Clayton Audio
Full-sounding SS amps (besides Pass)
Speaker interactions aside, what solid state amp brands/designers tend to have a fuller sound these days? Not necessarily warm or tubey per se, but fleshed out in the upper bass and harmonically complete in the midrange, as opposed to lean. E.g. an Australian ME Sound amp I have from a while back has this quality, without sounding overtly warm.
Obvious candidates: Pass, Luxman. What else?
Cost no object, feel free to throw out one-liners. Think of it as a poll. (Please don't answer tubes though, thanks. :D )
Obvious candidates: Pass, Luxman. What else?
Cost no object, feel free to throw out one-liners. Think of it as a poll. (Please don't answer tubes though, thanks. :D )
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- 123 posts total
Are you planning on going all sS? Or a tube pre with SS power? BAT SS does not have a brittle bone in its chunky little body. The bAT SS amps sound quite different than their hollow state offerings to be sure mated with their tube preamps are a true winning combination; PLINIUS; YPSILON if you can handle one tube per ch; GRYPHON is reported to be quite full across the bandwidth with its presentation; AYRE is liked by a fair number of folks; Dartziel has a rep for solid full sounding amps; Bermester 909 - 600 wpc. A previous note on the speakers being added onto they amp du jours, should not be taken lightly, as they can further or lessen a fuller sounding arrangement. Take care there. I’d be inclined to put ypsilon and Dart Zeel atop my list, were money no object. Good luck. Merry Christmas. |
@OP, SMcAudio upgrades all the old McCormack stuff. Actually Conrad Johnson still makes the McCormack. One of the least expensive ways to get a McCormack is to find a non working model and send it to SMc. They essentially remove everything and put in a new circuit board and whatever upgrades you want in your price range. B |
Sorry, I should clarify - I'd like to focus on currently-active brands/models. I'm interested specifically in things I could potentially review on my blog (http://taww.co). So stuff that is commercially available and supported. (That said, used/rebuilt stuff is great and as a side project I'm always fascinated by modification potential. My Bryston B60 and Ayre AX-7e have been tuned up quite a bit with simple mods. I don't intend to recommend these mods broadly, it is simply my own pursuit of a truer reference sound.) @blindjim agreed that tube pre + SS amp can be the perfect combo, and I'm not opposed to the idea. I actually own a pretty decent tube linestage for that purpose. But I'm looking specifically for amps that don't require the tube front-end to flesh out their sound. Doesn't mean they can't sound even better with a tube pre though - in fact I think the best tube pre's with the best SS amps can be the best of both worlds. |
- 123 posts total