Krell KST100 vs Krell KAV300i vs Bryston
bl...@afm1.law.flinders.edu.au
I'm hoping to audition the Krell KAV300i in my own system at some
stage. I'm currently using a Krell KST100. Has anyone directly
compared these two amps? I guess I'll find out for myself, but could
I expect a marked improvement in the sound going from the KST100
(using passive preamp) to the KAV300i? I'm mainly looking for
improved detail and transparency rather than power per se.
While I'm at it, can anyone tell me how any of the Bryston amps sound
in comparison to the KST100?
Many thanks!
Cheers,
Nicholas
========
Nichola...@flinders.edu.au
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Bruce Platt
I found that the resolution in the KSA was higher , I realized while
listening to one CD that there were actually two trumpets playing, I
had never noticed this before. So I switched back , and if I listened
carefully I could make them out on the KST100, it did not stand out
as clearly as on the KSA100s. I also auditioned a pair of Bryston
7Bs. While they had great soundstaging also, they seemed a little
bright in my system.
Bruce
Linn LP12, Rega Planet, MD Etude, SF Line 1, Krell KSA100s, Theil 3.5, MIT
interconnects, Synergistic Research speaker cable
bl...@afm1.law.flinders.edu.au wrote in message
<74h0sn$4...@news01.aud.alcatel.com>...
Edward Sherman
found it harsh and "HI-Fi" sounding, like an inexpensive receiver. Could
not return it fast enough!
Ed Sherman
Scott
KST100/KSL-2 combination.The KAV300i(although still a great unit)
sounds harsh,thin and bass deficient in comparison.I will also agree
that the KSA100s does have a clearer,more transparent mid-range than
the KST100.The KST100 is still a great value though.At $1300 USED I
don't see how you can go wrong with one.Some will say that the KST100
was the worst Krell ever made.I disagree.I feel as if the whole KAV
line is the worst Krell gear ever made.It sounds
harsh,mechanical,lacks bass drive and is relentless to listen to.
The RCA jacks are the worst ever.Absolute junk.They break way too
easily.The KAV150a is the poorest excuse for a Krell that I have ever
seen or heard.Krell is definately not the company that they once were.
Scott
On 8 Dec 1998 05:56:29 GMT, "Edward Sherman"
will
KST-100, a KAV-250a, and a FPB-300.
IMO the KST-100 is definitely the worst of the bunch, the KSA-200S is
significantly better than the KST-100, the KAV-250a is neck and neck with
the 200S, and the FPB-300 is leaps and bounds above all of these. I have
played all the amps on both of my systems with different electronics, and
I would have to put the KST-100 far below any of the others, even
inferior to my Adcom 5800...
Scott
absolute junk.I prefer an Acurus or even a Rotel to any Adcom amp any
day of the week.My KST100 is far better sounding in every area than
my Acurus A150.I agree that the KSA200s is better than the KST100.My
KSA100s is definately cleaner,more transparent etc.than my KST.As far
as the FPB line goes,it definately doesn't float my boat.The FPB line
are some of the harshest sounding Krell amps ever (aside from the
awful KAV series).The FPB amps are too much money for too little
performance.I would definately own (an I do) an older Krell S Series
or a KST any day over ANY of Krell's latest offerings.You may call it
the other way.The fact of the matter is that we are lucky enough to
be able to choose which Krell is our favorite.There are many models
old and new out there to choose from.I just can't justify spending
the big bucks on a FPB amp,when an older model will do just
fine.Better sound?Not really.Different sound?Definately.Which is
better?Neither.Which amp works better in your system in your room?It
depends.This is where the home-audition comes in.
Simonw
didn't sound like a Krell at all. I used to have one a couple of years ago.
Then I switched to Ayre V3, which has a HUGE (I mean REALLY HUGE)
improvement over KST-100 (I used to have thiel cs 22), and I never looked
back.
Incidently, I have heard KAV-300i on Thiel 2.3. Sound pretty good, though
it lacks the warmth of Ayre (That's essential on Thiel).
I'vent heard Bryston. But there's really no comparison between KST100 and
KAV300i. THE NEW KRELL SOUNDS SO MUCH BETTER!!
Simon
Bruce Platt wrote in message <74hktn$h...@news01.aud.alcatel.com>...
philip ganderton
> ... I feel as if the whole KAV
> line is the worst Krell gear ever made.It sounds
> harsh,mechanical,lacks bass drive and is relentless to listen to.
> The RCA jacks are the worst ever.Absolute junk.They break way too
> easily.The KAV150a is the poorest excuse for a Krell that I have ever
> seen or heard.Krell is definately not the company that they once were.
While, in part, I agree with this last sentiment, I feel this is too harsh a
statement if taken at full volume. Krell is still producing very high quality
solid state products, especially the FPB series of amps ( I'm thinking of the
600 stereo and the 650 monoblocks in particular). But the KAV line is
presenting both long-time Krell lovers and those seeking the "high-end" with a
real dilemma: these products don't appear, or sound, like good value for
money, and might come across as trading on the Krell name. The Krell
marketing and accounting departments seem to have taken the accendancy over
the engineering (and self-indulgence) departments.
I presume some r.a.h-e members are aware that Ultimate Electronics, a
nation-wide electronics chain, firmly located in the low to mid fi belt but
with the normal aspirations to the higher ground, bought a store in Minnesota
that was a Krell dealer. So they got the dealership. Ultimate is now using
that "in" to distribute Krell products (the entire range, not just the KAV
line) throughout the country at various locations. A KAV-300i was just
recently (last Friday) purchased in Albuquerque from the Ultimate outlet
despite vociferous denials from Krell headquarters that Ultimate was selling
the products outside MN. The shipping label clearly had the item shipped from
Krell headquarters to the Ultimate distribution hub in Colorado! You can
imagine that the local dealer, and many of his customers, are furious, and
wondering why Krell is undermining the local long-time dealer. While a shrewd
business decision on Krell's behalf (let the little guy establish your market,
then use the big guy to expand it) it still smells bad even from over here.
I believe this "Ultimate story" is part of Krell's strategy to expand into the
upper end of the mid-market, and I won't criticize them for these business
decisions, however it leaves the upper end products and owners in an odd
state: will this type of "mass marketing" lower the value of new and used
products to current owners, and will the reputation of the company suffer.
And if it suffers in the eyes of audiophiles, does Krell care?
There's certainly a lot of money in Albuquerque, as Intel employees see their
$60 stock options crest $124 (today), and they are young and savvy, and don't
care who they buy their status symbols from, so long as they are perceived
good value and available NOW. Krell's Rondi D'Agostino is no dullard, that's
for sure. If she's behind the KAV push, and the expansion of Krell's
dealerships to national chain stores, then picking markets like Albuquerque is
smart. But there's a number of people who buy Krell because it sounds good
and gives them membership to a somewhat exclusive club. These people won't be
happy to learn that another 5 million people a day could belong to that club
as they wait for their car stereo to be installed.
later,
philip ganderton
Johnny Y Boey
> The KST100 inferior to an Adcom 5800?I don't think so!Adcom is
> absolute junk.I prefer an Acurus or even a Rotel to any Adcom amp any
> day of the week.
why absolute junk? They are all solid state, while Adcoms usually have much
bigger power supplies and based on a design by Nelson Pass.
> My KST100 is far better sounding in every area than
> my Acurus A150.
I have extensive experience with many Krell amps, preamps, and digital, and
the KST100 is by far the worst in my opinion (I have never heard the latest
KAV150a). Comparing it to the Acurus is like a 6 to 5 on a scale of 10.
> The FPB line
> are some of the harshest sounding Krell amps ever (aside from the
> awful KAV series).The FPB amps are too much money for too little
> performance.
I guess we just have to agree to disagree. The FPBs are on another level, even
improved on the KSA250, which I prefer over the S-series BTW. Krell is no
longer just about bass slam and incredible macrodynamics, the FPBs have been
better in inner details, microdynamics, and musicality (the older Krells tend
to be a little analytical, and the S-series changed course and became
ultra-smooth, while the FPBs sound just right).
JB
drizz...@aol.com
were all put into an extremely revealing system. My reference system
is a Wadia 27i-Wadia 270 to a Conrad Johnson Premier 14, to the amp,
usually a Krell FPB-300, with a KAV-250a serving as bass
amplification, driving a pair of Gallo Nucleus Reference speakers,
with a pair of Hsu HRSW-12Va subs providing the bottom end, through a
Bryston 10B subwoofer crossover. All cables are JPS Labs.
In this system, the KST-100 shows significant grain, and ultimately
doesn't have the air or resolution of the other Krell amplifiers, and
it doesn't really have the bass of the others, or indeed, the 5800,
although this may be because of the power disparity. The 5800 is good
in many ways, but ultimately cannot avoid the problems of its MOSFET
heritage, i.e. mist, but is easier to listen to IMO than the
KST-100... the other krell amps easily outclass it. The FPB- 300 may
be considered bright in some systems, not in this one, it has
marvelous resolution and is never strained by the 8 ohm Gallos, which
are not the easiest speaker in the world to control in the bass,
however the Krell amplifiers do a good job here. One somewhat
surprising fact is how well my Plinius SA-50 performed in this
system... Bass was not quite as strong as the FPB-300 but as
controlled and it was an easier amplifier to listen to in many
ways... While not quite capable of the same level of resolution, it
has many attributes that I prefer to the big krell, although it is
firmly lodged in my other system with the Nucleus Solos... Great
performance for a amp 3 times cheaper than price... then again it
really shows how the principle of diminshing returns applies to home
audio...
> The KST100 inferior to an Adcom 5800?I don't think so!Adcom is
> absolute junk.I prefer an Acurus or even a Rotel to any Adcom amp any
> day of the week.My KST100 is far better sounding in every area than
> my Acurus A150.I agree that the KSA200s is better than the KST100.My
> KSA100s is definately cleaner,more transparent etc.than my KST.As far
> as the FPB line goes,it definately doesn't float my boat.The FPB line
> are some of the harshest sounding Krell amps ever (aside from the
> awful KAV series).The FPB amps are too much money for too little
> performance.I would definately own (an I do) an older Krell S Series
> or a KST any day over ANY of Krell's latest offerings.You may call it
> the other way.The fact of the matter is that we are lucky enough to
> be able to choose which Krell is our favorite.There are many models
> old and new out there to choose from.I just can't justify spending
> the big bucks on a FPB amp,when an older model will do just
> fine.Better sound?Not really.Different sound?Definately.Which is
> better?Neither.Which amp works better in your system in your room?It
> depends.This is where the home-audition comes in.
[quoted text deleted -- deb]
John Rossmann
<bl...@afm1.law.flinders.edu.au> wrote:
>While I'm at it, can anyone tell me how any of the Bryston amps sound
>in comparison to the KST100?
From 1992 to 1997, my power amp was the KST-100. At the time I was
shopping for it, I compared it with a Bryston stereo amp that was
rated at much higher power (double, I think) but was about $500
cheaper. The Bryston sounded good, better than the Adcom I was
replacing, but the KST-100 had much better definition and did not
become as constricted on large orchestral passages. The Bryston was
also brighter sounding. The superiority of the KST-100 over the
Bryston was VERY apparent with the right music. That was with an
Adcom 565 preamp, a Proceed PCD CD player, and Vandersteen 2C
speakers.
But the most important advice I could give you would be to listen any
amps in your own system, preferably having both amps in your home at
the same time so you can compare them in the same listening session.
Have fun!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
John C. Rossmann (jo...@synersys.com)
"Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys
to teen-age boys." -- P. J. O'Rourke
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