Considering the New Tekton Design Encores? AND Owners Group - Experiences/Questions

@jcarcopo,

I checked out your system and it is a very well thought out and put together system.  The Art Audio tube amp is really something special. I heard their amps at an audio show and if I was to buy a tube Integrated, Art Audio would be on my very short list.  

@stereo5 Thanks for kind words. My apologies for any misunderstanding on my part prior, I wasn't trying to be dismissive and I didn't know you had heard the Pendragons or had a negative experience. I only can speak to the Double Impacts and the Encores and they fit the bill for what I looking for in a speaker sonically (not so much asthetically, but with the Spanish Tile high gloss finish, I'm pretty please with how they turned out).  They are very coherent and the midrange of that array is quite spectacular imho. 
Unfortunately, my system setup is a bit out of date on Audiogon. I now have some Allnic A6000 monoblocks that use 4x 300bxls tubes in a parallel SET configuration and produce 60wpc.  I also have a Pass Labs Xa25 I'm really enjoying that I recently purchased. You can't go wrong with Art Audio though for sound quality, I've owned two of them over the years. I just wanted more power so I moved up to the Allnics. 

I have heard Allnic equipment and again, you have excellent taste. Enjoy your system. 

Anyone have any experience with the Schiit Freya+ and Aegir for the Encores?  I read in another thread that 2 Aegirs in monoblock mode was a good match for the Tekton Double Impacts, but I also hear that running the Aegirs in monoblock mode is not a good match for 4 ohm speakers and can trip up the protection circuit on the Aegirs.
Jcarcopo, do you like the XA25 with the Encores?  I am thinking about the X25 too after your previous reply to my original question about power amps, but $4,900 is a big jump from the $1,600 for the Schiits (or $2,400 for 2 Schiit Aegirs and a Freya+), and with the XA25 I can't go all balanced with the XA25 using the balanced out from my Chord Dave.

@jsoku I come from SET Tube Amplifiers for over 21 years. I love them for their glorious midrange. The XA25 was purchased from Moon-audio.com on a 30 day trial with a 10% restocking fee if I returned it, but my good buddy whose an audiophile said I would really like the sound of it. I read a few reviews by Terry London et al and his equating the XA25 to a SET amp really floored me.

When I got it setup and heard the first 30 seconds even cold out of the box I was speechless and instantly smitten. There's a tonal purity and inner detail in the midrange that leaps out at you with an immediacy that gets your attention right away.
The bass is very tight, the highs are sparkly. It begins to open up as it warms up and relax it's presentation becoming more and effortless as bloom on the instruments increases. The midrange is now starling realistic and as good to my ears as the best SET amplifiers.  THIS is the cheapest PASS Labs amp XA amp and it has the best damping 500, slew rate 100v, noise 50v, and it's 50w class A power envelope is at only .1% distortion which is incredible into any impedance .  It can even do 200w into 2ohm momentarily too.

Only 4 massive matched transistors per side, a completely singled ended class A topology through and through. It's a definite keeper for me. 

You can find them used for $3000 and you might find one on Hifishark on there right now if it's still there. 

I highly recommend the XA25 AMPLIFIER. IT'S PURE MAGIC!