Spectral Amp

I heard the spectral amp/preamp driven by the Wadia CD player at a dealer when I was listining to Revels. I asked if the CD could drive the amps directly and was told they tried it and that the music sounded lifeless. This matches my own experience in my system driving poweramps directly from DAC's that from the spec's should have no problem with the amps. More detail but less musicality. I also find Spectral dry.

SANGSERM: Consider Krell FPB of a used KAS before you buy a Spectral amp. JUST BECAUSE Spectral amps can only be driven well by their respective preamps doesn't mean that MOST OTHER power amps can't be driven by a CD player. LOOK DUDES, I have a Resolution Audio CD50 (it's at least as good as your Levinson 39, maybe better). I'VE LOOKED INSIDE IT, AND I GURANTEE THAT IT'S BIPOLAR OUTPUT TRANSISTORS ARE BIGGER AND "BEEFIER" THAN ALL OF THESE KNOWNOTHINGS THAT ARE SAYING THAT THEIR PREAMPS CAN "DRIVE" A POWER AMP BETTER. Spectral is an exception...I use some of the best MIT interconnects to drive my KRELL amp directly from the CD player, AND MY SYSTEM IS SUPREMELY DYNAMIC AND HI-REZ...to the point of blowing away anybody who listens to it! JUST COME BY AND HEAR FOR YOURSELF! I know what I'm doing, here. Do you? Mine'll run with the best of them.

Carl I think it is fairly dependent on the DAC-Poweramp combo. As in the pair of our posts on the topic of passive preamps... How much difference you hear will depend on the specific combo.

...i had pleasure of listening "spectral" at the "golden nugget" hotel, during 97 CES. I cannot remember what model, but i believe it was that year, "spectral's" latest "stuff". Spectral was driving i remember "avalon osiris??" 60k pair of speakers. Anyway, the sound was...as good as it can be. So what i try to say is, mixing and maching is just game of pure chance. You might get better sound, but most likely you wont...so stay with ALL Spectral (if you can afford)

As long as the power amp's input imedance isn't really low, or the voltage sensitivity isn't overly high, driving it with the average preamp won't be a problem. THE PROBLEM IS, you are thinking that a CD player's output stage can't be designed to drive a difficult load. Like the chick with the fake British accent and the funny makup in the movie says, "YOU ASSUME TOO MUCH"...without experiencing one of these beauties first hand.