Amp for Dynaudio Special 40s or Speakers for Prima Luna EVO integrated

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by normychas, Jun 4, 2020.

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  1. normychas

    normychas Active Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Arlington, VA
    All,

    I have a 12x12 listening room that is connected to my kitchen so technically the room is longer that 12x12 because of the open space but I have sonos speakers in the kitchen and other parts of the house.

    I am just getting into HiFi and demoed a pair of DynAudio Special 40s and they just blew me away. I listened to a number of floor standing focal speakers that my hifi shop pushed fairly hard but i just really loved the dynaudios.

    As I dig deeper into this rabbit hole i am looking at a lot of tube amps and am particularly interested in the prima luna evo 300 or 400.

    I have spoken with the folks at upscale audio who of course advocate for PL (Kevin is a great salesmen). However, they cautioned me against pairing the PL with DynAudio and suggested the Tannoys that they sell. There is no way for me to listen to the Tannoys so i would prefer to go with something that i can actually listen to.

    Most of my music listening is singer songwriters (John Mayer, Alexi Murdoch) but i listen to rap and a bit of everything just like everyone.

    Option 1: Pair the DynAudios with the EVO 300 or 400 in my small ish room
    Option 2: Pair the DynAudios with a SS amp like the Parasound A21+ or a hybrid like the Vincent Audio SV 700.
    Option 3: Take a shot and purchase the Tannoys 8TF and the PL EVO 300 for the full upscale audio experience
     
  2. Dingly Del Boy

    Dingly Del Boy Forum Resident

    Location:
    British Columbia
    Option 4: Dynaudio with a Hegel H190. Dynaudio and Hegel are a match made in heaven.
     
  3. normychas

    normychas Active Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Arlington, VA
    Will definitely audition
     
  4. Art K

    Art K Retired but not tired!

    Location:
    Corvallis, Oregon
    Rogue Cronus Magnum 3 with the Dyns or a Raven Audio setup, amp and speakers. So many possibilities!
     
    trd and GoldprintAudio like this.
  5. Glmoneydawg

    Glmoneydawg Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ontario Canada
    The special 40,s are great little speakers,but that amazing bass performance out of that little cabinet will likely require quite a few solid state watts...the parasound is great value and performance...should be a good match.
     
    Tim 2, AmericanHIFI and timind like this.
  6. normychas

    normychas Active Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Arlington, VA
    Excellent my local Hi-Fi shop has everything mentioned thus far other than parasound...hopefully they open back up at some point in the near future
     
  7. dchang81

    dchang81 Forum Resident

    FYI upscale is the distributor for tannoy.
     
  8. normychas

    normychas Active Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Arlington, VA
    I’m aware hence the full upscale experience. I think they do a good job selling but they should disclose their relationship with tannoy and prima Luna. I’d still like the videos but when Kevin talks about his guys not pushing product because they don’t work on commission They should mention their business interests
     
    andy_0702 and AmericanHIFI like this.
  9. Glmoneydawg

    Glmoneydawg Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ontario Canada
    I listen nearfield even with my large room.....i would be shocked if the spec 40's didn't do it for you nearfield:)
     
  10. normychas

    normychas Active Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Arlington, VA
    I am aware of near field listening but have never heard anyone define exactly the distance. Are we talking 1-2 feet?
     
  11. russk

    russk Forum Resident

    Location:
    Syracuse NY
    The Special 40s are fantastic but need a fair amount of power. I drove a pair with my Yamaha a-s2100 in a 14x18 room and it was fantastic. Tried 30 watt 500c and not so much. Also have heard them with an older Line Magnetic amp and they clearly needed more juice. Hegel, upper end Marantz and Parasound would also be good choices. If your going tube I would go with the Rogue amps. I’d say the Special 40 need around 100 good wpc with a decent damping factor to get the best out of them.
     
  12. normychas

    normychas Active Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Arlington, VA
    thank you so much for the free advice

    I think i have decided on the 40's unless a floor stander blows my mind. I honestly auditioned a lot of focal floor standers and was not impressed. My wife was with me and they brought out the 40's and she was like i'm not an audiophile but those i can tell are amazing.

    My audition list for amps looks like
    1. Rogue III Magnus Amp
    2. Parasound A21
    3. Hegel 190
     
    timind and conjotter like this.
  13. Glmoneydawg

    Glmoneydawg Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ontario Canada
    I am at about 10ft
     
  14. warp2600

    warp2600 Forum Addict

    Location:
    Hungary
    If you are considering a tube amp, I would check out Raven. They pack serious power into their aviary series.
     
  15. tayside

    tayside Active Member

    Location:
    Australia
    I heard the Special Forty with a Musical Fidelity M5si, which I own, when a mate of mine brought the Dyns to my place just after he bought them.
    The result was that I ended up wanting the speakers and he ended up wanting the amplifier.
    He actually did go on to buy the amplifier, but I ran out of cash and couldn't buy the 40's, but I will look around for some used ones in the future.

    A truly magical combination which sounds great, every time I visit him, regardless of the music played on the day/night.
     
    On_the_dunes likes this.
  16. GoldprintAudio

    GoldprintAudio Forum Resident

    Location:
    Lexington, NC

    Any particular reason you are thinking about the A21, which is a stand alone amp, versus the HINT6 integrated?

    I'm a dealer for both Rogue and Parasound. I just happened to have traded for a pair of Special 40s a month or so back. Really fun speakers (and great looking finish in that funky grey color). I actually played around with them for a day or so and both the Cronus and HINT6 were great matches with them.

    Do you have a preference b/t tubes or solid state?
     
    russk likes this.
  17. normychas

    normychas Active Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Arlington, VA
    I meant to say parasound halo a21 or parasound halo a21+. I would likely go with a used a parasound halo a21 if I went that route because I doubt I need the extra muscle of the new model.

    as for a preference on ss vs tube I haven’t gotten enough time to listen to both and have really just listened to ss. My system is currently driven by an old denon 2309ci that drives my aperion intimus 5b bookshelf speakers. I really fell in love with vinyl the last two years and now have an ongoing obsession so I want to see what the tube magic could possibly do for me. I am super intrigued with the rogue magnus iii given that it has an mm/Mx phono stage but for now I am focused on speakers and a integrated amp.
     
  18. GoldprintAudio

    GoldprintAudio Forum Resident

    Location:
    Lexington, NC
    Right...what I'm saying is that the A21/A21+ are both amps. So you would need a preamp to go along with them.

    The HINT6 is an integrated amp. (and like the Cronus, has a built in phono stage)

    Model HINT 6 Halo Integrated Amplifier « Parasound
     
  19. normychas

    normychas Active Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Arlington, VA
    oh I thought they were integrated. Thank you for the correction
     
    GoldprintAudio likes this.
  20. normychas

    normychas Active Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Arlington, VA
    Anybody know what the status of line magnetic distribution and support in the us is?
     
  21. GoldprintAudio

    GoldprintAudio Forum Resident

    Location:
    Lexington, NC
    I'm a Line Mag dealer. Distribution and support is by Tone Imports in CA.

    Tone Imports

    Feel free to send me a quick PM if you have any specific questions about the line.
     
  22. normychas

    normychas Active Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Arlington, VA
    So after perhaps too much research (but isn't that the fun part) I reached out to my hifi store to ask a few questions and they must have seen me coming because they had just gotten a special 40 trade in in grey. For 2k flat with stands i couldn't pass up the chance to own (albeit used) Special 40s. I think it is probably better to build around speakers i have heard and love than to chase tube perfection.....for now :) Thanks to everyone for all the help thus far
     
  23. bajaed

    bajaed Forum Resident

    Location:
    USA
    I love my Cronus Magnum I. Would love to own an LM someday. Having said that, the power of the Hint 6 is interesting.

    How would you describe the sound of the Hint 6 to the RCM?
     
  24. jonwoody

    jonwoody Tragically Unhip

    Location:
    Washington DC
    Since you're in Arlington you might consider dropping by Deja Vu Audio in Vienna. Great store and though their focus is in tubes they do carry Parasound. It's a fun place to explore if nothing else good luck with your quest!
     
    Tim 2 likes this.
  25. brubacca

    brubacca Forum Resident

    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    I heard the Monitor Audio Gold 100 driven by the entry level Prima Luna integrated. It had plenty of juice to power those speakers.

    If you compare the specs they are very similar. Both 86 db efficient. The MA are 4 ohm while the Dyns are 6 ohm.

    My advice, find a prima luna dealer and either do an in home audition or take your Special 40s there.

    Edit: it was the Evo 100
     
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