Is there life after a KXR? Help

Bryceeboy-

On some level I agree with your comments about Mr. Hansens response to someone re-selling his gear, but on the other hand I appreciate their concern and care for their stuff. I think they take great pride in their work and should be commended for it.

I like the Atma Sphere idea but I'm not sure the current used offering is priced correctly and I need to find something sooner than later. I'm just beginning to explore the BAT option.

As to the rest of your post I value your opinion but I take issue with the last part.just because they didn't jive with your sound labs doesn't mean they are "way over priced". I have compared a lot of gear over the years and in the right system they are as good as it gets (IMHO). I'm obviously not the only one who thinks that.

Cheers!

Mike,

did you compare your MX-R's with Lamm's ? You mention that you have heard a lot of gear over the years, and I am wondering if the Lamm's happen to be one the amps that you have auditioned.

No Pinkus I have not but I'd like to. In fact I have not owned a tubed amp before, although I've heard quite a few in dealers showrooms. I subscribe to the theory that speakers usually sound best with one or the other depending on what the speaker designer intended them to be used with. The big tube amps can overcome that to a point but there is still an inherent design compromise that cannot be undone. Frankly I don't think my speakers would pair as well with tubes as they do SS. I'd like to move down that path but for now I'm enjoying the MXRs and I'm not looking forward to changing speakers.

Mike,

not all Lamm's are tubed. In fact if I remember correctly, the Lamm Ref 1.2 are hybrid amps, where the tubes are present only in the input stage (small signal tubes), and the output stage is SS.

Should be interesting to compare the Lamm's against the MX-R. I personally would rather own the MX-R's simply because of aesthetics and convenience. The Lamm's are very big and run very hot.

However, I have to say that I have never, ever, ever heard anyone say that the Lamm's don't sound good, or are dry, etc. That has to be some kind of a record for any amp. Search through the archives, and forget about hearing bad things about Lamm's...you will not even hear anyone say that the Lamm's were outclassed by some other amp.

I don't get it. You say the KX-R is your "ultimate preamp" but you can't afford to keep it. You have it for sale, asking about $13K. Your budget for a replacement is $10K. Looking at the rest of your system, it strikes me as odd that the $3K difference is beyond your means . . . just saying.