amplifier advice sought

[jim campbell]

Well, yeah, I agree, the dealer should allow Jim to audition the Krell on his speakers in his house. Especially to make the sale, say-so just isnt good enough at this level of price range!

Matter of fact, the dealer should cart the amp to Jims house, set it up, and demo it personally. If its that good, it will sell itself.

I think I might leave out " the dealer is a moron " part, though!

well i wouldnt say that,its a small dealer and theres not much else on the floor.im sure i heard him say that it is a consignment.i dont doubt he would demo it himself but as far as leaving it here for a week i kind of doubt it.considering the size of the city there is very little in the way of sota audio on offer.once you factor in the difference in the money and the 13 % tax you understand why.hes been in the business for a long time and i dont doubt his integrity and i do understand that the market for this kind of stuff is very thin here especially now that it must compete with ht

[John]

I have met that dealer, I can confirm he is no moron, He is a very knowledable guy that lives and eats audio and video. One of the best in town.

[jim campbell]

OK, I see where this is at!

I would call Wilson. They will be more than happy to make a recommendation that they truly believe in.

As for the dealers recommendation, Im sure the 300 probably does work on those speakers well, but, you still gotta try it on your speakers and see how it sounds.

You say you have a Bryston 4B? Have you tried that amp? Im not a Bryston freak, but that is a ballsy amp, and can deliver high current to the speakers, ( Makes good bass ) and might get you by in the interim?

Make arrangements, or try to, to get that Krell in your house for an in home audition.

the 300 was the amp used in the showroom to demo the wilsons and was excellent.the choice i have to make is to spend 5 k on a ten year old krell that over time may or may not be the be all and end all amp or to wait and pick up something like a 600 or comparable mono blocs for more money.i would like the next amp to be the one i marry.wilson says the minimum is 7 watts but im one of those guys that believes that more power is the way to god.the downside i see to the krell is that for best results it limits pre choices to the cast stuff.the bryston has been good and mostly used to power my l136a's but i will probably keep it as a spare and sell my 3b and sae 2200

[jim campbell]

I have met that dealer, I can confirm he is no moron, He is a very knowledable guy that lives and eats audio and video. One of the best in town.

care to wade in here john?

[Mr. Widget]

im interested in hearing any input for short term and long range power for my wilsons.

I am not a particular fan of Krells... but I have heard the Grand Slamms powered by some big ass Krell mono blocks... and the system sounded quite good. Another time I heard the Slamms powered by large VTL mono blocks... and they sounded pretty damned good too.

If I could afford it, I'd probably go with a pair of Pass Labs XA 200s.


Widget

[scott fitlin]

the 300 was the amp used in the showroom to demo the wilsons and was excellent.the choice i have to make is to spend 5 k on a ten year old krell that over time may or may not be the be all and end all amp or to wait and pick up something like a 600 or comparable mono blocs for more money.i would like the next amp to be the one i marry.wilson says the minimum is 7 watts but im one of those guys that believes that more power is the way to god.the downside i see to the krell is that for best results it limits pre choices to the cast stuff.the bryston has been good and mostly used to power my l136a's but i will probably keep it as a spare and sell my 3b and sae 2200

That the manufacturer tells you 7 watts minimum tells me something. The Wilsons are efficient. Power is important, but, the magic happens when you find just the right amp and synergy between speakers and amps is there.

If you trust your dealer, and I would assume at this level of gear, he is knowledgable, and values his customer base, take his recommendation.

If you heard the Krell on these speakers in the showroom, and YOU know you already liked it, I would say you can use this amp, and with a bit of effort in exact speaker placement, you could probably achieve very similar results in your room, sonically.

[jim campbell]

thanx all for taking the time to contribute.it is much appreciated and has been a big help in deciding which way to go.

[scott fitlin]

So, Jim, what way are you going?

[Ian Mackenzie]

Jim,

Pity we are not neighbours..you could try my X250.5.

The first few watts a fairly critical with a a system like the Wilsons.

I imagine the X600's would be a good starting point.

Ian

[boputnam]

P.S. Nelson went from Nakamichi to Adcom so I stayed with the builder from an engineering standpoint. (Excellent)

I am not a particular fan of Krells...

[jim campbell]

if i can find a krell 600 i n my price range and my pre amp will work.or plan b.............i saw a set of pass labs x 600's that were a couple of k outside my range.id like to use my sp6a for now and upgrade later.its tax time and i think my refund will just about do it

[jim campbell]

Jim,

Pity we are not neigbours..you could try my X250.Ian

and i wouldnt be up to my butt in snow either

[Ian Mackenzie]

Jim,

My keyboard needs replacing.

I would not mess around. Just give him a call and ask the question.

Here is a link to a review.

http://www.passlabs.com/downloads/poltun-xa160-x600.pdf

Mark Sammut at RenoHifi regularly has some great deals on factory reconditioned Passlabs gear. Mark also has excellent credentials.

http://cgi.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fb.pl?user=Renomarks&&&&

Ian

[porschedpm]

I'm currently using a Pass Labs X150.5 and an X250 in a bi-amp arrangement to power my 4343's (upgraded to 4344's). In my opinion it truly is musical nirvana and I can't imagine how it could get any better. When I first acquired these speakers I was running them with a Mcintosh MC-150 in a single amp setup. Sounded very good. A warm sounding amp but lacked a slight amount of detail. Then I replaced the Mac with the Pass Labs X250 still in a single amp set-up (got a great deal from Mark Sammut at Reno Hi-Fi http://www.renohifi.com/ ). What a huge difference. Still that warm sound but greatly improved bass control and detail. And they're built to last a lifetime. For a short while I bi-amped the system using the Pass X250 for the bottom end and the Mac 150 for the top end. It actually sounded better running single amped with the just the Pass X250. Then I got another great deal from Mark on the Pass X150.5 so I tried the bi-amp arrangement again and this time I got a quantum leap in improvement in both top and bottom end detail. The newer ".5" versions of the Pass amps also add a little more warmth while still retaining the detail. I can only guess the XA versions are even that much better. My first experience with a Nelson Pass designed amp was when I first heard a Threshold amp at the 1978 CES show. It was blowing people away it was so good.

I use a Bryston 9B-ST in a home theater set up and it's very good in that arrangement. But I agree with some of the earlier comments regarding the Brystons. It does everything very good and it has great build quality. But it's a little on the analytical side and lacks that last bit of warmth or musicality you come to expect from a high end amp. Don't get me wrong, it's a great amps, but it's your traditional solid state amp. Perfect for home theater.

Another high end amp that at least one member here (Ken P.) swears by is Boulder.

[boputnam]

Ian: Thanks for the Pass Labs review Link - the discussion of the variances piano brand to piano brand is very true.

Ed: Great review, helpful. Good to see you pop up!