Any love for the Belles Aria or other recent Belles amplifier?

Thanks jl35 - I'll look for his posts.  The soloist was another consideration.  Good to hear you like yours so much.

I just purchased a pair of Reynaud Bliss Silvers/Magic Stands, and I have Triangle Zerius and a pair of demo Finale Vivaci Mini speakers.  Different amps from the Belles lineup will match up better with different speakers, or at least that is my assumption.  I think a 350a Reference would be best with Reynauds, but the Aria is probably best for the Triangle and Finales.

It sounds to me like I can't really go wrong with any of the Belles amps.  I appreciate all of your feedback - it reinforces the positive evolution of the 150a Hotrod by a highly talented designer.

I'll post some impressions once I get the Reynauds and Belles amplifier in the house.  Based on hearing the Reynauds at Amherst Audio, I think the Belles pairing could be a grand slam combo, but I do love my Zerius...we'll see.

Thank you all for your insightful posts.

Cheers!

Thanks birbygdad and whitestix - great info!

Rich and JohnnyR - thank you for the additional information.  

It looks like I can find a nice condition 150a V2 a few hours away, so I will try that with my passive transformer volume control (sounds great with the Hotrod).  If I need more gain, I'll spring for some form of Belles preamp.

I asked the original question, and since then I've had some time to compare the Hot Rod, 150A Ref. Mk 2, and the Aria.  I also have an EL34 amp, T-amp, Sonneteer Alabaster, Rogue Sphinx, and some others.  I have used Totem, Triangle, Finale Vivace (awesome single-driver speaker), and Klipsch Quartets, among others.

All of the amps are different, and there is synergy to be found between each amp with the variety of speakers.  I use Kimber 4TC, and I've found this to be an excellent/neutral cable for most applications.  

I'll just say that the Belles line impresses me with many speakers.  The Aria, when matched with an appropriate speaker, is very musical, natural, and exciting, but it has not been fatiguing.  Great match with my Triangle Zerius (one of the sleeper speakers of the decade!).

I won't be able to keep all of these amps/speakers, (I have a pair of Reynaud Bliss Silvers/stands I'll be picking up in early September) but I will keep all of the amps and see which one creates the most magic.  I firmly believe that the Aria can compete with the other amps and may win out if there is enough power.  Time will tell...

Mezzanine,

Thanks for the post.  Between work and getting ready to take my daughter to college (she is going to a school 1/2 hour away from Amherst Audio - where I'll be picking up the Reynaud speakers), I haven't had much time to really dig in to the comparisons.  Once the Reynauds are in the house, I'll get more serious about rotating the amps and making comparisons.  My end goal is to keep one amp/speaker system that plays the widest variety of music in the most convincing way.  I have run out of storage room to hold all of the accumulated pieces  - decisions have to be made.

I will post my impressions after the Silver Bliss are in the house...

I've landed at some vintage Harman Kardon equipment from the mid-70's (HK 330B & 430). Lot's of synergy with my current single-driver speakers. If I needed more power, I would stick with an Aria. Liked it much better than many other more expensive options.