Favorite SS Amp?

I put my two cents in for the Rowland 302 amp. I have had Krell before and its bass is awesome but the overall sound of even the newer 400cx is wanting in the other important areas. The Rowland 302 is pricey but it just creates a beautiful synthesis of sound for just about every cd (even the poorly recorded ones). There is plenty of bass, delicious midrange, and vocals are superb.

At the money you are talking, and wanting something relatively cool running, I would definetly go listen to the YBA. (Celestial Audio--www.speakersetc.net)

I don't have an over-all favorite; each amp has something that it does very well and something that it does "merely well".

For instance,with Analysis plus IC, I find the new SST series Brystons to be the best amps below 5khz that I have heard. I prefer them overall to the Levinson, and much prefer them to the Krell. The palette of tonal colors and shadings is very rich. Even my SET loving friends give them high marks on midrange. They are quite good in the highs too,with the right front-end and cabling, but other amps win out here.

Halcro impressed me mightily but bi-amping with much less expensive amps yields the same results.

The old T-series Threshold and the new Pass's are awesome on top. So, I am bi-amping with the "T" on top and the SST on the bottom. I consider that hybrid to be the best I have heard, including the Halcro.

Now, everything can change with a different speaker load so....YMMV.

Pass are great amps, and I would second their sonic recommendation. However, don't they run a bit hot? My vote would be for a two-channel Theta Dreadnaught II. I auditioned a lot of amps for use with my Thiel 3.6's, and Theta was my top choice. I ended up with a pair of Enterprises for the 3.6's, and an Intrepid for center and surround (I would have bought a Dreadnaught II for this, but my dealer offered a great deal on an Intrepid, and it is SO darn good for a 5x100w amp...). Because of having two small kids running around, my Enterprises are currently in an entertainment cabinet (with decent ventilation). One of the great things about Theta amps is that they really do not run very hot at all. My pre/pro puts out more heat than my three Theta amps combined!

A two-channel Dreadnaught II is very respectable. It is high current, zero feedback in design, and the characteristic that sold me the most on Theta amps is their ability to create a huge, deep, defined soundstage. You really should give Theta a listen.

Tom.

The Pass amps are a tad on the warm side, but not as hot as the earlier Aleph series.

The store that I was able to hear the Theta's at did a very poor demo, so I left with less than enthusiastic feelings for the Theta. You know how it is; you hear a bad demo, and even though you know it is probably not the amp's fault, the back of your mind always holds the demo against the amp.

Since, other than that demo, I have heard nothing but good about them I am sure that the Theta kicks ass.

Another set of amps that runs cool and has great sound are the Spectron Musician II and III amps.

My approach is to get, or make, a speaker which presents a tame load to an amp. This allows much more in the way of choices of amplifiers. Many amps, such as Pass and Theta, are expensive because they are made to drive horrible loads. The same sound can be had for much less money if the load is reasonable.

Right now, if I had to make a choice which amp I would want for full-range use, on my speakers, taking in each amps flaws and virtues, I would honestly go with my Bryston 4BSST. I prefer it, overall, to my Spectron, Threshold, and my Atma-Spere amps. It just gives more overall pleasure, perhaps because of the delicious midrange. And it is an easy amp to relax to. Mind you, it is not a fight-to-the-death preference; any of the above amps please me as did many others that I have had in my home. My listening bias is toward the bass and midrange caring not as much for the highs.(Though with ribbons the highs are almost a given.)

I should be a tube man based on that but I find most (but by no means all) tube gear too "dirty" and unbalanced for my ears.