Accuphase amplifier choice

“I am currently more excited with my 2a3 amp”
@mclinnguy 

You have a dream setup with Eufrodite and DAA3. 

Hearing Horning’s Aristotle with a 300B amp @gestalt was nothing short of jaw-dropping. The soundstage was deep, wide, and effortless….carrying a sense of scale you’d normally associate with big-watt solid-state power and REL line array. Yet what truly stood out was how it delivered deep, tightly controlled bass without ever stealing focus from the purity of the midrange or the air and ease of the highs. 

Thank You @twoleftears .

It was nice talking to you the other day. Helped me solidify my decision.

I am glad that you are able to achieve the gain that you were looking for. I am sure those monoblocks make your music sound amazing!

Good evening @lalitk 

Thank you. My ears are sending good things to my brain. Just getting used to the 300b vs. 2a3 differences. But the Whammer isn't just any 2a3. 

You know I saw a New Audio Frontiers 211 on US Audio mart from Colin, and I emailed about it, and I was close to pulling the trigger, and then I saw this Whammer. Very happy with the decision, it has the inner resolution and musical insight I have always dreamed of, and I knew "these" 4 watts would be plenty after playing around with my Yamamoto 45 at a whopping 1.5 wpc, so a 211 is not needed. 

But the 300B amp you would have heard at Gestalt's would have been of the same pedigree. NAF or Sw1x? And the crossover-less design of the Eufrodites add to the seamless musical insight. Yeah, you heard it and know it! Tommy Horning is a magician. 

In case anyone is wondering what track I was referring to above, check this one out: London Grammer - Rooting for you. Unique voice, she sounds like she has a cold, yet plenty of emotion, but the last few seconds of the song DEEP rumbling goin' on. 

@milpai 

I run the Accuphase amplifier at the lowest gain: 12db. 
This allows me to operate the  MSB Discrete DAC as my pre amp with volume near the top. The highest volume setting is 106. I run it mostly at 88 and on some hot pop recordings 80. That’s the lowest I set it. This combination gives me the best transparency and open soundstage. 

Very cool @jfrmusic . Yes, I do find that the volume sometimes drops according to the source. But lowest gain setting works in my system too. Though Spotify is not bit-perfect, it is lossless and I did find some songs for which I need to raise the volume on my preamp a bit, to match the SACD/HDCD levels. But that is good - because it tells me that there is a very nice DR on that song/album.

How much time did it take in your case, for your amplifier to sound it's best? I think you have had your amp for more than a year now.