL is just an ok amp but does not have anything special and in not in the leeague of amps like Jadis, Lamm, Audio Valve or Tube Research Labs. Think of the VTL as a an Accord, then the Jadis is a Mercedes.......and TRL a Ferari. These days, because of audiogon, you can always afford Ferrai or Merecdes or Lexus at the price of an Accord. Please test drive the car yourself and not believe other people's words before you decide to buy one. And it s fine if you still prefer an Accord.

Hope I made my point? cheers.

Gallant_Diva: I think your response was for Detlof...not for me as I have no experience with nor opinion on the larger VTLs. As for reviews, I pay attention as there might be a chance to get a feel for how one product compares to another if the reviewer makes such an effort. But this often is not the case, and thus the review is pages of worthless superlatives rather than comparatives. I do agree that class A/B/C ratings are of no value. There are far too many products in the same "class" that easily outperform many others.

Rleff: I have older A1's updated with the later toroidals. And with tips from Albert Porter, I bypassed the fuse. I also replaced that horrible "brilliance" rheostat with a gold plated double-contact selector switch of 6 resistance values (values 0-> 2 ohms range). Treble clarity significantly improved. And with an occasional treble-hot recording, being able to attenuate the treble a little bit is mighty nice. It was amazing how much treble grain existed with the original rheostat.

The only two "outstanding" amps that I have so far heard with the U1s and the A1s are the CAT (JL-2 and JL-3) and Atmasphere (MA1 series). These are a great match with the SL's. They have their pros/cons as I have stated in other A'gon threads. I think it comes down to how these pros/cons balance with those of the rest of a system. I run with the CAT as I like the dynamic contrasts and the initial attack of the notes that I have not heard another amp do. I have found it easier to get some of the strengths that the Atmasphere has over the CAT at the preamp.

Jafox: Thanks for the feedback;the brillance rheostat replacement is a mod I may try;again thank you.

Why do I hear a rather sharp and grainy treble through the A-1's? Is it an amplifier/speaker interaction thing? I'm asking this question because... I've never heard the A-1 with optimal set up, with other words with power amplifier that match very well with these speakers. Tell me how the Soundlab sounds with the appropriate poweramp? Does it sound sharp and grainy?

Chris