Congratulations dude!

Beautiful choice.

Will look forward to seeing photos!

Esteban...glad to hear it :thumbsup:

Thank you! There are actually quite a few photos on this thread. Check out the first few pages. :)

I do not have much experience with Audio Research, but they are priced beyond my budget (for an integrated amp).

Actually, the first time I listened to one of their tube integrateds was this weekend, at my dealer's, prior to picking up the two other solid-state amps I mentioned earlier. I do believe it was the VSi75. It was a brand new model (not part of the Galileo series, though) but it felt a little flimsy (construction-wise) next to my Prima Luna, in all honesty. I easily lifted it by myself and placed it on the rack, whereas I could have never done that with my Prima Luna, at least not without breaking a sweat. My dealer had a pair of $40K Raidhos sounding spectacular with a VAC integrated using a quad of KT-88's. He then swapped the VAC for the Audio Research, but this time the AR used a quad of KT-150's. I thought the AR would blow away the VAC, specially with the KT-150's, but it wasn't even close. He had to bring the volume up to its maximum level (103!) and even then it could barely keep up with the Raidhos. I was really surprised by that. The sound was lifeless and weak. The amp had no juice and could not drive the Raidhos at all. The tubes had 25 hours, according to the amps's meters.

The more I experience other so called "higher-end" brands, the more my respect for Prima Luna grows.

Sorry, I am behind the curve on this thread!
Beautiful photos. Really gorgeous speakers.
Enjoy!

:) Thank you! They are gorgeous indeed! I am still pinching myself.

From that description it almost sounds like the Audio Research unit was broken or otherwise compromised! I owned the VSi75 and the last thing you would call it was lifeless. It drove my B&W 802 Diamonds with authority and with a beauty that brought tears to my eyes. Something doesn't compute. If your dealer can't show off the virtues of Audio Research I suggest you try another dealer who can.

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That doesn't surprise me at all. The Elipsa are sensitive to the quality of the watt not the amount.

I drive mine with 24W so you have more than enough headroom.

When one says quality does that focus on being type A amp or A/B. I read different answers to both types with quality.

No...it generally means how well designed and implemented is the power supply.