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Dali Helicon 800. What components match with it?

An audiophile I met invited me over to hear his system. He recently bought Helicon 800 speakers. He had considered the Helicon 400 that Absolute Sound raved about, but in comparing the two, he said the 800 won, hands down.

I thought they sounded great in every way. Great bass, clarity, imaging, with a natural sound. The combination of a soft dome tweeter crossed high to a ribbon gives an open, airy quality. Plus the woodworking and finish are stunning. If you get a chance to see one in person, do so, as photos don't do them total justice.

He did find though that the Dali's made him hear that his amp was too bright, so he changed amps from an older Parasound to an Audio Research transistor. He also made cabling changes that he said made a tremendous difference.

Anyone had experience with this speaker? Does it require careful matching of associated equipment? How does it compare to the Helicon 400?
audiosoul

Showing 1 response by mkuhnle

mkuhnle
20 posts
 
Hi,
I have used several amplifiers with my 800's and would conclude with the folks that state that they are not extremely power hungry. I currently drive them wit a MAC402SS power amp but a tube pre-amp. This combination has given me so far the best overall results but you certainly get a sweeter midrange with an all tube set up. One thing that I have also noticed is that I know need to listen to them slightly louder and a bit farther away then before when I was using all tube amps (ARC). I am currently working on upgrading these to MS5's but get mixed messages about the need to do so. Some people say it is only worth if you also invest in top tier amplification Any opinions on this?
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