[vader8806]

I recently purchased a pair of Martin Logan Vantage speakers to be used in a stereo system only, i am currently using a parasound hca 1206 mutichannel amp with an older avc-1800 multichannel processor to drive the speakers with good results, i am wanting to step my equipment up as much as possible, and my budget right now is aprox $2000. I am interested in hearing hearing some opinions on integrateds v. affordable separates v. a single separate for the time being along with possible equipment options/suggestings


So far i have considerd models from:

Parasound (a23, P3 combo)

Anthem (integrated 225, or new receivers)

Sim Audio (I-1)

Vincent Audio ($2000 integrated)

Peachtree (nova)

cambridge audio


suggestions?

 

[johnridgerunner]

Emotiva!

 

[Class A]

Go online and check out the odyssey audio line. The Odyssey Candela is a Tube pre amp for $1500. The amp the Khartago $895 is 110 wpc goes down to a stable 2ohms. It has a 20yr warranty also. One other item Alon Wolf the owner and designer of Magico speakers uses the Khartago on his 89k speakers to to check out his speakers. Give Klaus a call at Odyssey his customer service is A+++.

 

[par4]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Class A /forum/post/19590914


Go online and check out the odyssey audio line. The Odyssey Candela is a Tube pre amp for $1500. The amp the Khartago $895 is 110 wpc goes down to a stable 2ohms. It has a 20yr warranty also. One other item Alon Wolf the owner and designer of Magico speakers uses the Khartago on his 89k speakers to to check out his speakers. Give Klaus a call at Odyssey his customer service is A+++.

Yes, the Odyssey line is a great value (and good for your ears!).

 

[ccotenj]

^^^


wow. a red letter day! something you and i agree upon...

klaus is a gem in the audio world... i don't have any of his stuff now, but stratos monoblocks (and a 3-channel stratos as well) have graced my rack in the past...


nice resale value on the stuff too...

 

[par4]



Quote:
Originally Posted by ccotenj /forum/post/19591404


^^^


wow. a red letter day! something you and i agree upon...

klaus is a gem in the audio world... i don't have any of his stuff now, but stratos monoblocks (and a 3-channel stratos as well) have graced my rack in the past...


nice resale value on the stuff too...

Egad, the apocalypse is upon us!


Klaus is certainly one of a kind. Unique and a pleasure to do business with.

 

[johnzm]

i think you should just do a preamp. i do not think i would recommend the candela, this is coming from a previous owner. i do however enjoy my stratos mono extreme immensely. i would recommend preamp shopping, or if you do not have the ability or shops near you, describe what kind of sound you would like. maybe we can help you pick something out that might fit.

 

[Class A]

One nice feature w/odyssey amps they are custom biased to the system that you own. This insures you get the right amp for the job plus that service is free. I'm not aware of anyone else that does that.

 

[WilliamZX11]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Class A /forum/post/19591662


One nice feature w/odyssey amps they are custom biased to the system that you own. This insures you get the right amp for the job plus that service is free. I'm not aware of anyone else that does that.

Custom biased to the system you own? What does that mean? Just curious.

 

[vader8806]

thanks for the suggestions, i had stumbled upon odyssey a while back, after reading a good write up in either TAS or stereophile, prolly gonna pass on emotiva though, while they might be a great value, they seemed aimed at the home theater market, not exactly the kind of product im looking for


anyone have any idea what the kismet link on odyssey's webset is for? product coming soon?

 

[johnzm]

kismet is available now. its over your price range (its klaus' high end line)


i hope you understand that while upgrading amps will change things a little, a preamp will DRASTICALLY change things, and have a large impact on the final sound of the system. you will be better off keeping your current amps and testing a few preamps.

 

[Lodef]



Quote:
Originally Posted by johnzm /forum/post/19592443


kismet is available now. its over your price range (its klaus' high end line)


i hope you understand that while upgrading amps will change things a little, a preamp will DRASTICALLY change things, and have a large impact on the final sound of the system. you will be better off keeping your current amps and testing a few preamps.

I agree. Changing my preamp once made the biggest difference I ever heard in my system.

 

[vader8806]



Quote:
Originally Posted by johnzm /forum/post/19592443


kismet is available now. its over your price range (its klaus' high end line)


i hope you understand that while upgrading amps will change things a little, a preamp will DRASTICALLY change things, and have a large impact on the final sound of the system. you will be better off keeping your current amps and testing a few preamps.

well actually that would prolly make more sense in my situation anyway, my current parasound amp works perfecty, cant say the same for my preamp


any recomendadions for preamps in the sub 2000 range? would the odyssey recomendation also apply to the tempest/candela preamps?

 

[vader8806]



Quote:
Originally Posted by johnzm /forum/post/19591579


i think you should just do a preamp. i do not think i would recommend the candela, this is coming from a previous owner. i do however enjoy my stratos mono extreme immensely. i would recommend preamp shopping, or if you do not have the ability or shops near you, describe what kind of sound you would like. maybe we can help you pick something out that might fit.

i have a local dealer that i have worked with before, which is i originally looked at the sim, i have had a good expirience there so far so i think that i feel most comfortable shopping there based upon the service that i have received so far, any suggestions in these available makes?


sim audio

anthem

bryston

levinson

rotel


also my budget is aprox 2000, but that is somewhat flexible just might have to wait a few more months to purchase if i end up looking at a higher priced option, thanks

 

[starchoice]

You mentioned the Anthem 225. This unit has many positive reviews. The consensus is that it is great bang for the buck. What I particularly like about it is that it has a good number of connections including phono stage. You should audition one of these.

 

[vader8806]



Quote:
Originally Posted by starchoice /forum/post/19596379


You mentioned the Anthem 225. This unit has many positive reviews. The consensus is that it is great bang for the buck. What I particularly like about it is that it has a good number of connections including phono stage. You should audition one of these.

I did get a chance to listen to this unit and was very pleased, my only concern during the demo was that it was running a pair of paradigms which while sounding fastastic, are quite a different animal than my Martin Logans

 

[NJTEX]

If you have or intend to add subwoofers, consider what type of bass management capability you will need first. That's the most limiting equipment decision bottleneck with 2 channel systems still today.

 

[Lodef]



Quote:
Originally Posted by NJTEX /forum/post/19597233


If you have or intend to add subwoofers, consider what type of bass management capability you will need first. That's the most limiting equipment decision bottleneck with 2 channel systems still today.

Many Pre/Int. amps today provide extra pre-out connections which easily allows a sub to be added. You just need to control the settings from the sub itself unless you get something like the Parasound 2100 which does incorporate Bass management.

 

[vader8806]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Lodef /forum/post/19597346


Many Pre/Int. amps today provide extra pre-out connections which easily allows a sub to be added. You just need to control the settings from the sub itself unless you get something like the Parasound 2100 which does incorporate Bass management.

The Vantage's are -3db at 34HZ so a sub is not really a needed unless i want a little extra low end output for home theater which is the secondary usage of my system, if i did add a sub i would prolly go with something like the ML Decent I which allows for internal bass managment, which eliminates it from my preamp equation

 

[Lodef]



Quote:
Originally Posted by vader8806 /forum/post/19597440


The Vantage's are -3db at 34HZ so a sub is not really a needed unless i want a little extra low end output for home theater which is the secondary usage of my system, if i did add a sub i would prolly go with something like the ML Decent I which allows for internal bass managment, which eliminates it from my preamp equation

Yeah, I have good size floorstanders ( PSB Silveri's ) which go fairly deep on their own but when I added a sub ( PSB M6i ) it added more dept and rounded out the sound making an already good sounding system even more.


I guess what I'm trying to say is , it will never hurt by adding a sub even if you feel you don't need it.