Bryston 28B SST

I would have to disagree with the observation that Levinson gear beats the 28's in every way. My personal experience is just the reverse - I replaced the Levinson 432 monoblocks with the 28BSST's in my system and the latter pair are just so much better in terms of dynamics, bass definition, midrange palpability and highs that are very refined for such monstrous power ratings. My speakers then were MBL 121's which were very difficult to drive and needed the heft of the 28's to open up. When I changed my speakers to the Vienna Acoustics The Music, which were more sensitive and an easier load, you would think it would be overkill but no, they sang very well together. The MBL's sound whitish and bright when pushed but not The Music - they sound better with higher powered amps and the 28's are just the ticket for harmonious synergy.

The system I'm using now consists of Revel Salon 1's , Ayre KXR preamp , Transparent Ultra speaker cables , Levinson 360S D.A.C. , Madrigal interconnects , Shunyata V-Rays and power cords , P.S. audio soloists for pre conditioning and power amps , second amp Luxman M117 bridged for passive sub , (18 inch in wall ), stand is also built into the wall ,shelfs are 1inch mdf laminated to 1inch of oak a layer of butal and Black Diamond shelfs on top . Two dedicated 20 ampers and some room tunes . No I do not know may hours were on the 28's but they were the salon's in house demo's, and I had herd them there myself on several visit's , so there was lots of time on them . I do not know when they were used last . I also tryed N.B.S. and transparent balenced interconects, that were hanging about .also tryed pluging them directly into the wall , that made them worse . Don't get me wrong I liked the 28's , but the # 431 did it for me , and keep in mind the hifi has been built around and voiced using the # 431 .

Mmarshall

After heaving read the favorable review in TAS by HP on the 28s I just had to find out for myself.
Borrowed the local dealers newest pair of 28s back in March of this year. They were burning in at the store for over 3 weeks 24/7 before they would loan them to me.
At the time I was looking for a solid state amp to have in my system along with my Wyetech Topaz SET 211.

The Brystons were going to replace my ML 33s and the ASR Emitter II Exclusive Version Blue.
Had the mono's in my system for over a week and a half.
Did not buy them, not very open nor did I find them dynamic.
The sound stage was flat by comparison to the previous SS amps.
By bringing the 28s into my home I can listen in my own room with my own set up.
The amps were driving my Maxx II's which are quite efficient.
Never had a chance to compare them to their smaller siblings.
Best to audition them yourself for a demo, then you can draw your own conclusion.

Really your best bet.

I also posted this on Canuckmart.ca back in March and April.

Take care and good luck,

There is more to it than just your amps, what's feeding them up the line along with cables.

Never mind your room and set-up.

There are going to be a allot of different opinions, just read above and mine, some threads making you think that a specific amp outperforms another.

This one had me chuckling;

"not very open nor did I find them dynamic."

Good luck to you it's the joys of this ever ending hobby of ours so it's best that you try but when I read such a statement sounds like they were being choked and there was most defiantely something else going on and not the fault of the amps.

F.Y.I. I replaced CAT Sig. JL3 MK2 mono's which list for $40K with Bryston 28 Squared driving my MBL 101e's, also had the MBL 9011 and 9008 mono which are crazy money, Pass X600.5's and prefer the Bryston's. I do like the Bryston's paired up with a tube pre, mine being the VAC Sig. MK2a.

Dev

"but when I read such a statement sounds like they were being choked and there was most definitely something else going on and not the fault of the amps."

Interesting as the dealer said the same thing after returning them.

He was going to check with Bryston to see what the potential cause could be. Maybe a miss match between my zeel and the Bryston.

It's all about synergy.

When I had the Bryston 28B SST sq on loan I did the following.
Had them on 24/7 with an Ipod to get them warmed up for 4 days before any doing any critical listening.
Tried both single ended and xlr inputs using Valhalla.
Power chords used were Bryston's and Synergistics as these were the only cables that I had two of back in March.
Speaker cables were both 2.5 and 1 Meter Valhalla's.

Dart pre, feeding both amps, via Nordost Valhalla.
Source is Verdier, Kuzma, Dynavector for vinyl, AR CD-7.5 and the Studer RTR.

My system would not choke the amps.

Being a Canadian there is nothing that I would rather do than to put money back into our economy.
But if the music is not there, then I will see to it to get the best that I can get regardless of origin.

The list of amps that you have tried are all great amps.
The only amp that I have heard is the MBL. Crazy money, yes but so were my ML 33s.

Dev, I am happy that you like your Brystons.

If you are ever in Vancouver BC send me a message, you are welcome to come by for a listen anytime.

Take care,