#1
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KX-R vs 380S
I know a few have owned both pieces - has anyone compared the KX-R to the classic Levinson No. 380S preamp?
I'm in a rather ironic situation in that though I live about ten minutes away from Ayre, they currently have no Colorado dealers (!), so I can't easily demo one… |
#2
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I had the 380S paired with the CJ Premier 12s awhile ago. Its a good preamp and was one of the first to design a great volume control by adding gain in 6db increments and only putting one resistor in the signal path at a time. But it will sound darker and be less transparent than the Ayre. The Ayre is a beast and has an awesome volume control. No contest. That doesn't mean the 380s is bad...just not in same league. The last of the good ML gear was the 32...which would get you closer to the Ayre...but is still a little dark for my tastes. The Rowland Corus is also a good option...it was the closest SS preamp to the Ayre.
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#3
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Thanks… I've had the opportunity to audition the ML No. 326S and found it to sound noticeably "rolled off" in comparison to my No. 380S, not what I was expecting at all. I'm still not convinced the sample I had wasn't defective, but the dealer claimed it was performing normally, so I'm not sure where to go from there. I compared the No. 326S in-store to other preamps and the only preamp they had that improved on the sound of my 380S at the time was a Boulder 810 or 1010, neither of which has as many inputs as I need, ignoring their stratospheric price point for the moment.
I got to play with a KX-R once but never really had the chance to listen to one at length. I also recently demoed a Audio Research LS17 but wasn't favorably impressed, the demo unit I auditioned having a noticeable balance shift that threw the image off to one side. Last edited by BillK; 09-10-2011 at 09:08 PM. |
#4
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I don't have any experience with the 326...I lost faith in the new ML products after the purchase by Harman.
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#5
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How do you like the 28bsst-2? Are they broken in yet? Joe |
#6
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I'm looking forward to reading your impressions. From all accounts, they are superb performers and nothing like the older series. These are supposed to be more tube-like and on the warmer side of neutral.
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#7
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I used to own a a bunch of Mark Levinson stuff - including a 380s, which I replaced with the NO. 32 preamp pictured below. (and which was an improvement)
Ultimately I replaced all the Levinson components with Spectral - and the improvement was dramatic in about every area I know how to describe. A picture of my last "batch" of Levinson is attached.
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.... I have a record player and a cd player and some other stuff that sounds pretty good. MAIN SYSTEM: . . . Audio Physic Caldera III Loudspeakers, Spectral DMC 30SL Preamp, Spectral DMA 250 Amp, Spectral/MIT interconnects and speaker cable, Basis Debut V Vacuum turntable, Walker Precision Speed Controller, Graham tonearm, [B]Koetsu Rosewood or Grado Statement 1 Cartridges, PASS - X-ono Phono Stage, Esoteric K03 CD/SACD Player, Lexicon RT-20 Universal Player, Exact Power EP-15A & SP-15A power regeneration and conditioning devices. Symposium Acoustics Svelte pads & RollerBlock Jr's under speakers. ASC Tube Traps, Arcici Suspense Rack System, OPPO and Cambridge Streaming Devices. DOWNSTAIRS SYSTEM: . . . Sonus Faber Guarneri Memento Speakers, JL Audio F112 Sub, McIntosh MA7000 Integrated Amp, McIntosh MVP871 Universal Disc Player, OPPO BDP-105 Blu-Ray Player, VPI Scoutmaster with periphery ring clamp, VPI SDS Motor Drive, Koetsu Pro IV, or Clearaudio Discovery Cartridges, Mark Levinson No. 25s phono stage, Wadia 170i Transport with a Meridian Bitstream 203 DAC, VPI HW-17 Pro Record Cleaning Machine, Five Richard Gray RGPC 400 devices scattered around the two systems, Arcici Suspense Rack System, Discovery Essence and Essential Cables, 14,000 ± LPs . |
#8
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#9
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heya PartTime, are you saying the Ayre Monos are not a good choice for a Martin Logan with their tough HF load? or is this based on using a different set of speakers? regards matthias |
#10
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ok thanks,
Im about to audition the summitX on the new VXR in a few weeks. Your experience is more related to the bass load if I understand it correctly rather than the HF impedance of like under one ohm? cheers matthias |
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