Megasam: I thought the term Krell preceeded the Forbidden Planet. Krell was the name of a planet with unlimited power in a very early sci-fi serial, perhaps Buck Rogers??? Other old timers may want to help here!! I currently own three Krell products (mono blocks and a three chassis preamp from the late '80's and the KBX cross-over from the early '90s.) I have nothing but high regard for their build quality and service. While I cannot comment on the sound quality of current models vis-a-vis their competition, it has been my experience that audiophiles who are used to the sound of other top push-pull solid state (Levinson as an example) often find the sound of Krell to be dull by comparison. For me, however, they were consistently more natural than the more "technicolor" competitors--more music than hi-fi or to use an old photography analogy, Krell was Agfa to the other solid state's Kodachrome. Tubes, of course, are an entirely different matter. I agree with the sentiment that it is popular to tear down whoever is successful. When visiting London in the late '80s I was surprised to find the same attitude toward B&W speakers in their homeland as we yanks had for the likes of JBL. (I had always thought that B&W made a pretty fine dynamic speaker). Cheers,
"Krell" is a buzzword
When I look at how the posts involving Krell deteriorate to the point of civil(actually not so civil) war, I have to say that "Krell" has become a buzzword. It seems as if you just have to mention the name, and the mobilization begins. Sooner or later the insults sink to the level that make the thread completely unrecognizable from the original question. I am more neutral than not on Krell(probably not many of us around). Used to dream about them in my bigger is better solid state days, but have since moved in other directions. Now I am a definite tubeophile, and don't even think about Krell. But, I don't say you cannot build a great system around their products. Just have to apply the right surrounding components. But don't you have to do that with many brands of amp? So, do you agree that Krell has become a buzzword, and why?