a solid state amp that is recessed in the treble


i am a reviewer.

i have reviewed all components in a stereo system except a solid state amp.

i have heard some. they remind me of the novel, "dr jekyll and mr hyde".

what i mean to say, is that they do a good job, in the lower frequencies. however, somewhere in the midrange on up, probably above 1000 herz, they sound, hard, shrill, aggressive and unpleasant.

so, for me to consider a solid state amp for review, or even to purchase, as i have noticed, my tube amps warming up my listening room, i seek a solid state amp that sounds like it is attenuated in the treble, or seems to lack some detail in the treble.

i realize that for many audiophiles, i am looking for what may be considered very dark or veiled, but i would probably consider such an amp listenable.

any thoughts.

obviously i could call many manufacturers for advice, however, if there wer an amp that a number of listeners considered a bit lacking in treble extension, i would call the manufacturer and attempt to review it, assuming the amp was not already reviewed too many times.

your input is appreciated.

solid state amps have been a challenge for me , as i have not encountered any that i would want to own.

yes, i realize that a solid state amp will sound different than a classic sounding tube amp.

but, i may get lucky and find a solid state amp i can live with.

my speakers are the quad 57 and magnepan 1.6 .
mrtennis

Showing 1 response by gregm

Try any class A biased, low-to-mid power, SS amp.
Electro monos, the small Plinius... Any well maintained vintage class A amp probably could bring on happiness.
Another good if unlikely candidate is a wide bandwidth amp: Spectral for example.

Stay away from Krell, M-Lev, & the like. Accuphase would probably not fit the bill either.

I'm guessing you don't really needed a "muted" amp -- just one that doesn't sound shrill to you in the 2-6kHz region... After all, well designed tube amps reproduce high frequencies very well indeed, so if these frequencies are muted you'll miss them... even if the 57s don't go up very high.

I have actually enjoyed 57s with class A SS amp, hence the blurb above.