Deciding between 260, 360 s2, 250 or 360 s1...help a brother out!

[dan31]

The 260 should be enough power in your room. The monos will be effortless.

 

[chungjh]

The 260 should be enough power in your room. The monos will be effortless.

I am not so concerned with power as much as SQ. Some comments indicate that the SQ of 360 s2 or 300RS is noticeably better than 260. Do you agree with this?

 

[dan31]

I would not agree with that statement. The 260 is a fine amp. Monos have different qualities that most mono versions of the stereo amp will have. The 300RS is the latest thinking from Spectral and is more than 2X the price of a 260.

What preamp will you be using? If all your equipment is state of the art it may be worth the cost to go for the 300RS.

 

[Hiempie]

Hi 1 RSW,

Recently I upgraded from 260S1 to 300RS and yes there is a big price difference also here in Holland. But the sound difference is also very big!
My advice would be if you can afford it buy a 300 RS or a 280 Spectral upgraded it recently maybe there are some dealers with a demo version.
the 280 has Spectral's newest technolagy it will sound more neutral as it should be.

Greetz Hiempie

 

[chungjh]

I would not agree with that statement. The 260 is a fine amp. Monos have different qualities that most mono versions of the stereo amp will have. The 300RS is the latest thinking from Spectral and is more than 2X the price of a 260.

What preamp will you be using? If all your equipment is state of the art it may be worth the cost to go for the 300RS.

My system is not SOTA. Preamp is Dan Sachs tube preamp, Lumin X1 streamer/DAC and Sound Lab ESL speakers. Currently using X350.5 but it generates 600W of heat just on idle in my tiny room: 11 x 9 ft. I was looking at a used Spectral since they generate only 250W and low class A bias. I like the sound of the current system but I am willing to change the pre/amp combination.

 

[chungjh]

My friend's old DMA-200 has started to buzz on the right channel and the left channel at higher volume. He has never had it serviced, but he loves the sound and prefers to refurbish it. Can he directly deal with Spectral to refurbish something so old or does he have to go through a Spectral dealer? Would they even refurbish something that is 30 years old?

I got the answer on this. Spectral will not service anything this old.

 

[dan31]

My 260 puts out a lot of heat on idle. I have a similar small space. The 260 puts out heat. The DMC-30 puts out heat and my Aesthetix Io beats them all. Lots of class A to enjoy.

 

[chungjh]

My 260 puts out a lot of heat on idle. I have a similar small space. The 260 puts out heat. The DMC-30 puts out heat and my Aesthetix Io beats them all. Lots of class A to enjoy.

It is supposed to be 250W on idle. I am guessing about 10W in class A.

 

[dan31]

I guess you would have to feel it. It’s quite hot. Not sure I could leave my hand on it.

 

[chungjh]

I have a friend whose DMA-200 is dying. He is thinking about buying a new Spectral amp. I read somewhere that if you want to buy a new amp you also have to buy a preamp to go with it. Is this true? I have trouble believing this.

 

[chungjh]

I am thinking about an old DMA-250. Does anyone know roughly how much Spectral will charge to refurbish it? Is it worth refurbishing it?