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B&W Nautilus 800N . Best amp & preamp setup ?

HELLO.

I own a pair of B&W Nautilus 800N speakers. Truely a great world class speaker. I had sold my JM Lab Utopias after buying the B&W Nautilus 800N.

Currently have several different setups of solid state and tube, hybrid front ends for these the 800N.

From Pass Labs, Threshold to Audio Research and Lamm. I have not been able to make a final decision on what setup to use with my B&W Nautilus 800N.

A little input from fellow 800N or 800 Signature owners is greatly appreciated. Thank you -Bob
lawyerman
bryanhod
211 posts
 
I had 800N with my Lamm 1.2 ref amps and loved them. I used Jeff Rowland Synergi IIi as my preamp. I think all the amp manufacturers you list are obviusly very good. I think the Lamms excel in soundstage and have an unreal three dimension quality. Good luck.
nickt
172 posts
 
hi
I have the 800D not the 800N but they should be similar. I tried Mcintosh 1201= muddy and lose bass. Then I went to ML 436 mono= dark and congested. So the Krell 450mx came in= These really worked well w/ the B&W but they were grainy. Now I have Accuphase M2000. By far these were the best match for me. They have tons of power and control and the mids and highs are tube like. Good luck with your choices.
Nick
kichoi's avatar
kichoi
79 posts
 
My N800 are driven by Krell FPB 700Cx + KCT via CAST interface with excellent results. The N800s are great speakers as expected. I was surprised to hear good sound from a pair of vintage HK Citation IIs in mono (~130W/ch) but the bass couldn't keep up the demand. For a kick, I also hooked up an old Yamaha MX-1 200w/ch SS amp and was pleasantly surprised as well with tight bass and good mids/highs but coming short to the Krell in refined sound. But considering the cost difference, I could live with the MX-1 driving the N800s.

Ki
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