Make or Break !
 

Hi Guys,
Auditioned the famed, almost mythical Lamm ML3 recently at a dealer. Was hoping for a healthy dose of SET magic , and all that has been penned wondrous about this amplifier. It was paired with the Magico Q7 another superstar . Alas the pairing was not to be, such a disaster at the box office never have I been privy to . While there was a purity to vocals , dynamic resolve, ambience retrieval and the expected flow to proceedings amongst other factors was sorely missing. The surprising thing was that this was just plain evident even on a cursory first listen . As to how the dealer in question can demo two such high priced tickets when incompatible is the glaring question . It can most certainly make or break the brands following , for one not inclined to give them the benefit of a mismatch
I would like to hear from members who have experienced these products and especially the Lamm ML3 in more favourable surroundings . Does it really inhabit and justify, the rarefied status that it has been accorded

Happy Listening :music:

First, thanks for taking the pics, great to see.

Second, I wish I had a nearby dealer that carried that level of gear, even if it sounded ho-hum.

To bad about the pairing, they look great together though.

You are welcome redm , my pleasure :thumbsup: ...pic size is restricted maybe I need higher benefits to display a bigger scale .

I would never have used a pair of Lamm on the Q7, wrong match, not enough headroom, the amp is slowing down the speakers.
The Q7 were the most amazing speaker I have ever heard when driven by the big Dartzeel amp: highest level of dynamism, extremely musical, lowest distortion. They sounded also amazing with the small constellation audio and with Vitus amp. I always found Magico speakers too fast and transparent for tubes. I would prefer using a pure class A like the Vitus or a very musical amp like the Dartzeel to get both the musicality of tubes and the speed and transparency of best transistors

Jazzhead,
Just curious, where was the demo? Sound Chamber in HK? their new room is very small, clearly not the best environment to listen to the Q7 and assess what these speakers are really capable of.

The LAMM ML3 amps are one of the best amps that is currently available. A truly wonderful design that is capable of connecting the listener with the music. The problem is most definitely not the amp. Magicos do not work well with low powered amps especially SET's. True that you have to choose your speakers carefully when matching with SET's, but claiming that the amp is slowing down the speaker is ludicrous.

Thanks for sharing !
Even the best SET amp in the world is not for every speaker out there. Seems that this dealer forgot that rule.

Sent from my iPhone using A.Aficionado

Jazzman , yes this was at Sound Chambers new room at Stanley Street . It is a largely untreated room and on the smaller side , neither of which can be blamed for the performance . It is just a case of a blatant mismatch .

Happy listening :music:

I agree with your comments Jazzman which could equally be applied to Marten Coltranes btw. I've heard Magico's matched with both Vitus and Dartzeel amps and of those two, preferred Vitus which has an unusual synergy with the Q series. But I was also blown away with another set up which used a combination of Boulder amps, Vitus front end & Crystal cables. That combination produced dynamic, open, airy & natural sound with pleasing body and richness ;) Here is a video of that setup -


[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVdNLprTu1w&feature=g-user-u]Boulder 1050 Mono amps 1010 Pre Vitus Audio SCD-025 and Magico S5 at Absolute Hi End - YouTube[/ame]

I'm not sure what it is with Lamm pairings--the combo with the Alexandria's at CES

was sleep inducing--they seem to have no drive with some Transducers.

hence the disaster with the Magicos. Mind you why would you buy Magico's anyway?

Des