An experiment in amplification

[Haselsh1]

I'm not sure what you mean by "it has all caught up with me".

Disillusioned.

[walpurgis]

Sounds like you need a Krell.

[alphaGT]

Disillusioned.

I had a very similar experience with amps. I wound up buying some huge Legacy Focus speakers, and my Forte’ Model 3 was not sufficient. A decent enough sounding amp, but the huge 200lb each Legacy’s were dull, lifeless and underpowered.

So I bought a Crown XLS2500, much like yours, and bi-amped my speakers with it, using the Forte’ on the top half. And just like you, I felt an immediate increase in power! And just like you, I felt like it lacked finesse. I ran my stereo for a few years like this, using a Parasound preamp.

These Crown amps are made for P.A. work, and make gobs of power for their size and weight. I wound up buying a second one and use them both for the band I play with. A lot of amp for the money!

After a time I felt like I was missing something. Satisfactory volumes and dynamics are great, but it was lacking, felt boring, while it seemed to sound great, and everyone else on a short listen thought it sounded great, it failed the test. The test of compelling me to listen. When the stereo is right, one album will lead to another and another, and before you know it time has slipped away from you! But I wasn’t doing that. I would play a record or CD or two, and stop. And just like you, I feared it was me! That I had become disinterested. That maybe it sounded fine, and I was just not into it?

So I finally decided to try one last thing, and make sure I wasn’t losing my edge. I spent a load of cash on a used Krell 300 watt amp! And I learned that it was NOT me! The stereo is exciting again! I play it several times a week, and vinyl is exciting again, one album leads to another, and another!

Now, I’m not saying to rush out and buy a Krell, but, seek out an amp that matches your speakers, something that has the wattage of the Crowns, with the finesse of your tubed gear. The Crowns are great in the mean time, but they are not the end all be all amp. They actually work great for sub woofers in an AV setup. Or on stage, and at 12lbs they are easy to haul around. Anyway, rest assured it’s not you, you haven’t changed, only the stereo has changed.

Russell

[Roy S]

I had a very similar experience with amps. I wound up buying some huge Legacy Focus speakers, and my Forte’ Model 3 was not sufficient. A decent enough sounding amp, but the huge 200lb each Legacy’s were dull, lifeless and underpowered.

So I bought a Crown XLS2500, much like yours, and bi-amped my speakers with it, using the Forte’ on the top half. And just like you, I felt an immediate increase in power! And just like you, I felt like it lacked finesse. I ran my stereo for a few years like this, using a Parasound preamp.

These Crown amps are made for P.A. work, and make gobs of power for their size and weight. I wound up buying a second one and use them both for the band I play with. A lot of amp for the money!

After a time I felt like I was missing something. Satisfactory volumes and dynamics are great, but it was lacking, felt boring, while it seemed to sound great, and everyone else on a short listen thought it sounded great, it failed the test. The test of compelling me to listen. When the stereo is right, one album will lead to another and another, and before you know it time has slipped away from you! But I wasn’t doing that. I would play a record or CD or two, and stop. And just like you, I feared it was me! That I had become disinterested. That maybe it sounded fine, and I was just not into it?

So I finally decided to try one last thing, and make sure I wasn’t losing my edge. I spent a load of cash on a used Krell 300 watt amp! And I learned that it was NOT me! The stereo is exciting again! I play it several times a week, and vinyl is exciting again, one album leads to another, and another!

Now, I’m not saying to rush out and buy a Krell, but, seek out an amp that matches your speakers, something that has the wattage of the Crowns, with the finesse of your tubed gear. The Crowns are great in the mean time, but they are not the end all be all amp. They actually work great for sub woofers in an AV setup. Or on stage, and at 12lbs they are easy to haul around. Anyway, rest assured it’s not you, you haven’t changed, only the stereo has changed.

Russell

Kind of echoes what I found with the Crown amps I had (& I ran two in bridged mode, 1000 watts per channel), initially an exciting whilst slightly brash sound but ultimately lacking something.

I'm a few amps down the road now but think I've found a very good 'all round' amp in my Luxman.

[Macca]

Disillusioned.

Look at it another way, you're not disillusioned, you're just more experienced and therefore more demanding of quality than you used to be back in your twenties when the world was young and everything different was a revelation.

I think your comparing average solid state amps with average valve amps and finding it all a bit, well, 'average' only in different ways. There is better out there in both topologies but it needs hunting out, especially if you don't want to pay thousands.

[Haselsh1]

especially if you don't want to pay thousands.

Martin, I already have paid thousands. The preamp was £1,500 new and the power amp was £2,500 new. They only succeeded in making me switch it all off because I preferred the silence to the music. This is now no longer the case.

Are the Crown amps you are all referring to Class D amps or the older style Class AB ?

The only amplifier I have ever owned that had the same kind of awesome bass power as these current amps was back around 1985 and was a Trio Sigma drive amp of around 125 Watts per channel and a big bugger of an amp. It was very powerful in the bass and quite refined to go with it.

Russell, one thing the sound is not is boring. It was, but it isn't anymore and this is not just a function of buying the KEF's as it was exactly the same with the Spendor's.

Sue my other half has a liking for Krell amps but strangely never offers to buy one

[Haselsh1]

Two main issues from the PrimaLuna Dialogue Premium days.

An almost complete absence of very low bass so crucial with electronic music and a flat, dull sound with virtually no dynamics.

I now have all of those things.

[Roy S]

Are the Crown amps you are all referring to Class D amps or the older style Class AB ?

I had two of these so class D

https://www.crownaudio.com/en/products/xls-1500

Got one of them off Jerry on here, he had a lot to say about it's performance on his blog (and said it better than me!).

[Haselsh1]

Look at it another way, you're not disillusioned, you're just more experienced and therefore more demanding of quality than you used to be back in your twenties

The truth as I see it is that I am considerably older and considerably less demanding of almost anything. I have realised that hi-fi above a certain quality and cost is simply not essential or even important. What is important is that the music reproduced stirs your emotion and expression.

[Haselsh1]

I had two of these so class D

https://www.crownaudio.com/en/products/xls-1500

Got one of them off Jerry on here, he had a lot to say about it's performance on his blog (and said it better than me!).