2. amps-preamps
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sonus faber strad power amp suggestions

I am powering sonus faber strads and martin logan summits and anML center channel through a krellkav500 and akrell
foundation preamp I should put the strads thru a separate 2channel amp ,suggestions bryston4b3 or passlabsxa350.8?
drmarshotel
ei001h
283 posts
 
Audio research tube amp, ARC Ref 75 would be amazing.
Krell KAV is meant for home theater, thus (KAV ) Krell Audio Video. Strads deserve good amplification. 
lostbears's avatar
lostbears
538 posts
 



    I have the Sonus Faber Elipsa SE Red speakers, baby strads:) I use an Audio Research Ref 110 to power them. When I upgrade, it will probably be to the Audio Research Ref 150 SE. I definitely would want more power than the Ref 75. The Ref 110 is about perfect.

    If I were going to move to solidstate, it would probably be to something like the Pass Labs XA150. The Pass Labs amps are a great match with Sonus Faber speakers. Though I will say that I a pair of Simaudio 400M monoblocks in my system some time ago. These were just excellent sounding amps and they did not get hot.

    Keep in mind though that while everything is important. The preamp is going to have more impact on the sound then the amp.





drmarshotel OP
2 posts
 
the "strads" are obviously stradivai ,i am a "speaker guy" and have spent 50 years to reach this level of speaker system. That said, my orientation is "power is power".I am very naive with respect to amplification. my room is roughly 25 by 35 and my set up "sounds great", but i seem to be selling my speakers short with the KAV unit. so any feedback on power amplification would be very helpful!
ei001h
283 posts
 
what's your budget? 
tricon_dave
96 posts
 
I am using Pass X260.8 amps with my Strads and really enjoy the combination.  They have more than enough power to fully load my 17 X 34 X 9 room.  They stay in Class A up to 34 wpc, which means that I'm listening in Class A most of the time.  The amps are detailed, dynamic, and on the warmish side.  I use a Pass Labs X22 preamp and X17 phono.  In my experience, whenever I use electronics from the same manufacturer there is a special synergy.   While there are many good options, Pass Labs is hard to beat for the money. 
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