Power Amp to Match CJ Premier 17LS

I had the reverse situation. I bought c-j premier 12's, and the sound was so laid back, dark, and rich, that I was hesitant to match it with a c-j preamp. Mind you, this was just *my* situation, with *my* speakers, and might not apply to everyone else.

Anyway, I went with an ARC Ref 1, which has a leaner, brighter sound. This balanced the lushness of the c-j beautifully, and in fact allowed it to come through with great impact.

Therefore, if I were in your position, I might consider an ARC power amp, or even solid state--in short, something with a lighter, brighter tonal balance. For me, a c-j preamp mated with a c-j power amp--in *my* situation--would probably have been too much of a good thing.

As a matter of fact, my prior situation was perhaps even more similar to yours: I had a c-j PV-5 preamp mated with a solid state PS Audio 200c, and this worked beautifully for around 20 years.

hey Bublitchki, what speakers and front end did you have?

Thanks everybody for their valuable view and advice. It is an interesting question whether it is ideal to match a CJ pre amp with a CJ power amp, which apparently depends on personal taste, the system and the listening room. I will listen a CJ combo demo (LS17S2 with MV60SE, and LS17S2 with MV2500A, since LS17 is discontinued) at the local CJ dealer to see how it goes.

Hififan

When I had a PV-5 preamp and a PS Audio 200c power amp, I had Magnepan MG-IIB's. This was an excellent combination. Later, I bought Martin-Logan CLSII's, and though the combination sounded fine, the amp would tend to run a little hot, no doubt due to its being called upon to produce a large amount of current to drive the M-L electrostats.

My current combo--the ARC Ref 1 preamp and c-j premier 12 monoblocks--not only sounds better (for the money, it should), but the c-j amps seem to have an easier time than the PS Audio in driving the Martin-Logans. As a matter of fact, they even run cooler! Go figure.

My front end back in the PV-5/PS Audio days was a Proceed PCD CD player and a Denon DP-60L turntable w/Denon 103D cart. My front end now is a Sony SCD-1 (SACD player and CD transport) and Musical Fidelity Tri-Vista 21 DAC; and a VPI Aries 2/JMW-10/Denon 103.