Best sounding Krell ?

As promised, I asked Dan D'Agostino if he could comment as to some of the sentiment expressed here. He kindly responded:

Stephen,
Thank you for bringing this to my attention. It always amazes me how some people can talk, with such authority, about subjects they know so little about. Most of the other companies mentioned are companies that out source their engineering. In many cases the designs are op-amp based. Both op-amp based and out-sourced designs are not bad things unto themselves, but when implementing these methods it actually defines the brand. At KRELL we design all of the products we produce. All of our designs are discrete and proprietary to KRELL. The performance of our products is superior in every way to that of other products in our industry. I speak with authority because we look at other products, and know what they offer. When you buy a Krell product you get my 29 years of experience in its sonic pedigree. You may not like it’s sound, but it is all KRELL. Perhaps KRELL is not asked for in this context because we have such a good dealer network around the world, where most other brands have very little distribution. It is sometimes laughable when I look at some of the names mentioned. We invest countless dollars pushing the envelope in terms of design and engineering, at the very least it is worth a listen. Perhaps when the ears are used instead of the eyes, the secrets of the KRELL can truly be realized.
Thank you for your support,
Daniel D'Agostino

Perhaps when the ears are used instead of the eyes, the secrets of the KRELL can truly be realized.

"But the Krell forgot one thing! Monsters! Monsters from the id!" Subconscious minds acting out their darkest urges, fueled by the machine's power. The audiophile machine/merry-go-round fuels the subconscious mind to a point where the machine's power amplifies everything. Amplified by the machine, a mere "magic pebble" causes huge impact to the soundstage. One piece of wire sounds radically different from another! A farting flea can be heard across the continent.

And the amplified hubris of grown men inevitably draws them into heated arguments to defend the machines they worship!

"Don't you see, despite being civilized, this is what ended up destroying the Krell! All we have now are their machines"

Very poetic Shadorne, even if it is a useless metaphor. Anyway, I have a major update to report...I am listening to my all Krell system with my new MIT Oracle AC2 power cord. I was in the audience for the Ondine SACD recording of Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra, performed live by the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra at the Kimmel center. All I can say is that with the new PC on my 400xi, I am 5th row center again...absolutely jaw dropping, goosebump makin' sound. MIT cables are so vastly superior to anything I've ever experienced that it is imperitive that any audiophile in pursuit of the dream acoustic should demo a full set as soon as possible:) You decide...I trust your response will be likewise.

Shadorne: Very interesting, and when I close my ears and use only my eyes what I envision is you on a stage performing to this script wearing a type of costume not unlike that found on two particular fellows found in a standard deck of Bicycle playing cards. Just be sure to wear your armored codpiece.

Steve,

LOL. Yes - glad you get the picture! It does me good not to be taken too seriously.

More seriously - is it true that the Krell do not use Op-amps? Wow that is some serious cost - most line level devices (pre-amps and input stages of power amps) would all use op amps even if they were mounted discretely (no chip packages). That would explain serious cost of a product built that way...Krell build quality! Anyway I doubt they could do this except on their top of the line...