[jandrews]

Greetings
Is anyone using the 225 Mono amps with their LRS’s?
From the copy on the AVA site, it appears that they respond well to speakers needing a lot of current….but I haven’t read too many reports of ppl using this pairing.
I am currently using my SET120 with Fritz speakers and bring in my LRS sometimes, but am planning to use the Maggie’s in a different room so need an appropriate amp. As discussed here before the SET120 drives the LRS’s very well even if it’s at the lower end of recommended power.
Curious if the new SET500 stereo amp or the M225 monos would be a better match for the LRS.

[I.Greyhound Fan]

I wrote a review of the 225's for AVAHiFi.  My speakers are Magnepan 1.6's.  The 225's drove them well and they sounded great.  I am sure that the 500 will do the same.  The difference between the 2 amps besides 1 being a monoblock is that the 500 is single ended only and the 225's are XLR only.

You can read my review on the Van Alstine circle.

[NIGHTFALL1970]

I use M225s with my Magnepan 1.7s and they sound fantastic! 

[jandrews]

Thanks for this
Yeah, I'm not surprised they are a great pairing.
I read somewhere here that since the M225 is a bridged design, the amp sees half the impedance load of the actual speaker.
So a 2-Ohm dip in the impedance of the LRS becomes 1-Ohm ....which would obviously mean even more of a current draw.
I'm hoping to pick up a pair of the M225's in the coming months.  Hopefully used or demo.
Regarding the differences between the M225 and the SET500...besides the aforementioned differences (Mono vs Stereo and Balanced vs Single Ended), is the sound signature the same between the two?  And would the signature of the SET120 be a good barometer for either or both of those amps?

[I.Greyhound Fan]

Thanks for this
Yeah, I'm not surprised they are a great pairing.
I read somewhere here that since the M225 is a bridged design, the amp sees half the impedance load of the actual speaker.
So a 2-Ohm dip in the impedance of the LRS becomes 1-Ohm ....which would obviously mean even more of a current draw.
I'm hoping to pick up a pair of the M225's in the coming months.  Hopefully used or demo.
Regarding the differences between the M225 and the SET500...besides the aforementioned differences (Mono vs Stereo and Balanced vs Single Ended), is the sound signature the same between the two?  And would the signature of the SET120 be a good barometer for either or both of those amps?

I found the 225's to sound better than the 120.  More dynamic, more punch and musical.  I am not sure how the 225's compare to the SET 500. If the 500 is like the other SET amps, I found them to have a more romantic midrange in my system.  More warmth but not overly so.

[SteveInMinn]

Van Alstine amps + Maggie speakers --> both Minnesota-made. Interesting. But I'm biased.