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Who is the KING of MONOS?

WHO IS THE KING OF MONOS???

Mcintosh 501:
Big. Heavy. Reliable. Built like a tank. Smooth and pleasing. This chuck of metal will flow liquid sound at you all day and not even get warm. It is Fun to listen to and fun to look at. Arguably the best looking amp of them all. Some accuse it of being too laid back. Others would consider selling an appendage to obtain a pair.

Krell Evolution 600e.
Pretty. Maybe not Mac pretty but still pretty. Unlike lesser Krells it is smooth and articulate. Possibly possesses the best bass of any amplifier anywhere. Expensive. If it can be the King it should be expensive.

Cary SA 500.1
Probably has one of the best reviews ever written. Cary is said to be a perfect middle ground between Krell and Levinson. Not too laid back. Not too harsh or dry. Just perfectly nestled in the middle. Not big or heavy. A little plain to look at. Middle of group price tag. A few complaints floating around about reliability. A few complaints that Cary is cheaply made. Is it worthy of a King’s Crown? 10 Audio thinks so………

Levinson N 53.
It is pleasing to the eye. It has lots of clout. It has cost no object claims. It costs a lot of big American Dollars. It has a non typical switching power supply. Levinson is sometimes accused of being too warm. Is this the case the N53? The company has encountered a lot of turmoil in the recent past. Can it overcome the negatives and beat the rest? Will the new D technology be its demise?

Classe CA-M600.
Aesthetically pleasing but doesn’t match anything else. Another smooth operator. This amp has also been accused of being too laid back and polite. Sometimes polite is a good thing. Can it be the polite King of Monos?

Pass Labs XA600.5
Can anything negative be said for this beast. Another block of beauty that has a glowing meter. A little magic and a little hocus pocus maybe. I can see the others getting a little nervous with the Pass in the mix. If only the company would answer the phone and tell me who the dealers are. I hope the product is better than their customer communications.

Wyred4Sound SX-1000
Can it even fit in with names like this? According to the reviews and the manufacturer it can. Its Class D. Its Light. It looks good. According to a lot of people it does things Class A / AB cant. It is by far the cheapest or cost effective of the group. Can this economical wonder compete or beat any of these brutes? Will it wimper and run away with its tail between its legs? We shall see.

Let us discuss who the King should be. Let us discuss who it shouldn’t be. Who cares about price. This is a Royal group. Who is the best of the best? No one wants to hear “They all sound the same.” Don’t waste our time. These boxes have magic inside. Who has the most? Which one should we all be dreaming of when go sleepy at night?. Who is the King Of Monos?
128x128paimei
paimei's avatar
paimei OP
52 posts
 
I respect tubes. A lot. I respect your information. I dont have the experience with tubes that I have with SS. SS versus tubes is a whole other debate.

The MBL looks good. One of the few I have not heard. I will make it a point.

Harsh speaker. Well, I like smooth speakers. That being considered, I have run into some paradigm, klipsch, and Monitor audios that were a little raw to me. Im sure they would have all been better with better/proper electronics running them. Im not saying any of these are Bad speakers. I feel they need very careful matching or suffering may result. For instance, I once heard a Klipschorn on a tube amp. A low powered tube amp. Hated Klipsch till that day. It was impressive.

Thank you Cajunpepe for the comments on the Mac. Im Looking for the King of smooth to run my speakers. I have heard from many people, whether they like mac or not, say that Mcintosh owns smooth.
yioryos's avatar
yioryos
723 posts
 
So which mono should I buy?
0461
18 posts
 
I consider many of the lited amps as vorthy contenders, but two less known brands/ amps comes to mind.

Tenor Audio HP 350 monos. Wow.... wonderfull to look at, and wonderfull to listen to. They are hybrids and the tubes make them sound very organic, but perhaps not 100% neutural.

MSB 202. You will either love or hate the design. Personly I love it! They are not the most powerfull among amps ( 200w/ 8 ohms ), but they are the most neutural sounding I have ever experienced. Hifi Choice in the UK tested them in 2009, and Chris Bryant stated that they were the very best he ever tested. And he has tested hifi for quite some years now! Not to say that because he says so !!!! But Pass, Krell yes even Lamm sounds congested in comparison ( my oppinion ). State of teh art air, timing and finess are keywords discribing the M 202´s.
peterayer
1,382 posts
 
0461,
"NEUTURAL". I love it! Is that both Natural and Neutral? Best of both worlds.
doug99
288 posts
 
How about the Pivetta Opera amp
The amp weighs 500 pounds is 6 feet tall is 20,000 watts.
What the heck is this amp supposed to power?
An apartment building.
The amp lists for 650,000 dollars.
That is a steal. lol
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