CLASSE - Great amps or highly flawed?

No, the amp was well broken in from the dealer and over a year old.

Depends on your associated equipment and your tastes, just like any other hi-fi purchase. I personally love the Classe sound. I've owned a Classe CA-200, CAV-75 and currently a CDP 1. I've never had any problem with any of these pieces of equipment. As far as 'dark-sounding', if you like the 'brightness' of Krell, you will not like Classe. I prefer the musicality of Classe over Krell. This is a highly subjective choice though.

I’ve owned a late production run Classe CA 300 for well over a year now. In my experience, I have found that this amp works very well with electrostatic hybrid speakers. It casts a spacious, well layered soundstage that is anchored upon a vise-grip tight bass foundation. The midrange presentation is a bit cooler than Rowland gear, yet not as sterile as some Krell amps I have owned. (Yes, I’ve owned Krell gear) The upper registers are detailed and clean. Much like the Rowland gear, I can listen to this amp for hours as it is musically inviting, exceptionally dynamic and fairly involving. I can’t say that about most solid state gear. The CA-300 build quality is exceptional! This amp is a brute but also very sensitive. I have had issues with ground loop hums, heat sink ‘ringing’ and sudden safe mode shut-downs when this amp gets fed anything it doesn’t quite like. I’ve been fortunate as these issues have been far and few between and generally quickly resolved. With a used street price around $2,000 I believe the Classe CA-300 represents a good sound value. While a bit finicky, this amp is long on muscle with a sweetness and openness that just makes you smile! I certainly think it’s a solid state amp most can happily live with and others would die for.
Regards;
-Jerie

This thread should be removed as it begs the question:
How bad does Classe suck? An apology would be in order from the writer and the moderator.

Kevzeik,

The statement you qouted does not say that the design is the same, just the design "philosophy". Philosophy and circutry can be two different things.

Anyway, I own a CA101 and feel that it meets my needs better than a McCormick, ie. DNA .5 delux, which I am very familiar with.