Ayre or Rowland Amp?


I am thinking seriously about stepping out of my tubed ARC VT100 MKII amp into something that doesn't require retubing. The Rowland 201s or the Ayre V5xe look interesting from reviews, but I haven't heard either. These will be fed by an ARC LS5MKIII (which I love) and will feed Watt/Puppy 7s.

There don't seem to be that many of either amp 'out there' so info is relatively hard to come by, especially on the newer incarnation of the Ayre.

Any feedback would be appreciated!

Bob Wood
128x128woodburger
I will have to second the "FANTASTIC" comment regarding the Rowland. I am using the Concerto int. which is said to be the "equivalent" to the Concerto pre / 201's. Can't write enough positive adjectives about it. The lack of "3-D" comment makes me wonder what the front end and speakers were.
I also have Concerto integrated and I couldn't agree more...and just to mention that I was a tube(300B SET) guy before.
I noticed Ayre is soon coming out with monoblocks which look small in size....they showed them at HT. May want to check on them or wait for them before making a decision. I know I am!
ayre is a much better amp than a rowland which uses little cheap power modules. rowlands are not great values