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I tried three amps with my X5's; a Carver Crimson 275, a LTA ZOTL10, and a First Watt J2. The preamp used is a DSPeaker Anti-mode X4 which has a built-in excellent DAC. A friend and I compared the Carver with the LTA. (My friend was the principal trombonist in the LA Philharmonic for over 30 years). We both preferred the Carver. A couple weeks later the First Watt J2 arrived. Another X5 owner and I compared the First Watt with the Carver and we both preferred the Carver which seemed to have more meat on the bone than the First Watt. For orchestral music, which is what I mostly listen to, that extra meat on the bone works very well in my opinion but your milage may vary.

I thought about the Carver 275 as well.  My concern about the LTA gear is if I decide to move on from my X5s, I want to make sure my tube amp can power another speaker with lower sensitivity.  I liked the detail of the ZOTL Ultralinear vs. ZOTL40 Reference +.  I’d have to go with mono blocks for less efficient speakers down the road.  Thanks for your feedback!

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I've also tried several amps with my X5's, including the Prima Luna 400.  I've used the LTA zotl 10, the LTA Reference 40, the Reference 40 plus, an Anthem mrx710, and the Carver 275.  The Prima Luna 400 to me was a middle of the road piece.  The Anthem made me realize I needed to go back to tubes.
 Nothing to write home about on either the Prima or the Anthem.  Then I bought the LTA 10.  Very nice unit with a nice reduction in noise and a much more musical quality.  Right after that a gently used LTA 40 Reference came on the market at a nice price and I grabbed it.  With those luscious NOS EL34 tubes and other improvements over the 10 it was the new keeper.  Right around then I stopped using the preamp section of the Anthem and received Don Sachs all in preamp.  Never underestimate the importance of a good preamp.  The DS Pre with those 6sn7 tubes made 3very amp sound better by a lot.  I decided to try a friend's Carver 275 and that was also a very nice amp when I changed the signal tubes to NOS Telefuncken from the 50"s, but the LTA 40 still had that magic.  Earlier this year I sent the LTA 40 back to get the PLUS upgrade and it was money well spent.  An immediate and obvious positive change when I got it back and that's it.  I'm done.  I do use the Carver in a second system with a pair of modified Klipsh Cornwall IV's and that is an excellent combo also, but the DS pre with the LTA40 PLUS and tubed DAC is the finest system I've owned and one of the finest I've ever heard.  I may finally be able to get off the upgrade Merry Go Round.  (Famous last words).

Good information!  Thanks!

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I use a Lampizator Baltic 3 DAC with an LTA Ultralinear Integrated which is soon to be update to the Plus version. The tubed DAC with the LTA amp is an end game system for me... of course with the X5's!

Thanks again for another positive feedback concerning LTA pairings with Spatial Audio!