Hans Been

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 2.00 votes

Price Paid:  $6000.00 from De Hifi

Summary:
At 21-01-05 i bought A Krell KCT pre-amp and aKrell FPB 300 cx amplifier.Before this i played with a Sphinx 2-12 amplifier/pre-amp, for the money areal great combi.But after 10 years i wanted to upgrade the amplifier and i started to listen to several amplifiers. Heard Mark Levinson, classé,accuphase and more. Then i saw a advertisement, a bran new Krell FPB 300 cx for 6000 euro. After making an apointment, i listened to the 300 cx with the KRC 3 pre-amp.That sounded not good at all,to much bass and also very boomy and it sounded flat. Then we changed the KRC 3 to an KCT (Krell top pre-ampand twice the price).Wow this was were i was looking for,a very deep, well controled bass and with much detail. Highs were smoothy and never sharp at what level ever.Dynamics are superb with a real great slam. Mids are open and very natural. The speakers were were they?? The music sounded veryneutral and trasparent, it's heaven. At home i use a Naim CDX player with an Naim XPS powerunit. The Naim is a very musical player and the combination with the Krell combi worked very well. This pre-amp\amplifier is one of the best i ever heard, it realy does everything right. Perhaps there are better ones, but they cost twice the price. And much better? I doubt it. So if you can spend the money (i have to save for several years) go to the Krell dealer and listen to this pre-amp\amplifier combi, it's heavenly.

Strengths:
Clarity,smoothness,tranparence,dynamics and the bass, what do i need to say,it's the best of the world.And then there is the power,incredible.

Weaknesses:
Sonicly none, only the price.

Price Paid:  $9400.00 from Ultralinear, Singapo

Summary:
I recently upgraded my FPB200C to FPB300CX. I was at first sceptical about the improvement I would get after the upgrade since the change only involved the replacement of the power control unit and the face plate. When I first heard it, I was very impressed with the authority the amp handles all kinds of music. Vocal sounds sweeter and more open and bass extension is deeper. It is always in full control with whatever tracks you input into this amp. It never display any weakness from the bottom to the highest octave. Sounstage and floor noise is very impressive. This is one amp that you can rely on when it comes to attack. No other amp, even at twice the price, that I have heard of comes close to the FPB300CX. This is an impressive piece of workhorse. My salute to Krell's engineers.

Strengths:
Big sounstage, impressive mid and authoritative lows to highs. Digs deep into any recording. Attack is second to none. Next to nirvana in audio.

Weaknesses:
Too authoritative that it recently blew my new pair of Dynaudio Special 25. Cost me more than a thousand to repair. You need strong speakers to take on this big bully.

Similar Products Used:
Krell KCT Krell SACD Standard Dynaudio Special 25

Price Paid:  $0.00 from Krell Dealer

Summary:
This review is actually for the newer FPB300cx which is not listed on this site. After my Krell KSA200-S was smashed by FedX during a repair trip I was forced to procure a new amp. I auditioned Classe, Sim Moon W5 and looked into a couple of others. After very carefull deliberation I decided again on a Krell product. The others, while rated Class "A" actually only produced a few watts until degrading to class "B". The Krell maintains Class "A" throughout it's full power range. When listening to this amp I decided I made a great choice. Obviously the power is there. But what's more, the sound is what makes it for me. The quality of the lowest lows to the highest highs (as well as what is not there) has put me in sonic heaven. From Cd's to vinyl to satelite to FM input this does it all and does it with perfection. The bass extension while seperating the highs makes my room sound bigger, deeper & wider that it actually is. The speakers disapear into darkness and alows only what is supposed to be there appear. While some like vanilla, some like chocolate, the Krell amp covers all spectrums of flavors and styles. This is a big buck item and you get what you pay for. The folks at Krell did their job as claimed. Your paying a lot for engineering and time well spent on testing, as well as the product itself. I am into it for the tunes and enjoyment. I have both and then some. Five stars for product. Also five stars for value since I knew of the cost going in. System: Krell FPB300cx Amp Krell KRC2 Pre Infinity Rennaisance 90 Speakers Sony SCD-C333ES CD Yamaha TX950 Tuner Technics SL1210 with Grado Platinum Monster IR2 interconnects & M2.4s bi-wire speaker cable, Cardas XLR between pre & amp.(I actually went back to monster instead of the Cardas Gold Ref. due to personal preference for the speaker & RCA's)

Strengths:
Power, Clarity, awsome looks, great #10 power cord, 2-sets of outputs, remote from my old KSA200-s work unit.

Weaknesses:
None sonicly. Blue lights are a tad too brightif I had to be picky. No RCA inputs. If you need RCA inputs you must buy adapters.

Similar Products Used:
Yamaha MX-1 Krell KSA200-S Old ancient Sansui 8080

Price Paid:  $0.00 from Freehold Stereo

Summary:
This is one fantastic amp. Anyone looking for an amp that provides sheer power with incredible smoothness should consider the 300c. The bass,smoothness, and realistic sound is beyond what I thought an amp could produce. I feel as if I am part of the recording. I truly am rediscovering my cd collection. I have this paired with the krc 3 preamp and hope to purchase the b & w nautilus 801 soon. It should be as awesome combination.

Strengths:
Incredible power and smoothness. Tremendous bass response. Also a great looking amp.

Weaknesses:
Other than price, none

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
upgraded from a 250a.This amp is in complete control of the speakers. Sound is smooth and organic. Gone are all traces of harshness

Strengths:
power, authority,

Weaknesses:
price

Similar Products Used:
none at this level