Planar Speaker Asylum

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Planar Speaker Asylum

RE: Amp for esl63- rotel/nad

173.247.0.211

In Reply to: RE: Amp for esl63- rotel/nad posted by Zombie on October 12, 2014 at 02:47:24

Removing the Quadlink board makes a significant improvement in perceived transparency.

One of my two 909 amps has had the Quadlink removed and silver wire run from the input jacks directly to the driver boards.

The stock amp only sounds great, the slightly modified one sounds fantabulous.

Again, I have had Quad 63's for a long time, had probably a dozen amps, tube and solid state, and nothing touches even the stock 909.

They are relatively inexpensive used and seem very reliable.

Follow Ups:

RE: Amp for esl63- rotel/nad - Plinko 06:03:08 10/17/14 (1)
Did you do the work on your 909 yourself or can you recommend someone?

In your comparisons, did you compare to tube amps? I don't think I have found the perfect solid state amp for Quads.
- RE: Amp for esl63- rotel/nad - louie3 06:54:06 10/17/14 (0)
  I did the mods to the 909 myself. It is not complicated from an electronics standpoint, but the 909, because it is built to the compact British style, is a bit of a pain to work on mechanically.
  
  Unless you are good to very good at taking things apart and putting them back together correctly, I would let a "qualified technician" do the work.
  
  I would be less than candid if I did not admit I had some issues the first time I powered up the amp because I did not do a good job of noting and marking where some of the wiring went. The fuses in the 909 are not a regular stock item at local parts houses here!!!!!!
  
  On my amp, the power LED was removed with the Quadlink board so there is nothing to indicate the amp is on. This is a minor thing, but I do wish I could figure out how to have the LED work.
  
  I have a pair of Consonance M800SE tube amps that are 75 watts each that I used to drive the 63's before I bought the 909.
  
  With the tube amps, I needed subs. With the 909 I could live happily with the 63's running full range. The extra power of the 909 vs. the tube amps drives the 63's very well without invoking the clamp mechanism.
  
  I had a pair of Classe DR8's run as monoblocks which are very good solid state amps. The 909 murdered them. The DR8's sounded dull and flat.
  
  There is an audible synergy between the 909 and the ESL 63, which makes some sense, but was still a surprise.
  
  Hope this answers some of your questions.
  
  An unmodded 909 can be bought for less than $900 US, if you can find one.

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