I have owned a pair of 201's for about six weeks. I consider them revolutionary! Comparing them to the Rowland 302 amp, I believe that they sound more musical and more involving. The 302 is an amazing amp too - better be for $14k. I use my 201s to drive Vienna Acoustics Mahlers -heavenly. The Mahlers have two 10 inch woofers on the side of each speaker and two 7 inch mids. Most amps find it find difficult to control these woofers. The 201's whip them into shape. At $4700 -compared to similarly priced amps, I consider them an excellent value. I think they outperformed the $10K+ Levinsons in another store. These amps are so small that I borrowed them from the local dealer and carried them in a bag to other stores and compared them against various amps, speakers and components combo. I do know about warmth, but these amps do not fatigue, but I suppose I would consider them more warm than dry. Warm sounds colored and euphonic. These are true. They do not sound like other solid state amps, but not like tubes. They sound like music. You will hear your source components.
These things are bottomless. Ignore the watts rating. They suck greater than 45 amps per side! That's 90+ amps total. They will consume as much juice as you give them. Jeff Rowland said that if struck by lightning, these amps would sound even better. Simply they just efficiently convert current to energy. I listen to music loud and for hours and these things do not tire or tire me. And, they run cool! Hours of driving them at full bore and they feel cooler than when I started. Go figure. My musical collection comprises 25% classical, 15% jazz, 15% world and new age and about 45% pop/rock -includes all kinds of rock, heavy metal, hip hop, rap, dance and more. No country music.
Speaker cables make a big difference. I use Analysis Plus Solo Crystal Oval 8. They work very well with these amps - they really let them breathe. I also found that the A-P Power Oval Tens power cords make difference - a tad quieter -they are already extremely quiet, more open, more dynamic and musical. As you can tell, I think the world of these amps. I have not heard every amp, but I can not justify spending more money for amps. I think these amps will drive anything. One very, very minor criticism, these may not possess as deep a soundstage as some other highly touted -and very expensive- amps, but not for a second would I accept the tradeoffs! BTW, I buy gear based on how it makes me feel. That's how I bought my Mahlers and Rowland IIi pre and 201s. When listening to music through the Rowlands and Mahlers, I forget about the gear and become totally immersed in the music. Highly, highly recommended!!
