2. amps-preamps
  3. 150450-134126

Pulling myself out of old, broken equipment, one hesitant step at a time...

My father purchased Klipschorns in 1976, ran them with various McIntosh components, so it was only natural that I would look for my own version of hi-fidelity, starting around 1992. That brought me in touch with Vandersteen 2Ci's and 205wpc parasound HCA1200ii. The amp still functions; the 2Ci's are in the shop. They want $400 for the re-coning of one driver and re-edging another, on one speaker. This would also imply another $400 for the other speaker, which was the shop's recommendation and it makes common sense to refresh both speakers, as doing only one would create a kind of lop-sided musical affair. So, I can spend $800 on the 2Ci's, but this means I'm working with a thirty-year-old set-up and who knows when other drivers will pop. Truthfully, the shop is giving me a deal, even at the $400 mark; I know, because he waved some of the labor charges that he included initially. Apparently, Vandys are not easy labor, but Vandy lovers would like to keep the 2C experience rolling as long as possible...

Anyway, I also snatched a sale pair or RP280's for less than $500. They are lively and have provided many memorable music moments over the past nine months. Nevertheless, I find myself wanting to move on and up with things, so here is where I have gone and invested probably hundreds of hours reading reviews, few of which offer much in terms of direct comparison to other equipment (I might want to buy)... So, here is what is standing out for me:

Odyssey Kismet in the Stratos case.

Van Alstine Vision SET 120 or 400

Nuforce STA 200

So, any useful way of discriminating between the three, recognizing that the amplification of the STA 200 and 120 are about 80wpc, with the other two closer to 200wpc. I'm particularly interested in a 3-D soundstage. Subtlety and dynamics, authentic highs, sweet midrange and bass control are also on the top of my list. Before pointing me to tubes, I'll note that I live in one of the warmer parts of California. We are in the midst of 100 degree days here, so tubes will not fit well for me, until about November 1st.      

And finally, the idea is to pick a sweet amp, followed by a speaker upgrade. I'm interested in the excitement surrounding Tektons. I don't imagine spending more than 2K on any particular element of my new system... 

Thank you for your thoughts!
listening99
glennewdick's avatar
glennewdick
1,500 posts
 
I’d like to know the shop whos charging you that much to recone-refoam 2 drivers. seriously you can buy new drivers for less then that (most likely).

An example a used set of your speakers sold on Audiomart for less then $500 Canadian last April.
https://www.canuckaudiomart.com/details/649520206-vandersteen-2ci-speakers/
I’m thinking you should look at speakers and an amp to match don’t go out and buy an amp with out a speaker to match to it.

For example higher efficiency speakers need less power. So something to consider is getting a higher efficency speaker and then you need less power.

Also Look at Class D for high power to low heat output. That may negate any efficiency issues if you go class D amplification.

Tektons Are also fairly efficient speaker designs so you will not need 200wps for them probably anything (depending on the model of course) from 20wpc to 100wpc 
stereo5's avatar
stereo5
6,250 posts
 
I had a Kismet in the Stratos case.  One of the best amps I ever had and very sorry I sold it. 
elevick
2,636 posts
 
You will never get your money out of that repair.  If you don't think they are the "end all" then why throw money away.  Keep that amp if it works fine and put the budget into new speakers.  That amp could run forever?
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