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Starting from Scratch -Please Help Pick 1 out of 3

Dear Friends,
Hope that all of you are well, in a moment of transitional evolutional state of mind i sold off my Rogue Cronus Integrated, my Tannoy Stirling Speakers ; well pretty much the spine of the entire system.

I wanted to start over, i listen to a lot of varied stuff ; usually very complex stuff ; i love the weight of solid state gear and the resolution of their baselines and the treble which intermittently sound "filled" ; i also love the midrange liquidity of tubes especially on vocals and the natural timbre of orchestras and drum snares.

So i had gone on a spree to audition some gears, some which couldn't be heard are also included as a part of the system (say, i listened to the power amp but not the pre) i couldn't get to some of these due to various difficulties but generally i've put a package of 4 different set ups - i hope learned pundits here can guide through this to build a good system which i will use for a long time.

I am not the type for frequent upgrades.
Thank you!

The Candidates

Group 1
------
Pre : Rennaisance Preamplifier MKIII by VAC (Valve Amplification Company)
Power : VAC Phi 200 Power Amplifiers (Valve Amplication Company)
Speakers : Harbeth SHL5 [or] Devore Fidelity The Nines (Please Pick)

Just love the look of this system!

Group 2
------
Pre : Modwright LS 100 or Ls36.5
Power : Pass Labs XA 60.5 (Class A 60 wpc) but can take a few months to save
up for Pass Labs XA100.5 (Class A 100 wpc) if it really matters.
but evidence shows otherwise :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXGf3AonFCQ
Speakers : Magnepan 1.7
Which sounds great!

But Will the Modwright (semi-tube) impedance match with the pass'?

Group 3
-------
Pre : Leben RS28CX Premium Preamplifier
Power : CS-660P Separate Power Amplifier
Speakers : Harbeth SHL5 (or) Devore Fidelity The Nines (or) Devore Fidelity Orang Utan

Group 4
-------
Pre : Modwright LS100
Power : Pass Labs XA30.5 Monoblocks (30 watts Class A)
Speakers : Devore Fidelity Orang Utan

Also Please Feel Free to Mix-Match and Advice.

Music will be fed from my MAC to my DAC and to these.

Thank You!
thegoodarcher
thegoodarcher OP
70 posts
 
Sorry fellows, i really dont know how the Revel speaker topic got twisted here, as if you have would have read my posts - i have access to limited stuff.

I am going with the PASS AMPS, dealer just signed them in they say that it will take 1-2 months more for them to get the complete pass range in as they need to sample of the higher end ones, but i paid my advance and asked them to get mine in as fast as possible, theres no way iam waiting 1-2 more without any music..lets see..

as far as VAC goes - they seem very disinterested, my dealer says usually companies reply even if they are not keen, but VAC didnt even bother, so be it.

If my dealer gets me a discount i might even jump on the XA100.5 and for sometime will use my dac's preamp to connect directly to the power amp, as far as why not atma sphere amp - i have only access to a used m1 here in India, and on top of that - so many tubes scare the shit out of me - what if they explode and burn down the house!
ilidra
21 posts
 
Another idea. Pathos InPower monoblocks are excellent choice. 80W pure A Class hybrid INPOL design. Very warm, tube like sound with excellent bass control. Also they look amazing, Italian design. I paired them with Emotive Sira moded tube pre. Best sound wich I heared for sure. Hopefully you have Pathos dealer.
p59teitel
314 posts
 
Thegoodarcher - please accept my apologies for derailing your thread, and good luck going forward!
atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
11,850 posts
 
Thegoodarcher, Atma-Sphere amps don't explode :)

Yes, they have a lot of tubes but the tubes are cheap. And if a tube fails it does not damage the speaker. We would not be in business after 36 years if that were the case :)

We have seen cases where people had the wrong kind of fuse in place and even installed incorrect power tubes and in some of those cases speaker damage did occur. But that is the sort of thing that would an issue with any amplifier, so I don't think they count.

As far as fire goes, Atma-Sphere amps meet EU Directives and UL specs- that comes with the territory if you want to stay in business these days. Your worries are unfounded.
thegoodarcher OP
70 posts
 
Hello Atmasphere,
Sorry to offend you, i just meant it as a joke ofcourse! my dealer in India who i trust a lot speaks a lot about your gear, infact i was told that their group or company are about to contact you for some gears, or licensing i am not exactly sure what its about, anyway i hope to hear some OTL one day! should it arrive.

Meanwhile to my disappointment the used atma sphere mp3 single chasis preamp sold out and i had to settle for pass labs xp20.

Thanks a lot of taking the time to write, and clarify, indeed you guys rank in class leading status in manufacturing reliable OTLs or any electronics.

Cheers,
Manoj aka The Good Archer.
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