USHER BE-20 + Spectron Musician III MK2

Natty,
I am currently using a BAT 51SE preamp and a VAC Phi 110 stereo amp on my Be-20's and love it. Great sound, huge sound stage and all the other audiophile words apply, great combo IMHO.

Regards,
John

Hi Natty,

My speakers are Watt/Puppy 8 - still I own Spectron monoblocks and for a few months, I am in waiting list for Joule-Electra "300" preamp. I been told today that in a few days it will be shipped and I will post my impressions.

BAT VK52SE or better REX (not 51 with solid state power supplies) are also good preamps but at $250 per tube with need for re-tubing every year or two (6-10 tubes?) - can't be even compared with "300" where you need to re-tube every 10 years or so and cost of full retubing with NOS tubes is....$210. Nothing can beat it. Sorry.

Mike

Hi Natty,

I am using the Spectron M3 (with Bybees)/Joule Electra LA-300ME combo with Vienna Accoustics The Music speakers and find the pairing to be magical (ICs are Jade Hybrids). I have never heard the Ushers so I can't comment on their sound or how they will interact with the Spectron but I can say unequivocally that the Spectorn/Joule combo works very well. If you do go with the Spectron amp I would also strongly recommend the new Spectron Remote Sensing speaker cables. Simon Thatcher played a major role in their development ane they work synergistically with the Spectron amp (much better than the earlier versions which I also have). As noted above there is a wait list for the LA-300 but it is definitely worth the wait.

Thanks all gentlemen for your great opinion.

I'm also considering Plinius SA Ref.. What do you think?
What's about ARC Ref.3 as pre.?

Cheers....

If 200 lbs weight and generated heat does not bother you then Plinius Reference is a great amp. One of the best around. A touch better then Spectron in highs and touch worse then Spectron in the bass and slam areas. Midrange, I much prefer Spectron but with Bybee filters only. Without Bybees - if I recall well, both are about the same (except weight and heat)

ARC Ref.3 - no comparison with BAT REX or Joule-Electra LA-300 or VTL 7.5, in my totally subjective opinion. Dry, no life-like presentation which you will need so much combining your tube preamp with transistor amp be it Spectron or Plinius.

All The Best
Rafael