Ideas for Krell-ish sound, but less heat?


Hello,
What class AB amps should a Krell-loving person consider? I have a 400 cx.

I have used a variety of nice audio gear over the years, and have gravitated towards the Krell sound. But in a room over the garage that already tends to get warm, the Krell's heat production is unbearable.

This hobby is all subjective of course. I like killer dyanamics, ballsy sound. Not interested in mellow or laid-back. As a comparison, I owned a Levinson 335 at one point but eventually decided the sound was boring to me. I'd love a multi-channel amplifier consistent with my sonic preferences, though I could also deal with combos of mono and stereo amps.

I have tried class D, but still looking. Ideas?
d_forrester
What Class D amp did you try and with what pre-amp? Also what speakers?

Thanks.
For years I have been of the, (possibly misled) opinion that Musical Fidelity offered a "Krellish" type of presentation, albeit with a British take on the sonic approach. Having said that, the two are very different designs. It's gonna be difficult to match the quality of your 400cx though (disclaimer: I have one).
I've heard some very good and very bad systems with Krell amps. The common link among the good ones have been use with Martin Logan speakers. I have heard similar sound with MLs using Classe amplifiers. Have also heard Krell amps sound very good similar to ML with Focal speakers.

I've only heard a few bad Krell systems which I would attibute most likely to poor setup/integration and/or specific units not performing up to spec.

I had a Musical Fidelity A3CR for a while. Less heat and bulk I suspect but no resemblance to Krell sound that I could determine.

I might be able to draw some similar comparisons between the Bel Canto ref1000m amps I currently use and the Krells I have heard, but the BCs are Class Ds, and I have never heard a Krell amp in my system, though I have considered Krell as an option.