Sanders Magtech versus Spectron Musician 3 Mk2

I have Maggie 3.7s, and I've owned Spectron amps for many years.  Sadly, those were troubled years, as reliability was an issue across three different boxes. While the company always backed up their products, it sucked to be out of music while the units were being repaired; sometimes up to a month at a time.

Also, be advised that many of the principle players at Spectron have passed away, so I'm not sure about the long-term viability of the company.

When moving off Spectron, I auditioned a number of great amps, including the Sanders Magtech. Roger was a fountain of knowledge, and he provides a risk-free trial, so you can't really go wrong.

That said... I didn't like the Magtech much, and wound up returning it.  I bought a Rowland Continuum S2 integrated, and really couldn't be happier about the choice.

Actually, @dsper, I found the Sanders Magtech and Spectron III MK2 w/all upgrades to sound much the same, which is why I went in another direction.

Precise. Clinical. Sterile. Accurate, but with little emotion that might draw me in.

With the Maggie 3.7s, I found the detail and precision in the upper registers to be sometimes sharp, shrill, and ear-bleed inducing. Could be my room, too, or any number of other factors.

My final comparison was between Merrill Veritas and Rowland CS2. The Veritas monos are a killer amp; they beat almost every other option. But, for my tastes and ears, the more mellow, nuanced Rowland house sound was what I needed to tame things down quite a bit... more warm and ’tube-like.’ Now, rather than feeling that the music is overly analytical, it sounds more as music should be.

This might also be due to the Rowland pre- that is integrated into the amp. Previously with all other amps, I went straight from DAC to amp.

I have the 3.7i with the Sanders Magtech and an Aesthetix Calypso Signature and the highs are not shrill at all. I’m not running the resistors at all but am using Empirical Audio jumpers. I’m also using GiK Q7D diffusers and Monster Bass Traps with range limiters and scatter plates. My room is quite large (35’x15’x10’).

I did have shrillness in the upper registers when I was using the stock jumpers, Odyssey Kismet in Stratos, and no room treatments, but with each addition (first the Empirical Audio jumpers, then the GiK room treatments, and finally the Sanders Magtech), the shrillness decreased.  The Odyssey monos especially strained at higher volumes (75db-90db).

I’m actually picking up a Spectron Musician III mk2 with all of the upgrades tomorrow and will be able to directly compare to the Magtech.

Please let us know how the Spectron compares