Wyred 4 Sound.....Anyone?????


Has anyone experienced Wyred 4 sounds stereo, multichannel or pre amp models. How do they compare to say, Parasound, Bryston, Nad, Boulder, Krell, Anthem, Cary Audio.etc??? Are they more geared to home theater or stereo or both??? Comments greatly appreciated..

Regards Bacardi
128x128bacardi
I purchased a Wyred 4 Sound ST-250 power amp just a short time ago and am using it with an Audio Research LS16 preamp. One thing that some may overlook about the Wyred equipment is the power cord. I initially used a Pangea AC-9 and thought something didn't sound quite right. Changing over to an Emotiva power cord made a world of difference; the ST-250 sounds much better; love this little amp.
I've been running the ST-500 stereo amp with STP preamp for a couple of years now and have had no desire to upgrade. Currently my speakers are Harbeth SHL5, and even though 250 watts per channel may be considered overkill, it sounds great with the Harbeths. I've thought about changing to a lower powered SS integrated amp since the Harbeths are an easy load, but the bass control with the W4S combo is unreal as is the mids and highs. The Harbeths are consistently praised for their mids but often said to have sloppy, loose bass, but I'm not hearing those characteristics and I think the W4S has a lot to do with it. I'm very happy with the combination right now. I also appreciate the low energy consumption and lack of heat with the class d amps.
I am running a wyred 4 sound st-1000 into proac d-15's.
The amp brings out the full capability of the speakers. This amp is very clean, slightly, slightly warm. The proac d-15's do not have the best bass- they are downward ported and a bit boomy. The wyred tightened them up quite a bit. Mids and highs are unbelievably detailed and quick. Very nice amp.
What concerns me in these reviews are the statements similar to: "better than any SS amp I have ever heard" with no reference as to top leading brands and models. Only to read further in the comments that these amps are being compared to mid level amps.

I would be interested to hear of people that have gone from some of the better amps, high power, high current amps (such as Krell [non KAV series of course], Levinson, CAT, Ayre, Pass, etc. . . ) for a comparison.

I am a bit concerned about the comments that concern within its operating range??? When we are talking about a class A amp at 500 watts per channel - on virtually every speaker sold - there should be anything outside of its operating range or stressing. Why does 500 watts of class D power versus Class A power not equal the same capabilities (unless I am understanding the poster wrong). Or is it the comparison many people make between SS watts and tubes watts (ie. 60 tubes watts vs. 100-150 SS watts). Do we now also need to differentiat 150 Class A SS watts vs. 500 class D watts?

I am not trying to be argumentative, just trying to get some first hand experience from people that have owned these for in excess of a year (I don't trust any review by users having owned equipment less than 1 year - sorry but pride of new ownership and just the sake something sounds different does not correlate with long term statisfaction - see the ARC HD220 amp review in these forums as a reference by a recognized member), coming from highly regarded class A power amps (reference listing above or similar).
Sounds like high damping factor with the Wyreds.

The Bel Canto Ref1000m monoblocks had a similar positive effect on bass with the ported designs in my system. Bass is about as good as it gets currently!

I think ported speakers in general tend to benefit from high DF in an amp.