Small dilemna: two combo

[Maxflo]

I have other solution, much cheaper: what do you think to exchange KT120 from your Ref75 to KT150? I have Ref150 which is superb but with KT150 (I play with tem 250h now) is even better. other comments you can find on other topic on this forum:-)

[soundslikemusic]

*really, my main concern is if the sound quality of the REF150 is the same as the REF75 with the REF150 doubling the power, then i will go for the REF150.
I've seen most of the reviews of the REF150 and honestly cant find a bad one yet.
However ive read in forums that slight purity of the ref75 vs the ref150 hence the slight consideration in undertaking the more powerful amp.

[jpgr4blu]

As with most amplifiers, with ARC, there may be a slight, and I mean very slight loss of sweetness in sound noticeable on rare occasions as you move up the Ref line for more watts. Nevertheless, I would recommend going with the minimum amperage needed to comfortably drive all of your speakers. That would be the Ref 150. By way of example, I've heard the Ref 150 and 250s with Alexia. Even though the Ref 150 may, on some recordings, have a slight edge in sweetness, the Ref 250s had depth, breadth, scale , instrument separation, soundstaging and better grip on the low end---- Undeniable, ALL THE TIME---all in all IMHO a much better match with the Alexia. You lose one aspect and gain a number of others that collectively are much more important and, in the end, much more noticeable.
Others here who live with the Ref 75 may disagree, but this is what I heard and what I would do.
For anything that does not require a little bit of brute force, the Ref 75 is an easy call.

[JCR]

Originally Posted by jpgr4blu

As with most amplifiers, with ARC, there may be a slight, and I mean very slight loss of sweetness in sound noticeable on rare occasions as you move up the Ref line for more watts. Nevertheless, I would recommend going with the minimum amperage needed to comfortably drive all of your speakers. That would be the Ref 150. By way of example, I've heard the Ref 150 and 250s with Alexia. Even though the Ref 150 may, on some recordings, have a slight edge in sweetness, the Ref 250s had depth, breadth, scale , instrument separation, soundstaging and better grip on the low end---- Undeniable, ALL THE TIME---all in all IMHO a much better match with the Alexia. You lose one aspect and gain a number of others that collectively are much more important and, in the end, much more noticeable. Others here who live with the Ref 75 may disagree, but this is what I heard and what I would do. For anything that does not require a little bit of brute force, the Ref 75 is an easy call.

I got the same impression when trying the ref150 and ref250 with my aida. Now regarding the slight loss of sweetness as you go up in the model, you are correct ... Except when you get to the ref750, they actually sound sweeter then any of the lower model as they have so much more fluidity. Granted they are expensive...

I find the ref150 to be one of the best value for money in audio right now...

[soundslikemusic]

for me the price diff between the ref75 and ref150 is not a problem.

honestly i would prefer the 75 because its less tube to re-tube , less heat & less power consumption... but i feel based on my readings here that more power would give me more breadth, depth, bass control. loosing a slight sweetness which i think i can get back by playing w/ cables, etc.

i might just pull the trigger on the ref150 then...

based on my research, both the ref75 and ref150 dont have bad or mediocre reviews...

[bsandovalb]

Originally Posted by 2fastdriving

I always thought that harbeth was easy to drive, because it is a popular speaker for the tube crowd. Forgive me, but it seems odd to rotate speakers in a system on a normal basis. For me, I pick the best single speakers I can afford and pick the best matching gear. If I upgrade, I'd make the decision based on the intended gear or speakers and how it works with what I have or the direction I'm going . From the comments I've read, this seems to be the most common system building process.

I also rotate speakers... Depending on the mood.... If I have various sets of stereo speakers why not rotate them?... I think we are all nuts; some rotate preamps, others amps, others sources... Speakers seems like a "normal" behavior in this madness jeje 🍻🍻

[2fastdriving]

Originally Posted by bsandovalb

I also rotate speakers... Depending on the mood.... If I have various sets of stereo speakers why not rotate them?... I think we are all nuts; some rotate preamps, others amps, others sources... Speakers seems like a "normal" behavior in this madness jeje 🍻🍻

I think the reason for not rotating them is sound - amps and speakers are matched with varying degrees of success. If you have multiple speakers you like, it might make more sense to build a few different systems ($$ permitting of course). Go visit Ivan and see a good example

[soundslikemusic]

Harbeths are easy speakers to drive due to their impedance but because of the 84 db efficiency of the Harbeth P3esrs one needs to crank out the volume of the REF5 to higher levels in the 50-60 vol range.

[MPS]

Originally Posted by bsandovalb

I also rotate speakers... Depending on the mood.... If I have various sets of stereo speakers why not rotate them?... I think we are all nuts; some rotate preamps, others amps, others sources... Speakers seems like a "normal" behavior in this madness jeje 🍻🍻

I think main reason for not "rotating" speakers is that unlike electronics they are very room dependent - means even if a speaker is a great on it might not sound so great in your room so in the end only one or two pair of speakers might play optimally in your room. Depends on room but unless purpose build for music... YMMV

[bsandovalb]

Well i have rotated between usher be10, cp-6391, martin logan cls2, sl3 & oddysey.. Of course with different amps (levinson, arc & viva).... I have the electronics in racks so it is just a matter of move speakers and plug the corresponding electronics.... It is not that I rotate every day of course!.... And they all interact in the room quite nicely.... But your POVs are all correct

What I enjoy are the pros of each piece, and not focus or worry about the cons (or areas of improvement)... This way I can truly enjoy music through a system and not the system through the music... Saludos!