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Most musical S.S. Amp under 2k used ?

i'm counting on you guys to fan the flames of this inquiry.

geez, i’m really going a lil crazy here with all this new and unexpected fervor toward this ridiculously addictive material. my girlfriends actually a bit worried about how much time i can spend on this stuff. guess the possibilities are endless. thank god i have a budget!!!!

just by studying the reviews i like what's been said about some of the krell's and mccormack's. which of these would be considered more musical overall - ksa-100, 150, 250 or dna 125, 225? what does 100 watts of krell sound like compared to 225 watts of mccormack?

other considerations: {please give feedback if you can... and remember - musical!}

PS Audio GCA-100

jeff rowland model 5

ayre v-3

edge g-5

conrad johnson - motif ms 2001

classe 201

gamut 100 mklll

arc 100.2

odyssey extreme

pass labs x-150.5

audio research 150.2

Meridian 205 100 Watts Pure Class A Mono block

Musical Fidelity A5

hosting a dear friend of 30+ years in my home in a couple of weeks and i really hope to have pulled the trigger on my upgrade amp. by then.

quite anxious to sit around the fire with my ole compadre - sippin on something smokey/peety & reminiscing... listening to tunes that helped define our youth. so looking forward to having the opportunity to hear some of our favorite music for the first time - if you catch my drift?

please help me to choose something worthwhile.

much obliged,
timtopper
dodgealum's avatar
dodgealum
1,402 posts
 
Though I have not heard many of the amps on your list my vote would be for the Audio Research 100.2. This amp has all the tubelike warmth and lack of grain you could ask for but will still drive reasonable loads that might give a tube amp some trouble. I have compared it directly to the 150.2, which is a radically different design, and prefer the older 100.2. These are hard to find on the A'gon because they are highly prized, but I have seen several over the years and they price in at around $1750. Good luck.
jaybo
4,478 posts
 
the ever musical cj ss stuff pairs well with a very wide variety of speakers.....the mccormicks are very versatle as well. the krell is a bit more unforgiving of poor sounding cd's, but has a great deal of energy even at 100 watts per channel. the paradigms are a well engineered speaker(quite accurate)....if i were you, i would go cj, though many you have listed are remarkable values
schipo
1,268 posts
 
go for an older SS amp and save money. Most if not all have not made huge changes in over 40 years.
bwfreak
15 posts
 
I run a Krell KAV-250A/3 and Krell FPB-400.

My speakers are B&W Nautilus 802 front, HTM-1 center, and 805s in the rear.

Before the 400, I had the 250A/3 on the fronts...sounds exceptional. The impact of the Krell is awesome. I have tubes in the front though...Cary 303/300 source and Cary SLP-98 preamp with HT bypass which is controlled by the Denon 5803.

I am looking into a Krell integrated (300i?) for my bedroom system (B&W 602s).

To me, there are a lot of similarities between B&W and Paradigm. They, especially the studio 100's, dig power. Krell can give it to you...so can Pass Labs, BAT, Bryston, and others on your list.

The KAV series from Krell (150, 250, 250/3) can be had used well within your price-range...with the exception of the /3, it's a couple hundred more.

Good Luck
catman2963
42 posts
 
Hello, I will try not to pontificate too much here about system matching and long lists etc.. I am a gear head and have owned a number of the amps listed with all sorts of speakers. Yes, it is a sickness.

The Krell amps you listed were fun to look at and sounded OK but be careful of the hums, buzzes, failing caps, etc of the old ones. The KSA-150 sounded great once you turned it up loud enough to drown out the hum and buzz. The KSA-200 was similar. I am sure the newer Krell gear is much better, but it exceeds the budget you have outlined.

The Ayre V-3 is one of the finest on your list and it actually is pretty inexpensive. I really enjoyed that amp and had a lot of sellers remorse after it was gone. If you need the power, that should be a top choice. I sold mine for a whopping 1250.

The CJ solid state gear has a very nice sound too. Avoid the cheaper Sonographe series. Very nasty sounding.

If you don't really need the power, I would suggest that you consider the Pass Aleph series. I have had the 3, 5 and now Aleph 30. They are quite good and provide adequate power for most speakers.

Another amp line you may want to consider is the Coda. Coda is built by a bunch of Nelson Pass's old buddies from Threshold out in Sacramento, CA. The Coda 10.5 or even a clean 10 would be fine for your system.

OK, I have blathered enough here. Good luck with your choice.
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