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Amp recommendations

Hi all,

I'm fairly new to the hi fi world in general. I was recently drawn to the sound of a display Martin Logan Montis at a Bestbuy store even though I was there for something else. I never knew speakers could sound that good. I have since been doing lots of reading, on this site and elsewhere, and this week purchased a pair of the Expression 13A.

So far this is the only gear I have; just figured  I should start with the speakers. I just have no idea what amp to buy. Much less speaker cables/streaming gear etc. I think every time I heard Martin logan speakers demoed (I've visited several stores) they were hooked up to Mcintosh tube amps. I visited a local high end AV store yesterday and he was pushing real hard for me to get the Mac..particularly the MA7900. They're quite expensive though, are they worth the price premium over other brands? I'd really like to get an Integrated amp because I don't want a lot of gear and it seems like it would keep the over all price down some. I'd like to get something that would sound great for ~$5k give or take, new or used. I don't mind paying a bit more, however, provided the additional money makes a real difference in sound quality.

I must admit I'm not well versed on all the audiophile jargon and have no idea what ohms, impedance, crossover etc mean so it's a bit hard for me to even know what will power my speakers. I don't know if getting a tube or SS amp is better for my speakers. I just want an amp that's low maintenance and sounds great for a reasonable price.

I'd appreciate some recommendations from you guys so at least I know where to start looking. Please let me know if you need any additional info.

Thanks!
Chuck.
devlep
caphill
674 posts
 

Yup. For your speakers I wouldn't skimp on electronics (amp, preamp, source components, cables etc) otherwise you will be left disappointed. McIntosh is well known to have good synergy with the ML. Doesn't mean that you should not look into other options. If you want to stick with McIntosh I would highly recommend either the MC452 or the MC 302 stereo power amp with the C47 or the C52 preamp.

Your speakers require a lot of power and are very low impedance. I wouldn't use an integrated amp if I were you. Most ML electrostats speakers require quite a bit of good clean power to do them justice. 

213runnin
914 posts
 
Yeah, it looks like those particular Martins go under 1 ohm at the upper end of the spectrum.  They'll make a budget amp cry.
kalali's avatar
kalali
1,977 posts
 
Given that the 13As have built it power amplifier for the woofers your amp will only be required to drive the panels. With that in mind, even with the low impedance at ~20K Hz, I can't see why a 4 ohm capable 200 wpc amplifier, especially a Mac, couldn't comfortably drive the speakers. Of course either the MC452 or a pair of MC301s would give you much better results but that would put you on a different trajectory which will require a more complicated equipment matching considerations. I have heard the SummitX model driven by an MC452 (direct feed from a Mytek Brooklyn) in a fairly large room and it sounded fantastic.
gdnrbob
4,444 posts
 
Perhaps a pair of Zero Auotoformers would help tame the low impedance difficulties? Then you could use just about any amp, maybe even the Mac integrated- though I would call them up and confirm.
B
kw6
692 posts
 
Hi fi World paired an Icon Audio stereo 30 se with the ML motion esl x. What you guys think of that.  30 w single ended class A.
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