Nice to see this thread is still active.
I finally pulled the trigger and brought my 219 home!
I was about to buy a new one from the shop when I found out that a person I know was selling his.
Living in my home for just a few days, here are my first impressions with this amplifier as part of my system;
My system: a Nottingham Analogue Spacedeck from the early 90’s with a Spacearm, a Denon DL 103 “naked”, a custom made solid state phono preamp (with adjustable loading and gain), a CD player/DAC from KingKo (new brand from Hong Kong), Zu Audio Omen Def speakers and now this Line Magnetic 219ia. Cables are a mix of Morrow audio and DIY made by me.
I start by saying that I have listened to this amplifier many times in many different setups, always sounding superb. After nearly four years of courtship, I finally decided to bring it home. My main concern was “Will it sound the same in my living room connected to my system?” – well, it sure does!
Unpacking and handling this beast is no easy task, so make sure it sits on a permanent place and you’re not thinking about moving it around too much.
After all the connections made, I must confess I was a bit nervous when pushing the power button. It was like firing a rocket to the Moon! But instead of grunt and explosive noise the only thing I heard was… silence. This amplifier is very silent and I could only hear some hum when turning the volume knob all the way to the limit with no music playing.
I didn’t choose a particular record as my first, I just grabbed one that was nearby – the Led Zepellin IV. And it rumbled! From start to finish, voices and instruments were crystal clear. Low frequencies are strong and tight and the highs are crisp. Pure joy!
Record after record this amplifier presented the music in a very solid way, very palpable. The definition, texture and dynamics together with the incredible soundstage made me believe many times that the bands were performing in front of me.
This first afternoon I played Led Zep, AC DC (Live), Basia Bulat (Tall Tall Shadow), Allison Krauss & Union Station (So long So wrong), Beatles (Abbey Road) and Rodrigo y Gabriela (omonymous). It was like I was listening to all these records for the first time, because this amplifier puts some extra weight in the music. Everything sounds boulder, richer, with more body and detail.
Electric instruments and drums were very good to listen to, but where it really shines is on the vocals and acoustic instruments like classic guitars. Shivers and chills! Speechless!
Another thing I noticed clearly was that this amp doesn’t forgive a bad recording. Good records will sound amazing but a bad record will sound bad. It simply brings up whatever we feed it with.
I’m not an “audiophile” nor an experienced reviewer, just someone with a strong passion for music and some knowledge about music (also as a musician). What I experience now with the 219ia from Line Magnetic is way beyond any other amplifier that I heard before. It’s engaging. It’s organic. It’s addictive!
This one is a keeper! Together with my old Nottigham and the Zu speakers this is a fantastic sound system both sonically and visually. I wish I could stay home all day and not have to go to work…
All tubes are from factory and I don't feel the need of rolling tubes (at least for now). I am experiencing, though, a passive preamplifier turning the LM219ia into a pure power amp. Can't tell if it sounds better, just different. I need more time.
Are all the owners as happy as I am? :)
I finally pulled the trigger and brought my 219 home!
I was about to buy a new one from the shop when I found out that a person I know was selling his.
Living in my home for just a few days, here are my first impressions with this amplifier as part of my system;
My system: a Nottingham Analogue Spacedeck from the early 90’s with a Spacearm, a Denon DL 103 “naked”, a custom made solid state phono preamp (with adjustable loading and gain), a CD player/DAC from KingKo (new brand from Hong Kong), Zu Audio Omen Def speakers and now this Line Magnetic 219ia. Cables are a mix of Morrow audio and DIY made by me.
I start by saying that I have listened to this amplifier many times in many different setups, always sounding superb. After nearly four years of courtship, I finally decided to bring it home. My main concern was “Will it sound the same in my living room connected to my system?” – well, it sure does!
Unpacking and handling this beast is no easy task, so make sure it sits on a permanent place and you’re not thinking about moving it around too much.
After all the connections made, I must confess I was a bit nervous when pushing the power button. It was like firing a rocket to the Moon! But instead of grunt and explosive noise the only thing I heard was… silence. This amplifier is very silent and I could only hear some hum when turning the volume knob all the way to the limit with no music playing.
I didn’t choose a particular record as my first, I just grabbed one that was nearby – the Led Zepellin IV. And it rumbled! From start to finish, voices and instruments were crystal clear. Low frequencies are strong and tight and the highs are crisp. Pure joy!
Record after record this amplifier presented the music in a very solid way, very palpable. The definition, texture and dynamics together with the incredible soundstage made me believe many times that the bands were performing in front of me.
This first afternoon I played Led Zep, AC DC (Live), Basia Bulat (Tall Tall Shadow), Allison Krauss & Union Station (So long So wrong), Beatles (Abbey Road) and Rodrigo y Gabriela (omonymous). It was like I was listening to all these records for the first time, because this amplifier puts some extra weight in the music. Everything sounds boulder, richer, with more body and detail.
Electric instruments and drums were very good to listen to, but where it really shines is on the vocals and acoustic instruments like classic guitars. Shivers and chills! Speechless!
Another thing I noticed clearly was that this amp doesn’t forgive a bad recording. Good records will sound amazing but a bad record will sound bad. It simply brings up whatever we feed it with.
I’m not an “audiophile” nor an experienced reviewer, just someone with a strong passion for music and some knowledge about music (also as a musician). What I experience now with the 219ia from Line Magnetic is way beyond any other amplifier that I heard before. It’s engaging. It’s organic. It’s addictive!
This one is a keeper! Together with my old Nottigham and the Zu speakers this is a fantastic sound system both sonically and visually. I wish I could stay home all day and not have to go to work…
All tubes are from factory and I don't feel the need of rolling tubes (at least for now). I am experiencing, though, a passive preamplifier turning the LM219ia into a pure power amp. Can't tell if it sounds better, just different. I need more time.
Are all the owners as happy as I am? :)