Powerful Tube Amp for SF Strads?

Lloyd,
I understand you. But you are in trouble ... Gryphons is fantastic gear but does not have the fullness of tubes in my opinion. There is a way of making the premier 350 much fuller and more tube like - using the ART preamplifier, unhappily very expensive and nowadays difficult to get.
BTW, I only owned an ART series 2, never listened to a series 3.

Thanks Microstrip! Appreciate the warning! I am set up for the audition anyway, so it will be a good education for me. I am hopeful DM100 will be for me as I'm told its darker, more tube-like. We'll see! Will post!

Lloyd

Microstrip - I owned the cj prem 350 and I own the ART, even then it does not have the mids and upper frequency finese and roundness.

Lloyd, try not to have my comments at all sway you one way or the other - but very interested in your view's.

Anyway, back to Gryphon part 2. Please note that I have not used a fully balanced pre amp, let alone one of Gryphon's. The ART is SE and the Mac c2300 has balanced outputs but is not fully balanced, however IMO both these pre amps will be more forgiving that the Gryphon pre amps if not as potentially synergistic.

I have had the Antileon sig for 6 days now, and ran the unit in for 72 hours before listening.

The good and bad news. The Antileon does indeed sound more tubelike in comparison to the Colsseum, being not as transparent, a little darker sounding and not as quick. IMO it does not sound much like a great tube amp either. It sounds like a great SS amp.

The difference between my 2xMC2102's are that the tube amps present music as more of a whole, whereas the Antileon disects the stage more and has less back to front depth. The more you rurned up the volume, the more LOUD and fatiging cymbal crashes or lead guitar's were. It was not as if you could not hear them with the tube amps, you can, but the tube amps went loud in a more liquid, relaxed graceful manner

For me the Antileon is a great SS amp, but it is not a tube amp and does not really sound like one. It has tubelike qualities but is still SS. I have also heard tube amps where the designers have tried to make them sound SS and failed miserably IMO - eg ASL Hurricanes, ARC VM200's, cj 140's or VTL S400.

I still clasify the Gryphon Colosseum a fantastic amplifer and quite a lot better than the Antileon and EVERY other SS I have heard. It floats in air like no other SS amp, which is very musically kool.

I can see why some folks prefer SS over tubes - but for me the tonal weight, more relaxed liquid sound, bigger soundstage and overall easier to listen to qualities I guess makes me a tube man.

BTW, I run a REL StentorIII subwoofer connected at around 25hz and that certainly makes up for any lack of tube amp bass slam that I would normally be missing. In fact I find the sub an essential part of my musical enjoyment.

At this point I will just enjoy my McItosh 2xMC2102's, however I do have one other vintage amp trick up my sleeve that I might try.

cheers

Thanks, Downunder! I really appreciate your candor and respect your insights. Funny - I have Velodyne DD18 in parallel with my Strads...once again our tastes and systems seem to run a parallel path.

I will let you know my own thoughts on the DM100 next week.

Separately, did you ever hear the CJ LP 275? I recall you were thinking about it. I love my little CJ MV60....maybe I just get another one and monoblock? Thoughts?

No Lloyd, I did not get to listen to the LP 275. Frankly due to the dealer not being able to offer any trade in, I am not able to afford the luxury. I am not even sure he has one.

I am sure monoblocking the MV60 will definately be better, only use can decide if 120watts is powerful enough for your room - I would think so thou - especially since the bottom end is argumented by the sub's.