Quote:
Originally Posted by Kippyy
Welcome aboard:
I'm a forum newbie,but have had the Sashas since late 2009;first had the Ayre V5xe amp, and upgraded to the MXR's a few months ago. In demoing the MXR's I was also biased by some postings that the MXR's did not provide enough "oomph". I also demoed the Electrocompaniet AW 400 monos, and I was very impressed with their sound as well.
I went with the MXR due to space issues. I should add that my first day with the MXR;'s I was not impressed because I didnt give them ample time to warm up. They really came to life when my dealer applied upgraded active shielding cables to both of the MXR's...SOLD! I told the dealer"Come Together never sounded so good...the MXR's kicked ass. Best of luck..I;m sure your choice will provide lots of similar revelations.
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Kippyy,
I agree with you that the Ayre MX-R monoblocks are something special (especially when paired with the Ayre KX-R pre-amp).
In fact I was vacillating between the Ayre MX-R monoblocks and the Krell 600e monoblocks for quite a while. Reluctantly, I tore myself away from the MX-R's as I felt that while the MX-R absolutely shone on Jazz vocals, it just didn't manage to be 'punchy'/'crisp' enough as compared to the 600e's when playing electronica/trip-hop/deep beat/downtempo music which I listening to a lot as well. The 600e's just catered better overall to my varied music tastes, although admittedly I still yearned for the MX-R sound deep down when listening to Jazz-related pieces. Also, I'm a sucker for 'density' as well as bottom-end frequencies which are solid, crisp & punchy, and the MX-R's just came away a tad 'wishy-washy' for me in that area, unlike the 600e's.
Then again, it could be a change in cabling (as was in your case) might change the dynamics more to my liking, but I'ed already invested in Transparent Reference XL (MM2) cabling throughout so, kind of stuck there right now.
That being said, if Ayre decided to come out with a 'beefier' amp with a little more evident bottom-end, I'ed certainly be the first in line to audition it. I love Ayre products, and there's always that feeling that an all-Ayre electronics set-up would be the preferred way to go for me.
As for your demo of the Electrocompaniet AW 400 monoblocks, if you were impressed by them, then what was the deal breaker for you in deciding to ultimately go for the MX-R's? Did you try the active shielding cables on the AW 400's as well?
Also what genre of music do you predominantly listen to?
Many thanks for your feedback.