Hegel H30 or Bryston 7B3 monos

Great feedback. Thats opposite of what I was expecting to hear.

I am a big fan of the No. 512 spinner - firefightingrob

I say, keep an all Levinson set-up. Staying tuned.
Happy Listening!

What specifically is the "magic" you lost with the Levinson pair, and what specifically are you looking to improve now?  Also, with all the wonderful amp options out there, why would you limit it to these two?

Thanks Jafant, I am VERY happy with the 512.  It is the piece I continue to build around.  The 436 are excellent as well, but they are getting a little older and I am curious if newer designs will have a better sound-same articulation, more depth, weightier dynamics.  The 436 are transparent to source and preamp and measure as good as most amps made today.  
I am curious about the power reserve in the Hegel 270 000uF capacitors vs 50 000uF in the 436.  It seems it could get a real nice grip on the 2 10" woofers in the Magico S5's sealed design.  Although, further research shows that when used as a monoblocks the H30 loses soundstage and width.  Not what I'm looking for.
The Bryston 7B3 measures as well as the Levinson 436 (http://www.avhub.com.au/product-reviews/hi-fi/bryston-14b179-power-amplifier-review-test-431015) but has more power- and a 20 year warranty. But how does it sound?  Haven't heard it yet.

Soix, I felt the Levinson gear had very good synergy.  I found the 512, 326s and 436 have excellent detail, and transparency, but ultimately lacked some soundstage, depth, drive and musical presentation.  I went with Vinnie Rossi's LIO as a preamp and recovered some tube warmth and 3d I was missing.  I changed speakers from Wilson W.P. 8 to Magico S5 (both excellent speakers).  But the S5 has a different sound, not as forward or hyper-real as the WP8s, so I am looking to add more of the slam and dynamics that I hear from the big rigs at the auto shows, while maintaining that transparency that is equally addicting.  
An amp that is similar to the 436 but with more power seems to be a logical step.  
Also-trying to keep all my gear black, cant do bright meters because of Home theater use, and probably staying ss for the amps. 

Keep me posted -firefightingrob

Happy Listening!

If you're looking for slam and dynamics without sacrificing transparency, I suspect you won't be disappointed with the Hegel on your Magicos. I'm extremely happy with mine in these areas with my Raidhos. I'm using one in stereo mode, which provides 675 watts into 4 ohms. Hegel doesn't specify the output into 4 ohms with the monos, but I'd guess it's considerably more powerful than the stereo unit (contact Hegel and ask them). Of the stereo unit, Pacula at 6 moons says: "I don’t believe there are loudspeakers beyond the Hegel’s power capacity starting with the Franco Serblin Ktêma through the German Physiks HRS 120 Carbon to the Ascendo System ZF3 S.E. and Avalons ending with the Sonus Faber Elipsa and Stradivari". And Harley at TAS says, "I also had the feeling that the H30 had virtually unlimited power reserves." My previous amp was more powerful on paper, but the Hegel is more dynamic and adds more control.

A couple reviewers (including TAS) thought the stereo amp sounded better than the monos--I suppose that's up for debate. Schneider at Soundstage thought the depth was lacking a bit, but that was in comparison to the Luxman which excels there--but then again, Harley says, "the palpability of timbres and images toward the back of the soundstage was phenomenal." I guess everything is relative to what you're comparing to, but I haven't noticed any deficits in stage width or depth. On the contrary, I find the soundstage and image specificity seem generous and accurate.

I use a tube preamp, as you're planning to do, which I think is a good idea. Overall, the Hegel is the best amp I've heard in my system, doing a fabulous job balancing clarity and detail with ease and liquidity. I haven't heard the Bryston, so can't comment on the comparison.

Thank you Richards, awesome response from someone with  experience with the h30. I sent hegel an email about its 4ohm rating as a mono, no answer yet after 2 days.  im trying to avoid using a stereo amp as it would require new cables and selling my existing. 

I received an email from Hegel regarding the H30 ability to drive 4 ohm speakers.  His reply is they push about 2000 watts into 4ohm when used as a monoblocks.  

Hi Rob

 

Thanks for your email.

 

In 4 ohms about 2000watts.  

 

Med vennlig hilsen/Best regards

Hegel Music System AS

 

 

Fredrik Johnsen

fredrik.johnsen@hegel.com

Tlf: +47 22 60 56 60

If you are looking for power, dynamics and control, it might be worth looking into the EC Nemo monoblocks.  They put out 1,200 wpc at 4 ohms and can drive your Magicos very well.  They are also black (with a thick, clear acrylic face plate). 

Elizabeth, that definitely causes me to lean toward the H30.  Looks like I missed a couple that were recently for sale. One left that I see.  I would have to sell what I have...
but I had a really enjoyable listening session last night with my existing equipment.  Might hang tight for now.  Ill try to listen to Bryston and Hegel at Axpona in about a month.

There are a lot of Bryston B cubed series for sale on the used market right now.  Not sure if that has any implication on their performance

theothergreg- Thanks for the recommendation.  The Nemo is a beast.
 From Stereophile 2000:
The discrete clipping measurements (1% THD+noise, 1kHz) indicated a power output of 757W (28.8dBW) into 8 ohms, and 1145W (27.6dBW) into 4 ohms (the power line dropped from 115V to 112V during this test).
Read more at https://www.stereophile.com/content/electrocompaniet-nemo-monoblock-power-amplifier-measurements#06U...

firegightingrob - I own the Nemos and love them (I would not recommend something I have not owned or tried for an extended period of time personally).  They are on the warmer side of the spectrum which I prefer coming from tubes.  The sound stage they project is huge and would be a very nice complement to the Rossi (I use a McIntosh C1100 with mine).  They are harder to find on the used market, but pop up from time to time from what I've seen.  Either way, you can't go wrong with any of the amps you are considering.

I'm curious on your impressions of the 326s.  I've been thinking of picking up a ss preamp and it's been on my radar for a while.  I used to own a 23.5, so have a soft spot for Levinson gear. 

theothergreg
I had Mac C2500 preamp and I loved the sound. I assume the C1100 is sublime.  If all of the glowing lights on the C2500 were defeatable it would have stayed in my system.  I thought it looked really cool with the green tubes visible on top too, but I don't have a rack that could display the tubes of the preamp in my configuration.


I found the ML 326s was extremely detailed- hear the singer turn their head type detail.  It was able to do this with only the slightest bright character to it.  It is not tube sounding- limited depth and 3d quality to the music.  It does allow a nice wide soundstage. It was bulletproof from an operational standpoint and was able to be configured and personalized to do just about anything I needed in my system.  I like ML gear too, and have never had an issue with them.  My Vinnie Rossi LIO adds some tube characteristics to my system and fits in aesthetically.

firefightingrob - Thanks for sharing your impressions of the 326s.  I was thinking I could go with a SS preamp since the Nemos are so smooth and I like the idea of bulletproof.  It sounds like I should stick with tubes, however, as it seems I share the same taste in musical presentation that you do and most likely won't get it from a SS preamp. 

I have listen to bryston before now i am a huge fan of hegel products. I have a DAC and wow also listened to amps and intergrated amps. Believe me for that hegel products are getring more and more expensive because of its high quality and amps of 5000 rivals woth amps of 25000 and up. The h30 is a beast and nothing would come close to it check the reviews.