ARC Ref 75 or PASS X250.5

ARC Ref 75 or PASS X250.5

  • ARC Ref 75

    Votes: 9 56.3%

  • PASS X250.5

    Votes: 7 43.8%
  • Total voters
    16
What speakers? How big is your room? What's your preamp?


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Mike said:
What speakers? How big is your room? What's your preamp?
Click to expand...

I don't know...I don't know...I don't know. Oh wait...my room is small; like 12 x 11 :P

I'm "playing" with gear right now; want to stop "playing". So...I'm not sure, what I might end up pairing with one of these 2 amps.

Right now I have a SP-16L/300.2, and PMC OB1i; but I'm also "playing" with my KEF LS-50s in that rig.

If I went ARC...maybe LS-26, and some DeVore Gibbon 88s? :audiophile:
 
If you are just playing and haven't settled on anything, what about:

Raidho D1, VAC i160 SE

OR

Harbeth HL-5, Hegel H300

Of the two amps you mentioned, I would lean toward the Pass because it has more power and a more "meat on the bone" sound. I prefer ARC with fat meaty sounding speakers like Sonus Faber.

The PMC's are very good speakers - and I would think they would pair well with NAIM.



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I think Mike's questions are really how you should think about building your system. Choose your speaker first (and based on your room size of 12'X11' I may consider a stand mount), and then work your way back to the amplification. The speaker (and by implication the speaker-room interaction) is going to have the biggest impact on the overall sonic character of your system. So once you chose that, you can optimize the sound by choosing the appropriate amplification and sources etc...Just my 2c.
 
cmalak said:
I think Mike's questions are really how you should think about building your system. Choose your speaker first (and based on your room size of 12'X11' I may consider a stand mount), and then work your way back to the amplification. The speaker (and by implication the speaker-room interaction) is going to have the biggest impact on the overall sonic character of your system. So once you chose that, you can optimize the sound by choosing the appropriate amplification and sources etc...Just my 2c.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I get it; but since I don't know what direction I might go yet...kind of an all-things-being-equal sort of thing.

I'm thinking about going back to stand-mounts too (my last ones were Dyn C1 Sigs...oh, or Harbeth 7ES-3s); but front-ported floor-standers seem to work OK in my room (PMC FB1i, and even the OB1i).
 
In that small of a room the LS-50's may be all you need unless you want to fill in the bottom end with a pair of smaller sealed subs like the REL's. The KEF's like current more than watts so work from there. Something like the Hegel, Primare or Sugden. Someone whose opinion I trust who works at a KEF dealer in the Boston area said the best sound he heard from the LS-50's was with a late 90's vintage Classe' integrated like the CAP-100 or CAP-150. Watts and current.
 
Jack said:
In that small of a room the LS-50's may be all you need unless you want to fill in the bottom end with a pair of smaller sealed subs like the REL's. The KEF's like current more than watts so work from there. Something like the Hegel, Primare or Sugden. Someone whose opinion I trust who works at a KEF dealer in the Boston area said the best sound he heard from the LS-50's was with a late 90's vintage Classe' integrated like the CAP-100 or CAP-150. Watts and current.
Click to expand...

Jack...I think the LS-50s, may be the best speaker dollar-for-dollar, I've ever heard. They are a bit tricky, as far as amps; and I think you're right, with that whole current instead of power thing.

I started off...in my Office rig...with a Rega Brio-R. Didn't feel like it pushed the LS-50s around enough. I read a review, where the W4S mINT paired favorably; but when I was about to pull the trigger on that, I went for a Hegel H-70 instead. Like it so much, I immediately upgraded to the H-80.

I was happy...and blissfully unaware; until I went to finally sell this little Cayin tube IA I had. The M-6 is rated 10 watts per side, from a pair of 6V6s. It had sounded glorious with Harbeth P-3s, and then Rega RS-1s; but the Rega Brio-R, and then Hegels pushed it to the sidelines.

Now...if the Brio-R and the 70, couldn't push these inefficient little guys around; no way this flea-watt beauty could, right? I hooked it up...just because I needed some pics, make sure all was in good working order, etc. OMG...best sound from the LS-50s to date! :weird:

Now...with the 300.2, they're totally not outclassed. They're really like a window; you get out of them, exactly as good as you put in. If I had to...I could be happy with them; especially in a room my size. But I'm so impressed with these...one of the contenders, with the speakers mentioned above; are R-500s or maybe Ref 3 (or 300s or 1s, if I go stand-mount).

I'm really leaning Ref 75. I've just read such good things...how it's just the right amount of tube; and just the right amount of not, if you know what I mean. I just worry about 2 things...over the really long haul: 1) can I find a DAC, that I'm also happy running as a pre-amp right into it; and/or, would tubes into tubes...be too much of a good thing (with certain speakers, and for my tastes). And 2) will it have enough juice, for whatever speakers might catch my fancy.
 
Another interesting amp in this price range.

Constellation Audio has introduced their Inspiration Series. The AMP 1.0 is a $10,000 stereo power amplifier that delivers 200Wpc into 8 ohms (400Wpc into 4 ohms).

The Preamp 1.0 shown on top, is $9K.

1_constellation_b.jpg
 
Rogers EHF200MKII comes with KT150's. Will SMOKE the ARC 75. I heard this little amp next to an ARC ref 5SE and a pair of 250's and to my ears it was much better.
 
ARC Ref 75 and a pair of ProAc Response D2 speakers on Target RS2 stands(if you can find them)or Sound Anchors. That will be a match made in heaven:heart::audiophile:
 
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