what solid state amps for the soundlab u-1

Don't know why my two previous attempts to post to this thread didn't make it, but I'll try again.

Audfile74: A pair of Sound Lab U-2s (similar in size to M-3s) I sold were driven by an Innersound ESL-300 amp, which is capable of driving the speakers to fairly loud levels, though you may prefer other amplifiers, including some mentioned in this thread. The speakers readily reveal the character of everything else in the chain, especially amps that are bright, too laid back or polite, and so on. If the sound is either fatiguing or uninvolving, keep looking.

Rwwear: Interesting story. The Fouriers could be spooky good but were finicky. I owned one of their stereo amps at one time.

Brian

guy's you still have not explained to me what the u-2- is. how is it different from the u-1 ? is it a replacement for the u1?

The U2 is now discontinued but, was basically a smaller version of the U1 - a no holds barred electrostatic speaker. In fact I believe Soundlab will still make a U2 if requested. It was not discontinued for being old or out of date, just that Soundlab apparently considered that only one flagship speaker was appropriate. And, probably that their existing offerings (including the newer Millenium series) offered much of the performance of the U2 at a lower cost. I am speculating somewhat on both these points though. Frame features and construction is virtually identical to the U1. The actual panel size in the U2 is somewhere in between the M3 and M2 panels. But the overall speaker size is more akin to the M2.

If you have any interest in the U2 then contact Soundlab and, with a little bit of patience (or a whole lot) you should get a more accurate answer to your questions - tho be it known - it could take a while.

so i definitely want to stick with the u-1 . thanks guys i geuass it's time for me so try to set up some things schedule wise. thanks again

The U-2 has the same radiating area as the M-3, but it has a tubular steel frame similar to the U-1 though smaller in diameter, hence somewhat less rigid although the panel is smaller. Nealhood is correct, Sound Lab will build U-2s or most of their other models upon request, and they do custom work as well. They also built some U-3s which were similar in size to M-2s and A-3s (this is where it gets confusing :-). The M-1s, A-1s, and U-1s share similar size panels. Any of you fellow planar-heads curious about comparisons of other Sound Lab models present and past are welcome to contact me offline; I love talking about them almost as much as listening to them :-)

Brian