Class D amp driving Thiel

From what I know from listening about the Thiels is that after long listening sessions they can become tiring. Don't get me wrong, they make great speakers in many regards. My experience was that I loved them in the morning and afternoon, but after a long day and a full head, the detailed sound became hard for me to listen to for extended periods.

I have Totem speakers and these are known to be a bit bright on top, but have a very nice mid. I bought the Channel Islands (used) and have found them to perform very well with my speakers. They cut some of the brightness on the top but still have a very nice top end - much less fatiguing, even at night. The mids have been great and the bass is still tight, strong and I have plenty of reserve power for my needs.

As a reference, I have also been running the same Totem speakers (Arro and Hawk) with my B&K 507 S 2 AVR Receiver at about 150 WPC and a Golden Tube Audio SE 40. I do not feel that I have given up any of the emotion versus the Golden Tubes and feel that the detail delivered with the 507 has improved (better imaging/sound stage, improved rythm, etc. (PRAT).

I really have enjoyed them and if you can buy them on a 30-day trial or used (which means you could re-sell them easily), I think they are worth a consideration.

If you lived in Southwest Michigan I would loan you mine to try.

BOL

Before the upgrade to the Thiel CS2.4, I was happily driving the 1.6s with my Channel Islands D*200 Monos (class D). The D*200s controlled the Thiels very well and had more than enough headroom to drive my 2.4s!

Dennis

Reps at Thiel suggested to me that at least for the moment, class D amps are fine for subwoofers, but, for the rest of the range, they still have a ways to go to match the alternatives.

I would urge you to try any of the class D amplifiers for yuourself - Spectron, Channel Islands, Bel Canto ... to name a few, and to let your ears be your judge! I have tried SS amplifiers from several well known manufacturers but they did not drive the Thiels like my D*200 Monos did!

Unsound

In regards to the Reps at Thiel. I find it questionable at best, of anybody who would make such a gross generalization. I seriously doubt that anybody has had the opportunity to seriously setup and audition ALL the class D amplifiers on the market today to make such a comment.

Unfortunately there are a few manufactures of class D amplifiers that have discovered the economy and availability of off the shelf components which has allowed them to produce products with less than desirable sonics and large profit margins. On the other hand there are class D amplifiers that are so uniquely designed that their abilities have been very well received. Whether these amplifiers have a desirable synergy with any or all of Thiel products is another issue.

Regardless of the Reps obvious shortcomings I still find Thiel and the importance they place on time and phase puts them in very select company in the dynamic loudspeaker industry.