Wilson Maxx3 vs Avalon Isis

There is a thread on amps for the Isis.

For tubes, I think you got CAT and VTL to consider. BAT may not have enough power in your room, but it may be worth a try. I am not sure if you could hook-up 4 BAT monoblocks together, but that will certainly be warm.

For SS, I would be afraid that Dartzeel and Lamm would not get the lower half of the speaker to work properly. You need something with power and a full/warm midrange. I am currently working with Karan amps and a BAT preamp. Gold cables also help.

Hi,the Isis sound better with high quality tube amps,finding one to drive them is another question.The Cat has the sonics and the guts to drive the Isis better than any tube amp I know of,even higher powered ones.The Maxx3 is a fine speaker but Wilson does have a family sound and if you like it that is the speaker for you,the Isis is transparent,detailed and throws a huge soundstage and just sounds like real music.I have owned them for 3 years and could buy any speaker I want but have no intention of changing.

Honestly if you want music get the Isis if you want Demo or shock Hi-Fi get the MAXXIII. It really is as simple as that.

I have heard both Maxx3 and Isis in dealer room recently, both driven by SS amps....Goldmund Telos 200 and Pass labs 350.5 for former, and Ayre MX-R for later. With the amps used, Maxx3 had more slam and weight and scale, Isis was more refined and holographic and sweeter treble extension.
I would guess both should sound better with tubes. But for Isis, the need for big, powerful tube amps and the heat and all that would be something to consider.

I heard the Max 3 at a dealer recently.What I noticed is that the speakers are still a little slow sounding to my ears. Perhaps due to the fact that Wilson persists in using what I consider to be outdated drivers.
I haven't heard the Isis but at least they appear to be more advanced in their driver technology.