What amp to consider as an upgrade or next step up to the Job 225 ? ......

joeinid

joeinid

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I have been extremely impressed with my Job 225. A friend is borrowing it and I think he loves it so much, he may want to buy it from me. That leaves me with the option to replace it (or get it back and have him get his own), or go up to Goldmund (or similar) line. I like the tone, articulation and sound stage of the Job 225 and wonder what if anything would be an upgrade to the Job 225 without breaking the bank. Yes, $1500 is tough to beat, but I'd like to explore my options as to what you guys would consider the next step. Short of getting a second for vertical/horizontal bi-amping, I'd appreciate your opinions.

Thanks!
 
Goldmund amps are great....and something like the Telos 390.5 integrated or the Telos 280 amp would be incredible.

That being said....in the same vain as you are in now....I would seriously try a PrimaLuna DiaLogue Five stereo amp with the $400 upgraded tubes. A friend of mine is a PrimaLuna dealer....I would be happy to put you in touch with him.

I love PrimaLuna's Adaptive AutoBiasing technology and their amps just rock for the money.....and they look pretty good too.

dia5_big.jpg


That's my two cents...
 
Looks pretty cool Mike. Thanks!

Your 2c is worth a million. :)
 
You probably saw this coming from me, Joe - I'd love to see you try out a ModWright KWA-100SE in your system!
 
What would you be looking to drive Joe? If it's something high efficiency it would be fun to take the Pass Labs SIT amps for a spin.
 
hiro100 said:
What would you be looking to drive Joe? If it's something high efficiency it would be fun to take the Pass Labs SIT amps for a spin.
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Probably the SF Evos. I have amp options for my Cornwalls. I am not sure what will ultimately happen with my TADs. A whole new world of speaker choices is opening up to me and I think I want to experiment a little more.
 
Budget...power range...tube/SS?

If SF Evos have similar sensitivity and impedance specs to the Mementos then they are not difficult to drive in terms of the load they represent to the partnering amp so tube amps from their 4 ohm taps should be fine but at 86dB you will want at least 50-70wpc if you listen somewhat loudly and to allow for dynamic headroom on material that has wide swings in dynamics.
 
cmalak said:
Budget...power range...tube/SS?

If SF Evos have similar sensitivity and impedance specs to the Mementos then they are not difficult to drive in terms of the load they represent to the partnering amp so tube amps from their 4 ohm taps should be fine but at 86dB you will want at least 50-70wpc if you listen somewhat loudly and to allow for dynamic headroom on material that has wide swings in dynamics.
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Hi Cyril,

Budget? Ha! I usually decide what I want, then figure out how to get it.

I am really enjoying my Dartzeel amp on my Evos. The Dagostino works really well on the Evos too. I guess I'm just looking for trouble.
 
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Dartzeel NHB-18NS and NHB-108, D'Agostino Momentum amp and preamp, Burmester 948, Sonus Faber Evolution, TAD CR-1's, Klipsch Cornwall III's, Bob Carver VTA20S, Manley Steelhead, Marantz SA-11S3 and NA-11S1, ModWright Ultimate Sony XA-5400ES, Nordost TYR2 and Transparent Audio Super, VPI Classic 3, VPI SDS Motor Drive, Lyra Kleos. Audio Deske Vinyl Cleaner, Acoustic Zen Matrix Ref. II XLR and RCA 2M IC, LAT International SS-3000 Signature Bi-Wire.

Joe...No offense. I think you have one of best of best Audio gears anybody I know. However isn't it time to upgrade your room ( size wise ) with all the excellent gears you have ? I think they deserve room to breathe.
 
Joe...with that attitude....trouble will find you. :victory:

joeinid said:
Hi Cyril,

Budget? Ha! I usually decide what I want, then figure out how to get it.

I am really enjoying my Dartzeel amp on my Evos. The Dagostino works really well on the Evos too. I guess I'm just looking for trouble.
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cmalak said:
Budget...power range...tube/SS?
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Haha, don't think that word is in Joe's dictionary!:D

Joe, from what I hear of Viola (it's fairly neutral, 'white' sounding as someone mentioned to me), that may be a good match for your Evos. On an integrated front if you are wiling to try those, Wadia Intuition or the Diavalet D comes to mind. I myself would love to try the Vitus RI-100, but that may be too warm for your speakers. Just throwing out some ideas there.:P
 
Joe...am I right that you are almost done with finishing your basement? Is your big boy rig going down there and a smaller one staying in your bedroom?

As for other amps to consider there are so many that you have not tried (ARC, Lamm, BAT, VTL, Luxman, Atmasphere, Accuphase, Goldmund, etc...) which is why I was seeking some guidance on budget and tube vs. SS, although I have always been a proponent of working from the speaker backwards into the chain when system building, so if the SF Evos are staying for a while and the TADs may be going, I would wait to see on what speakers you settle on before switching it up with the amps. Just my 2c.
 
BruceLet said:
Joe...with that attitude....trouble will find you. :victory:
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Do I know it :)

socfan12 said:
Haha, don't think that word is in Joe's dictionary!:D

:P
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Very true. :roflmao:

cmalak said:
Joe...am I right that you are almost done with finishing your basement? Is your big boy rig going down there and a smaller one staying in your bedroom?

As for other amps to consider there are so many that you have not tried (ARC, Lamm, BAT, VTL, Luxman, Atmasphere, Accuphase, Goldmund, etc...) which is why I was seeking some guidance on budget and tube vs. SS, although I have always been a proponent of working from the speaker backwards into the chain when system building, so if the SF Evos are staying for a while and the TADs may be going, I would wait to see on what speakers you settle on before switching it up with the amps. Just my 2c.
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Hi Cyril,

I have a 3-4 month window where it will be totally done but about a month where it will be more than usable. I think at least the Evos and maybe the Cornwalls stay upstairs. Downstairs I'm thinking of trying the TADs and moving on from there. Alexia, Raidho, Futura and Revels are on the list. I'm sure there will be more to consider. What you say about working from the speakers back makes sense. If I choose Alexia, I already have the Dagostino, so there is much to think about if I go outside the usual suspects.
 
I think Alexia+D'Agostino would be incredible.

But back to your original question - I think tubes would give you a variety. You already have arguably one of the best SS amps in the D'Agostino - so maybe target a tube amp to mix things up.

However, the Wadia Intuition mentioned above would be an incredible one piece setup on the Evos. So clean and simple for a small room system. Gorgeous too!
 
Joe, a little gem that I like is the Line Magnetic, great bang for the buck too! As Mike suggested, another similar line is the PrimaLuna although I haven't heard this line but have heard a lot about it.
 
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