Amp for LS50
If you are seriously considering musical fidelity, check out upscaleaudio.com. He has the m2si integrated at 40% off the 1k msrp. Unless you go used and get more for your $$$. And can stretch it a bit, this Hegel here on AUDIOGON would have plenty of power for your ls50s https://www.audiogon.com/listings/lis98g51-hegel-h-160-h160-h-160-integrated-amplifier-solid-state |
I agree with the other poster, $1000 is not enough to drive LS50’s. You may need to go up to $2-3k to be honest. But if you can’t, then perhaps the NAD receivers or Outlaw Audio RR receiver is a good buy. Peachtree is good too, focus on integrated amps with less features. Two channel, don’t get some 5.1 channel home theater receiver with 10 million inputs. |
What sort of sound signature are you looking for? Actually, all amps sound great with the LS50 and while a better amp does make it sound a little bit better, I found my sweet spot to be the Schiit Ragnarok and anything after that is really minimal. A very good amp within your budget is the Cambridge CXA80, it's not as clean and revealing as the Schiit, but it comes with a decent DAC and is quite satisfying. I personally do not find the Musical Fidelity M5si a good match as it becomes too sibilant/brillant/harsh for me, but you may have higher tolerance. Also, save some money for a good DAC, I find it affects the sound much more than the amp, especially for the LS50. |
Abasia, Thanks for the input! I do like Schiit products; I’ve had a couple of thier products before. I’ll look into the Ragnarock. I am currently just using a Red Dragonfly dac with Jitter Bug streamjng tidal from a laptop. I’m still trying to figure out the signature sound of the Kefs but they seem pretty neutral. The sound that I enjoy is revealing, sweet and airy. I like that top end detail / sparkle but I also enjoy being able to hear deep into the mix with lots of detail / ambient retrieval etc. For reference, my favorite set up this far was a Classe CA200, lightspeed attenuator, schiit bifrost dac, paradigm signature 2 V3 with berrylium tweeters... |
