Good partner amp for Egglestonworks Anda II

the control big amps provide is a thing unto itself in the reporduction of sound. I find it immensely attractive every time I hear it in action.

Of those I've spoken with who have owned or do own the IIs... all had substantial amplifier power on tap. 300wpc and up. One or two had either 500 or 600.

Of course bi amping them is a consideration.

I feel simpler is better, and were I to own them (I think I'd like too actually) I'd go with some big amps. Mono or stereo amps.... but over the usually decent enough power level of 250wpc, for sure!

...and be OK with that.

True .... bi amping has some advantages. it also has some twists and turns, and added expenses by it's nature one normally doesn't encounter.

you could stay in the Big Mac camp and buy a 402 and check out the bi amping ordeal... or just run the 402 alone. you'd reside still in the Mac house sound... but on the SS side then. the 402 & 602 amps are very very good sounding amps, BTW.

Or.... as you like what you've got now.... enjoy that for as long as you may wish to, and forget your recent experience with the KW amps.

As a fellow Andra II owner, I offer you my congratulations on buying an excellent set of speakers. I have lived with mine for about 18 months now, and I still love them! I have never tried any of the "monster" amps, but I can tell you what I am using.

I use the 200 wpc hybrid, Lamm M2.1 monoblocks. These amps provide me with rock solid bass response, along with a very refined mid-range. (These particular monoblocks are very slightly rolled off in the treble region, but other than that, they are incredible amplifiers. My upgrading to Nordost Valhalla speaker cables has reduced the treble rolloff to a barely audible concern. If I had not heard my friend's M2.2s (see below), I probably would not even realize there was any treble rolloff at all.) I paid $7K for a used pair from a local seller.

My recommendation, (if you can afford them), is to try the 220 wpc hybrid Lamm M2.2 monoblocks, (which replaced the M2.1s in the Lamm line). I have two friends who use these amps in their systems. This design has eliminated the slight treble rolloff, while keeping the rock solid bass response, and the very refined mid-range. (They are a slight bit more transparent too, according to my one friend who upgraded from the M2.1s to these amps.) When a used pair show up on Audiogon, I hope to be in a position to buy them. (They rarely show up unfortunately! I've only seen a demo pair listed on Audiogon, and those were listed for $12K. The new price is $24K, I believe.)

FYI, Paul Bolin, (reviewer for The Audio Beat), also uses the Andra II speakers, (and Valhalla Speaker cables, btw!), and he uses the hybrid 110 wpc, (pure class A) Lamm M1.2 reference amps. He says this amp works great in his small-medium sized room. (I considered trying these amps in my system, but I have a fairly large room, and I don't think it would have enough power. And I have heard the M1.2 and the M2.2 and they sound very similar, (the M1.2 being just a bit more sweet sounding), so I think I would prefer to have the extra power of the M2.2s.) Used, I've seen these as low as $7,500, (once), but $10K is the more usual price, and these show up on Audiogon a few times a year.

My two cents worth anyway.
Good Luck in your search.

Thank you both for your responses, either high power or high current appears to be the ticket,Kurt, I've heard the lamms with VR-5s and I think that set-up sounded phenomenal unfortunately i think lamms as much as i would like them are just too much out of my price range.

Is it possible to drive these amazing speakers with a quality amp below $5000?

When I owned my pair of the Andra IIs, I had very good luck and great sound running a BAT VK-500 (w/ BATPAK) and a pair of DCCA power cables. It is a very nice, musical combination as long you can deal with the BAT weight and heat!

Other amps that I would recommend would be:

VTL MB-450 Signature monoblocks, if you like tube amps. These are very powerful, (450 wpc tetrode/200 wpc triod), tube amps, that sound very good. (They were what my one friend had immediately before upgrading to the Lamm M2.2s.) There is a used set on Audiogon for $3,500, which is a very good price, although they are for the original series, not the series II, which is the current production model, but for this price, it is probably worth it. (Note: These run fairly hot, so it might raise the temperature in your room a bit.)

If you prefer solid state, either the Pass Labs X350 (a 350 wpc stereo amp), which runs around $4,500 used, (also available here on Audiogon), or the Parasound JC-1 monoblocks, (400 wpc), which run around $3,500. (Both of these are very fine amps, but not quite in the class of the Lamms to be honest.)

I am sure others will have other recommendations.