Review on Coda Technologies 16 Amplifier went live today

@smodtactical 

The Modded Altec Lansing 1570B mono blocks have 165 watts each. They run (2) 811A power triodes. The high voltage Peerless transformers are what makes them special. No one makes these anymore.

I have a 96db speaker currently use an OTL and very happy too. 

I was looking for a SS amp from a flavour pov of great low LF. Anyone have an opinion on the S 5.5 since I dont need a lot of power it looks like the ticket for me. 

I've been a Pass Labs owner in the past and I find the sound boring vs say Karan Acoustics which I owned too. 

I've since departed from SS completely and gone down the high sensativity speaker and low power amp way. Looking to have a good SS now. 

Would be glad to know opinions of others on the S5.5 50watt pure class a amps.

I know this is an older thread but I wanted to discuss a bit. I have a summer system and a winter system. CJ Tubes for winter (ET5 and P12 amp) and I have a NAD M23 amp for summer that I would like to pair with a SS pre. I am considering the Coda 07x to use with the NAD. If I like it enough I might even use it with the P12 in the winter. A buddy lent me his Parasound JC2 and Benchmark LA4. The JC2 had incredible bass probably the best I have heard but the highs had a bit of grain to it. The LA4 was crystal clear but was flat sounding. Like everyone says it appears to be neutral. Note I did have to float the ground on the LA4 as I was getting some hum. It is a quiet unit. Thoughts? I dont mind (in fact prefer) a Pre with some character.

Hey jimbones,

Take a look at my Stereo Times review on the 07x which will give you the details of why this is one of my favorite solid state preamplifiers. 

Teajay

I owned the 07x | LA4 + HPA4 | Holo Serene preamp | Schitt Mjolnir v3 at one time and paired it with the CODA #16. Actually, the 07x may have been paired with the CODA #8. A bit of a blur now.

The 07x did not have the detail that the LA4 and the Holo Serene provided me. It was also noisier than those 2 and I could hear noise on very quiet passages. Once I heard that I always focused on that so the 07x had to go. A lot of people on here have said I am crazy with that observation.

My 07x was rebuilt by Doug at CODA due to this issue since it was noisier than the dealer’s unit. We had them side-by-side and compared. However, even after Doug replaced every single component on my 07x, except the case, I still found it lacking in comparison to the LA4 and the Serene.

The LA4 is indeed not holographic and will not add to the sound. However, my speakers have a bit of warmth and that is all I want. If you want a bit more warmth from your preamp, the Holo Serene will provide a bit more than the LA4.

A good way to figure out if you like the LA4 is to do a 30-day home trial from Benchmark. The Serene is almost identical sonically, except for a bit more warmth.

My Schitt Mjolnir v3 is a Class A preamp and it is rather good, better than the 07x for me. It has no remote and is very warm. I do not like it paired with the #16, It is too much of a good thing, but I think a lot of others would like it over the LA4 and Serene paired with the #16.

The thing with the LA4 and Serene is that the other components really dictate how your system will sound. For example, the CODA #16 system is not that great with the warm-ish Schitt Yggi+ LIM DAC. However, it is amazing with the more neutral Yggi+ OG DAC.

BTW - I mistakenly thought your amp was the CODA #16. I had the NAD M22 v2 in the house for 30-days paired with the LA4. I hated the sound and luckily was able to return it.