To Davt:
I spent some "time with it" yesterday, first at the store to test it with the Prodigys that are on consignment. I wasn't floored by the Prodigys, though, as I found them very detailed on songs full of detail, and with impressive bass that were heavy in that department as well, but when songs were complex, with a mix of highs and lows, I found the Prodigys to emphasize the bass moreso, with the highs getting lost in the shuffle.
I decided then to take the CA-2200 home for further listening (as that was easier than getting the Prodigys home for a listen), but in my own room and my own system. I was impressed with how it worked there, particularly with how it made the Apogees sound. I'm not look for an amp with a "slam," but one that doesn't lie, and is very exacting in its reproduction.
I think you are accurate about your "timbre" comment, as I came away with the same sense when I listened to the CA-2200 in my home setting.
For what I was willing to spend on a Mark Levinson that is anywhere from 10 to 15 years old, the Classe seems to be a great value in being new with a full warranty and being less than $1,000 more than the used Levinson.
To Ghostrider45:
While I was at first enamored with the idea of getting a set of Logans, I have come away more torn in not wanting to "write off" the Duetta Signatures. The only problem is that a few months ago, I began to hear some vibrations from one of the panels (the one that was repaired in 1996 by ADS when I stupidly tried to install the feet while sitting down and resting the speaker on my knee, only for it to slip and fall into a stack of equipment, damaging the bass panel) and I'm thinking that the foam in that panel needs to be replaced. The other panel has no such resonances. So the consideration of that repair cost/time is now bouncing around in my head as well.
From what it sounds like, the CA-2200 should, by itself, handle the Duetta Signatures load, even if it can't handle the combination of both the Duettas and the 2Ce's together, as a Classe rep told me by e-mail himself.
To no_money:
Keeping the cat off will be a challenge. I have a rack that has 9-inch spaces, and while the CA-2200 does "fit", it only leaves a quarter-inch gap above it. Classe on it's Web site cites the need for at least six inches of space, so I'm thinking of putting it on the top of my rack, which would keep it open, but at that height of about three feet, I don't see my cat ever making that leap, as she never even tried in the seven years I've had her. Where the Levinson was on the floor, largely because of its 125 pound heft and my concern of that weight on the top of my rack, she just had to climb up. The Classe is "lighter" at 92 pounds, and I think the rack can conceivably handle that weight at the top.
