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Ideal amp for B&W matrix 800

Hello everyone, I am looking for a great amp for my B&W MATRIX 800 speakers (the tall ones with the angular shaped bass cabinets, not the nautilus ones!).
I have a tight budget and live in Belgium.
My cd is Accuphase 500, preamp is solid state, no tone controls magnum Mp330.
I am looking for a 3d soundstage with lots of depth and emotional music playing. I therefore think of class A amps.
Hence... older krells? Tube amps would be a bad match as the speakers each have two 12 inch woofers. They are 4Ohms, with an impedance dip to 3 ohms in 100-200 Hz region. they are 93 dB/1W sensitivity though...
I could spend about 2000 euro but would prefer around 1000-1500 so I have budget for an accuphase preamp for phono (a c-280 or so). Would appreciate your input guys!
At the moment I localised a krell KSA-100 MKii for 850 e, a Krell KSA-200 S for 1750 e, a Krell FPB for 2000 e...
Or a Pass X250 for 2400 e.... Other suggestions are very welcomen these or just the ones that I found on sale some place now... I have never heard any of these amps...
blueskywalker
arupg
42 posts
 
Am using the Matrix 800 with Symphonic Line Kraft amps. Yeah! they're expensive BUT they offer the finesse to the last word! On my earlier Matrix 801 and 802, they too were excellent. A lovely match to the B&Ws IMHO.
blueskywalker OP
91 posts
 
So... after missing out an ebay auction for musical fidelity nuvista and an auction for a Krell KSA-100, I got a good price on a Krell FPB200!
Installed yesterday...
After warm up the 3D soundstaging and details are all there, thats the good news! Less good news is that harmonically voices could use a bit more body, and highs could be sweeter. This was the case with an old Kustom PA amp I used, (more voltage amp then current amp), although I am wondering if the preamp is responsible for the highs... I have had the same highs on my active system I used before...
Any suggestions? stick with the new amp, and try another pre or just keep looking for another amp...
blueskywalker OP
91 posts
 
I just asked about the ideal preamp for this amp in another thread, so we can stick in this thread to the amp suggestions...
(For the record, I must say that these speakers sound far better now that I am sitting further away... distance increased from 5 meters to about 8,5 meters, already with the old amp)
Looking forward to your responses guys! : )
4bucc
14 posts
 
My system was: Bat VK-51SE preamp, Pass crossover, McIntosh MC2000 for the mid/tweeter, Krell FPB 700cx for the bass and, of course, the B&W Matrix 800's. I have since changed almost everything to Pipedream 18 speakers, Tact 2.2XP preamp (with crossover), VTL S-400 amp for mid/tweeter, Krell FPB 700cx for bass. We never seem satisfied but it's fun.
blueskywalker OP
91 posts
 
Impressive system 4bucc. I am guessing your budget is just slightly bigger then mine :)
At the moment the Krel FPB 200 seems a less ideal match for my matrix 800's. Allthough the imaging is more precise then with the old Kustom Bias XII amp I use, I prefer the latter because it just sounds sweeter and more natural...
Isn't that crazy?
I wish I could unite both amps strengths...
It would be great to try out some stuff before having to buy it. I will launch another thread and try to find people in belgium who would be willing to compare stuff on my or their system... Meanwhile, advise on any good combinations for these speakers are welcome!
Thx to all for the advise so far! If only I could try or hear the suggestions someplace (bryston, mf nuvista,...)
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