Which Amp to buy? The most frequently asked question on this site. READ THIS!!

[MUTZ57]

Yes, miniature tubes in the 300, I think Musical Fidelity bought up the tri-vista tubes wholesale and have a considerable stock of them using them in a number of limited edition units to date, ( I also had their Tri-Vista 3D CD player which was very impressive, big as with most of their kit but sound was top notch!), so likely replacements for their kit not really an issue for the time being……..hopefully!

Interestingly I had read about the NAD M33 and the use of the Purifi modules and wondered how these would differ from the Hypex modules, there appears to be many different implementations of class D and it’s a job to keep up!

Devailet get really strong recommendations, not a cheap alternative (relatively speaking) but one to try and similar casework to the Linn amps I had, these could be put anywhere as their size is quite diminutive.

Don’t get me wrong the NC500's don’t do a bad job on the ML’s and if it wasn’t for the fact that I had the Musical Fidelity to benchmark them then I may well have stuck with them, for their cost they are incredible (less than £1/watt). For me they just lack the grip and get up and go of the Musical Fidelity something that maybe the new Purifi design resolves?

I would be interested to see how you get on with the M33 into your Montis, and also how this compares with the Benchmark as I can get options on both of these readily easily.

Worth noting I also tried a Quad 909 power amp which had a similar sound signature to the Musical Fidelity, however I never really got to evaluate it properly as there appeared to be either an earthing or screening issue which prevented the electro stat panel discharging properly resulting in an earth-shaking crack from the panels when the plug was pulled from the speakers. May have another look at this to see if I can see what the issue is as this combination did sound good for the short time I had it running and I have one collecting dust so would be interesting to see how it fares and fits in the current hierarchy of amps tried to date!

 

[jofi]

The choice of amp for your MartinLogan speakers will depend on the specific model and your personal preferences. MartinLogan speakers are known for their electrostatic technology, which can present unique challenges for amplifiers due to their low impedance and high current demands.

Some amplifier brands that are commonly recommended for use with MartinLogan speakers include Parasound, McIntosh, and Bryston. These brands offer high current and stable power output, which can help to drive the speakers to their full potential.

It's also important to consider the power rating of the amplifier and match it to the power handling of your specific MartinLogan model. Generally, a high-quality amplifier with a power rating that matches or exceeds the speaker's recommended power handling should be sufficient.

Ultimately, the best amp choice will depend on your personal preferences, listening habits, and budget. It's always a good idea to audition different amps with your MartinLogan speakers to find the one that sounds the best to you.

 

[Rascal]

Jofi,

Do you have specific examples of ML ESLs and amplifiers that you have found work well together? What speaker(s) and amplifier(s) are you currently enjoying?

 

[MUTZ57]

The choice of amp for your MartinLogan speakers will depend on the specific model and your personal preferences. MartinLogan speakers are known for their electrostatic technology, which can present unique challenges for amplifiers due to their low impedance and high current demands.

Some amplifier brands that are commonly recommended for use with MartinLogan speakers include Parasound, McIntosh, and Bryston. These brands offer high current and stable power output, which can help to drive the speakers to their full potential.

It's also important to consider the power rating of the amplifier and match it to the power handling of your specific MartinLogan model. Generally, a high-quality amplifier with a power rating that matches or exceeds the speaker's recommended power handling should be sufficient.

Ultimately, the best amp choice will depend on your personal preferences, listening habits, and budget. It's always a good idea to audition different amps with your MartinLogan speakers to find the one that sounds the best to you.

In the main I agree with this and it’s a good starting point to ensure the specifications of an amplifier meets the demands of the individual speakers, but thereafter it’s a bit of trial and error as to which of the “compatible” amplifiers provides the best performance given the individual system requirements and as you say, the individuals personal preference. I think most will agree that no two amplifiers sound the same, albeit as we know it doesn’t necessarily follow that what I like, you like.

There are many, many different amplifier combinations that will (on paper) drive the ML’s but as you quite rightly say, what may be good for 1 model may not be so good for other models given the many iterations of ML’s over the years and bass, panel configurations, sensitivity etc. (my own experience with amps suitable to drive my own ML’s and varying results bears this out for the ESL 11’s alone)

That’s why this type of thread is invaluable to ascertain which options others have tried and had success with (some may not even fit the “compatible” model per se but have been found to perform well despite this) so as to give pointers that may help narrow down the field or offer suggestions of what works well. (given the caveats stated above, preference, system etc)

It’s very difficult for many to get access to equipment for audition purposes so look to others experiences to try and narrow the field (bit like reading the many different on line reviews but with the benefit of being in more real world systems and home environments)

I myself have found this invaluable so hence my own contribution to this thread to set out my own experiences in the hope this may be useful others.

 

[Dobbler]

Moving to a separate thread.

 

[Big Dog RJ]

There was a chap on one of our amplifier forums who highly sought after specs and nothing but specs. So just as a gig, we posted him a spec sheet and asked him to compare it to the other amps we were using at the time (Parasound, Bryston, Krell, Sunfire, Mark Levinson etc.) After a few posts, he replied with much enthusiasm saying that this particular amp's specs were the best he's ever come across and very highly recommends the amp. We all laughed our socks off... one of us fell off the chair so to speak. Then he was very eager to find out the amp type and brand, so we replied to him with much enthusiasm. It was a Kenwood car power amp!!!

That's all she wrote!

Goes to show, at the end of the day, specs can only be taken as guidelines, not the ultimate test. The ultimate test is to actually try out the damn thing. For unless you really tried it out, you'd never know.

I've used various so called high powered amps with ribbon panels and full range stats, although they were highly rated at 100s and 100s of watts, they ran out of puff! Just couldn't drive stats. I'm not mentioning brands for ethical reasons but specs doesn't give the full picture. Therefore, I take specs only as guidelines, nothing else.

Don't get carried away by spec sheets.
Cheers, RJ

 

[Big Dog RJ]

OTOH with reference to speakers, it's good to consider the specs, just to be familiar with what you're up against. Obviously the amplifier/s driving the speakers will deliver an outstanding performance or a very mediocre one. Whichever performance it delivers will determine its overall standard, by which only then will you be able to justify its price vs performance ratio.

Cheers, RJ