AudiogoN Forums: What stereo amp sounds better than digital monos?

What stereo amp sounds better than digital monos?

I want to replace a pair of Red Dragon digital mono blocks with an excellent SS stereo amp of approx 150 RMS.I have Acoustic Zen Adagios speakers

I am not interested in tube amps or tube rolling. Need input and/or recommnedations. I CANNOT afford $5000 ARC, Levinson, Krell or other super high end basic power amp. In the past, have considered Odyssey Stratos SE, McCormack DNA-1 upgraded to "REV B" or "REV A" level; also, the better Conrad Johnson SS power amps. Thank you.

Sunnyjim (Threads | Answers | This Thread)

06-20-12

Responses (1-21 of 21)

Click title to read one, or click date to read all below it.

06-20-12 Boulder might have something different and perhaps better to ... Mapman

06-20-12 Is you pre-amp ss or tube? if tube, any amp with 60k or gre ... Mapman

06-20-12 Hi sunnyjim i don't know if another kind of amp sounds bett ... Jedinite24

06-20-12 Krell may be of interest. i have the kav-150a from 1999 and ... Velocityofhue

06-21-12 I owned a pair of adagios for a year or so. the amplifier th ... Kcufnogoidua

06-21-12 Thanks to all responded so far. to mapman: boulder amps are ... Sunnyjim

06-21-12 Sunnyjim, i would suggest you try a rowland model 2. i've h ... Danielk141

06-21-12 Yes, me to in regards to expensive amps like boulder. i w ... Mapman

06-22-12 To daniel, i have a bel canto pre-3 pre-amp line stage which ... Sunnyjim

06-22-12 " can't afford $5000 super high end basic amp " ... Tmsorosk

06-22-12 Good luck. mccormack is a very reasonable choice. my strate ... Mapman

06-22-12 Sunnyjim, i'm curious. i've been considering getting a pair ... Johnnyb53

06-22-12 Sunnyjim, what i mean by truly balanced is a component that ... Danielk141

06-22-12 To daniel...thank you for the explanation to tmsorosk: excu ... Sunnyjim

06-22-12 Johnnyb53. audiogon keeps assuring me that they will soon i ... Sunnyjim

06-22-12 Have you tried contacting acoustic zen for their reco's on a ... Tholt

06-23-12 To tholt, sorry, but what are "reco's" if you m ... Sunnyjim

06-24-12 Sunnyjim, you might want to check with adcom the 5802 is a f ... Koiman

06-25-12 Koiman, the adcom 5802 owners manual shows the following va ... Danielk141

06-26-12 Don't be afraid to audition coda amps. great sounding amps. ... Sgr

06-26-12: Tonyjack
I also own the Red Dragon M 500 amps and I agree that for the $'s they are quite remarkable sounding amps. I have also been using them with banana plugs with no problems. I have not found them to be tipped up in the detail dept although maybe with certain speakers that may be a perception. I'm using Vandersteen 3A Sigs and also an ARC SP16 Tube Preamp. I did not like the amps with a NuForce P8 preamp in comparison. It would be interesting to hear from other owners of these amps to find out which speaker/preamp combos they are using. Good luck with your quest. The upgrade bug is indeed hard to resist.
Tonyjack (Threads | Answers | This Thread)