Best Pure Musical Amplifiers (power not important)

[steve59]

I think the Pathos Logos Mk2 has an integrated class ab amp with a tube pre and for a $5k component I was surprised at how well it tamed the Paradigm Persona's.

 

[a.wayne]

While that may well be true, it should also probably be noted that the Rowland had the upgraded power supplies installed, which puts it at nearly twice the retail cost of the KR Audio Antares SET I had been using. My Odeons are 96 dB sensitive, so the 12 wpch output of the Antares seemed more than adequate - I never played it loud enough for clipping to raise its ugly head. It’s actually kind of nice to know that I have a highly capable backup amp sitting in the closet. I do recognize the effortless power contribution the Rowland offers, though. It would be hard to miss for anyone with a trained ear.

Realistically, especially on vinyl the Antares created an amazingly holographic sound field. Had it not been for my wife’s hearing issues, I never would’ve gone looking for an alternative. It just amazed me that after having an all tube system with which I was quite enamored, changing to a sand amp left me quite happy. I never expected that to happen.

For reference, the rest of the system is a Von Gaylord LAD-L2 6SN7 based preamp, a PS Audio Directstream DAC, the La Bohemes obviously and a pair of SVS SB-4000 subs. The analogue side is an EAT C-Major with an Ortofon Quintet Blue MC cart into an Icon PS 1 MK 2 tube phono stage. The entire wiring loom is Synergistic Research, nearly all with active noise shielding, and the critical stuff is Tesla Precision Reference. I’m still looking for one more set of the Teslas for the phono stage. Right now I’m running Looking Glass at that location. It’s still damn good.

That Rowland is definitely better than I expected. I thought that I’d be making a sacrifice, but it turned out not to be the case..

Absolutely positive that 300B was clipping unless you listen at very low levels ..!

BTW analog TT requires more power for playback than digital ..

 

[Porsche]

Absolute opinion not my favorite or a fan , would love to see the bench measurements ..

everything is opinion, but I can say I have heard alot of high end amps, both SS and tube, nothing compares IMO, having the adjustable dampening is a game changer IMO

 

[nc42acc]

Absolutely positive that 300B was clipping unless you listen at very low levels ..!

BTW analog TT requires more power for playback than digital ..

So I have an inexpensive 300b amp that I used to drive a pair of Revel F328Be and played at enjoyable levels in a rather large room. I can see the benefits of this type of amp and how many people swear by them because they are definitely purely musical.