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ATI SIGNATURE SERIES 6005 OR CLASSE CT 5300??

Good afternoon all,
i am currently in the market for a 5 channel power amplifier. i just recently sold my classe audio ca 5200 and i truthfully LOVED IT. It has been THE BEST multichannel power amplifier i have owned PERIOD. I loved the smoothness and soundstage. i felt it had a taste of 'tube like sound' if you will. That being said, my plan was simply to move up to the ct 5300 which has more power and some say it has better bass control than the ca5200 which was one of the things it was criticized for. however, i started to read reviews on the new ATI SIGNATURE 6005 and its amazing noise floor etc and of course every magazine is raving about it. Having owned outlaw audio amplifiers before which are built by ATI as well, i am wondering if the signature series is just a little better than the regular at series ? they seem to be a little on the forward side, but i have spoken to several dealers who claim the signature series is neutral, not forward and that it is a spectacular upgrade over their regular series. However, i don't really see anyone else who has given it their own review and comparing against their former amplifier. yes, there is a reviewer who said it was just as good if not better than his parasound a51.
My current set up is martin logan montis, motif x, and i will eventually get the martin logan EFX surrounds. AS far as a processor, i am only using the ps audio dac as a preamplifier because i am waiting on the marantz 8802 to release in february. i would say i am about 60% music, 40% movies.
Given my situation, what would you guys get? i would love to know anyone's input.
whitecamaross
clpetersen
7 posts
 
I don't much abut the Lexicon, but the ATI signature and McIntosh MC452 (and 152) have some basic commonalities (excluding of course the autoformers). The most important being fully balanced designs using 'ThermalTrack' output devices which have on-board temp sensing. This allows real-time active biasing of the output stages, touted by both manufacturers.
If I were to ever move away from ATI, it might be to the MC452. Not expecting a huge improvement in sound, and would have to listen to see if the autoformer makes any difference that I can discern or like/dislike. But a Mac is a Mac. Paying some big bucks to get cool meters though. All fun.

Excepting certain things like autoformers and some of the deliberate harmonics of a Nelson pass design (using transformers), I think well designed SS amps have reached a high level of maturity. Most now have power bandwidths extending to over 80 kHz, and THD's below 0.05%. Things that I would like for would be excellent performance at low listening levels (think 'First Watt' )- like a class A or high bias (basically same thing as class A) design up to say 5 or 10 watts, etc. ATI does specs their amps at 1 watts and full rated power.
whitecamaross's avatar
whitecamaross OP
1,499 posts
 
i have owned the lexicon rx7 and it is a VERY LAID BACK amplifier. It is so laid back that it almost makes it a must to buy a forward sounding preamplifier. That being said, the ATI, according to the reviews and my conversation with them, is SUPPOSED to be a NEUTRAL amplifier. They swear that this amplifier has technology and components that have NEVER been used. Again, the only way to tell is by actually listening to the units. If it is a rebadged zx7, rest assured i will be beyond disapointed. My thinking is that it is NOT a lexicon zx7 because this amp has been out since 2011-2012 i believe and the signature series supposedly has new technology in it and i seriously doubt it has EVERYTHING that zx7 has. It would shock me, but who knows what will happen. I go through amplifiers the same way i go through bottles of water. I don't think i have ever owned an amplifier longer than a year which is an advantage because i can certainly distinguish amongst them.
whitecamaross's avatar
whitecamaross OP
1,499 posts
 
FYI GUYS, i just heard from a very trustworthy source who has a lot of experience with amplifiers that the ATI SIGNATURE SERIES is a Mark Levinson Unit... They are using ALL THE TECHNOLOGY they put in the mark levinson amplifiers and with a few more tweaks to improve it some more. I also heard from an actual owner that this amplifier made him sell the Krell Amp he owned (forget which model). So far, there are a lot of good indicators that this amp is nothing more than a Mark Levinson Unit but at a much cheaper price with better warranty..... :)
scvan
99 posts
 
Whitecamaross,

As clpetersen stated,
I think well designed SS amps have reached a high level of maturity
Most good SS amps are more alike than different. I can almost promise you that ZX7 and ATI are identical, I think they even came out the same year. I don't think that is anything to worry about. I know of only a few amps able to put out this level of clean power. The first that comes to mind is the Boulder mono that requires a 240V line. This amp requires 2 separate 120V lines because the power supplies are so goof that they can pull that much power.
Easily one of the most important parts of any amp is the PS unit because if you don't have good clean power there it doesn't matter what is after that.

If you don't like the ATI, contact me because I'll buy it from you. I guarantee it can go up against mono or stereo amps at multiples its cost.
clpetersen
7 posts
 
Interesting (Sevan's post re: Lexicon Zx-7 vs. ATI 6005). ATI and Harmon International (owner of Lexicon) are both Southern California companies. ATI makes a large number of amps to be re-badged and Harmon makes a stunning number of re-badged products, or more accurately, a stunning number of similar designs under one roof. I took a private tour of their facilities a few years ago for business reasons not related to audio.
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