Hello downunder:
I owned for many years the Ayre K-1x/V-1x combination and had a lot of fun with it. In this price category I still think there is no competition here. Last year it went to a good friend who is now very happy with it. Togheter with his Marten Bird speakers there is only one thing comes to you mind: Performance!! A rare combination of ultra dynamics and smooth sound.
While searching for other amps , for me, it would be logical to go for the MXR (KXR was not available yet) but was a bit confused about their appearance and relatively small amount of parts inside regarding the price. Call me stubborn but my interest stopped before auditioning.
Then I came in touch with the relaxed and natural sound from Hovland which introduced a new audio era for me. Finally ended up with the HP200/Stratos combination which I love. Its strenghts are smooth power, inner detail and overall musicality with all recordings. Of course this is another price level, but unexpectably I do not miss the Ayre anymore.
A small tip about racks. If you need something which has it all (performance, stability and looks): The new Stillpoints ESS. It's reviewed in the latest Hifi+
I hope you finally will find the right amps and trust only your own ears.
I owned for many years the Ayre K-1x/V-1x combination and had a lot of fun with it. In this price category I still think there is no competition here. Last year it went to a good friend who is now very happy with it. Togheter with his Marten Bird speakers there is only one thing comes to you mind: Performance!! A rare combination of ultra dynamics and smooth sound.
While searching for other amps , for me, it would be logical to go for the MXR (KXR was not available yet) but was a bit confused about their appearance and relatively small amount of parts inside regarding the price. Call me stubborn but my interest stopped before auditioning.
Then I came in touch with the relaxed and natural sound from Hovland which introduced a new audio era for me. Finally ended up with the HP200/Stratos combination which I love. Its strenghts are smooth power, inner detail and overall musicality with all recordings. Of course this is another price level, but unexpectably I do not miss the Ayre anymore.
A small tip about racks. If you need something which has it all (performance, stability and looks): The new Stillpoints ESS. It's reviewed in the latest Hifi+
I hope you finally will find the right amps and trust only your own ears.