Silverline Sonata III & McIntosh MC275?

Tvad: Honestly, I can't remember if there was any Pass gear in the room with the Boleros. It was a number of years ago. There was absolutely NO Pass gear, or any other gear than what I mentioned above in the more recent show where Alan showcased the Minuets and Preludes. I remember, at Alan's suggestion, moving around the room to hear the Minuets from different locations. I was looking for a subwoofer, too. There wasn't one, even though it sounded like too much bass output for such small speakers (both Minuets and Preludes).

I've heard horror stories of lost and damaged equipment at the NYC shows, and even one case of a rather large theft. Under those circumstances, using cheap electronics is understandable!

BTW, I've asked before, but I'd love to know if anyone has heard the Allegros (which seem to be Preludes with extra woofers). They are more in my real-world price range than the Boleros.

Bondmanp, FWIW, When I demo'd my Bolero's at Alan's I listened to some jazz over some stacked Minuets driven by Alan's inexpensive SS stuff, mentioned above, and probably what you heard at the show. Come to think about it, that is what was hooked up when I got there and Alan was anxious to demo it, even though he knew that was not why I came.

Anyway, they were very impressive - imaging was unbelievably good. If I could fault anything, it was that overall the sound was just a tad dark, not as balanced or finely detailed as either the Sonata or Bolero model, and obviously there was no deep bass, but what there was was quite good.

A set of good compromises at a very attractive price I think. Tonally they were more like the Bolero's than the III's. Personally, I think a lot of the attributes and differences (I observed) can be attributed to that little mod'ded Monarchy amp's interaction with the speakers. When I got my Bolero's home and set up, they did not sound much like they did at Alan's. They were much more open and balanced hooked up to some of my tubed stuff, not nearly as dark. But at Alans the III's never sounded dark at all.

The conclusion I reached was that for someone on a budget those stacked Minuets and a good sub woofer would be a great combo for someone on a budget, and in a small room, sans sub would be an even better deal.

Thank you all for inputs.