2fastdriving:
I agree entirely with your thoughts on ARC and Dag. I have heard many brands over the years and usually run far away from solid state gear. But I heard a Dag combo that I liked a lot at my dealer and asked for an in house audition. I had the Dag 250 stereo in house to compare to my Ref 150. I thought each had their strengths and weaknesses--ARC being more of a "natural" presentation with better sustain, bloom and dimensionality, DAG being more transparent and revealing--but the differences were of character (tubes v ss)not of quality. I was very impressed with the Dag sound and considered buying it. But, in the end, I kept my ARC amp because I am at heart a tube guy---but if I ever switch--it will be for a Dag. So my vote for the best solid state is Dag although I also loved the sound of the Wells Audio Innamorata when I heard it in a system owned by a friend of mine. It is the most tube-like ss I've ever heard. My guess is that it is not quite as transparent as the Dag but provides an overall presentation closer to tubes.
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Wilson Alexia V, ARC Ref 160M MkII,Ref 40,Ref Phono2SE, Shunyata Triton3, Typhon, Sigma PCs, ICs & SCs, Spectral SDR4000SV (w MIT IC), Belcanto PL1, Oppo 205, Marantz 2270 (tuner only):AudioDesk and VPI record cleaners, Furutech Demag & Destat; Stillpoint Apertures, TechDas AF 3S Premium with SAT CF9 and Kuzma 4pt 9" arms, Lyra Atlas Lambda SL, Dynavector XV1-t stereo and XV1-s mono carts, Miyajima mono, Shure V15VxMR,
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