Good upgrade amp for my Thiel 3.6s

Thanks to all the varying responses. I was wondering if anyone out there has a 3.6/Krell KSA-250 matchup. I was thinking that would be a good way to go.

To Jameswei and others:

Isn't 500wpc too much for the 3.6? I thought they were rated for between 100-400 watts. Are you risking damaging the speaker with that kind of power?

Also, I was reading my 3.6 manual this weekend. Sensitivity is rated at 86db in their manuals. Is it actually lower than that?

Justin

Hi Frogman,

I was following some posts that I'd seen here and elsewhere from other 3.6s owners that said that 3.6s like as much power as they can get. The general concensus was that the soundstage opens up more. The imaging improves. The overall sonic capabilities of 3.6s improve with increased power. One poster I recalled saying that "you need at least a 250wpc amp to really make them shine." Though it's not really clear what that means.

I wouldn't say I'm unhappy with the sound of the Krell. I like the soundstage and bass response I get from it. I'd hate to give that up. But I don't have a lot of experience with the sonic characteristics of other amps out there. I'm new to the high-end market, having bought a good system within the last couple of years. Prior to this I was listening to CDs through a Toshiba DVD player into Technics speakers.

Since then, I've upgraded to:

Linn Ikemi CD player
Adcom GFP-750 preamp
Krell KSA-150 amp
Thiel 3.6 speakers

interconnects are another story. Haven't done much with those.

I was just starting to do some research on it. I wanted to get opinions from others who have owned the 3.6s longer and tried them with different amps. I didn't audition that many amps before going with the Krell. I bought it used about 2 years ago. I like its sonic characteristics, it fit my budget, and I went with the dealer's recommendation on it (over new choices like a McIntosh and Bryston 4B). At the time, I listened to a pair of Pass Labs Aleph 100 watt monoblocks, which I liked a lot. I liked the detail they produced but they were more than I could afford.

The Krell literature I have says that the KSA-150s are conservatively rated at 150wpc, and are more likely 250wpc. I listened to a newer Krell series in a store the other night, the KAV2550 I think. I didn't like it. Sounded thin and I thought the presentation was too bright.

I was getting the impression from just a quick look in local shops that to increase performance/power over my amp would be a huge cost. One store tried to "entice" me into buying a Krell FPB300 for $7500!

But maybe there's a used amp out there that might make a difference.

To Bryhifi:

I did look into bridging the KSA-150s to mono and had a chance to pick up a second KSA-150. I thought Krell didn't do it anymore. I spoke with a rep. there and he said they didn't offer that service on older amps like that.

Was I mislead?

J

To Pops:

I'm using the Adcom GFP-750 preamp.

Anyone have success with Threshold and Thiels? I see one guy on Audiogon is selling a Threshold T-200 that he matched with Thiel 3.5.

To Gundam91, Levinson sounds like a nice choice, but pricey.

Any opinions on sticking with Class A solid-state circuitry vs. tubes with the 3.6s? There's a dealer near me who's selling a pair of Audio Research M300 monoblocks 300wpc.

I like what I've heard about Threshold. There's a recording engineer I was talking to who has the Threshold S1000 monoblocks in his studio. He loves them. Now if I could only find them somewhere.

Any stores that sell a lot of used gear that anyone can recommend? Preferably not too far from Mass.?

Thanks for your advice Newbee. I do have a solid-state preamp. The Adcom GFP-750.

Just had a dealer recommend the Conrad-Johnson MF2500 to me. Actually I was calling him based on an earlier recommendation for the Plinius. He told me was phasing out the Plinius line as they're not selling that well. The CJ sounds like a good deal. $3500 list and I've seen it selling here for around $2K. Doesn't appear to have balanced inputs though. He also recommended the Krell KAV-2250. I heard the Krell before and wasn't impressed. I'd rather keep my KSA-150 than buy the newer one.

Some quick reviews I saw of the 2500 were all favorable, some even saying it beats the Levinson No. 335.