Hi everyone,
wow, what an interesting thread. Thanks for sharing your experience Alex, I have really enjoyed reading about your process.
I too have been going through a similar journey & wish I had found this earlier.
I am currently upgrading my system with a view to creating a combined AV / stereo system. I own a Yahama AVR which is fine for HT duties, but wanted to up the ante for my music listening. I don't listen to vinyl, just CDs & digital. I'm still researching options on the DAC/streaming side of things, but my main source is an Oppo BDP-93 with the nuforce extreme upgrade.
A friend had just set himself up with a MF AMS50/primo combination along with Focal Diablo Utopia speakers. Wow! So I went along to his dealer here in Sydney & spent time going over various options. It came down to the M6-500i or the AMS-35i for the amp, and a 100% certainty on the Diablos. I still have trouble convinving my brain to accept that such a sound can come out of a two way stand mounted speaker. They are certainly at the upper end of my budet, but to me are worth the stretch.
Alex have you listened to the Diablos with the AMS? If you haven't & it's not too late......
Anyway I have shipped a set of them over to Australia (much cheaper to import than buy locally), they should be here soon, the wait is killing me!!!
I'm still trying to sort out uncertainty on the amplifier howerever. As my usage is going to be at least 50/50 home theatre / music, the HT bypass feature of the M6-500i is very appealing. I know I can manage a work around with the35i, but to be honest it feels like a pain & the wife definitely won't appreciate it. The 35i is a more audiophile level product, but it still annoys me that it doesn't have this feature. Surely the top of the line signature series should have all the features of the models below & then some? Other minor gripes with the 35i were the size (won't easily fit into my rack) & the heat (it's a bit warmer over here in OZ, don't need a heater on during the summer!!!)
But....... the 35i sounded so much better! Silky, musical, detailed. I listen to alot of dance/electronic music & the extra level of detail in the bass was amazing. It certainly did more justice to the Diablos.
Even though I did find the amps cheaper overseas, I decided that I felt more comfortable buying it from a local dealer. I just thought that it being an electronic device if there were any problems, having local support would be more ideal. Plus the price difference was much less than the speakers.
I have the M6-500i set up at home now, works terrific. In the end, even though I knew I was compromising on the sound, the HT feature was too important. I could tell that the dealer thought I was not doing the right thing, although he did acknowledge the volume integration would be troublesome with the 35i.
But now I have that nagging thought in my head & it won't go away!!! Even though the 500i sounds great & integrates perfectly into an AV environment, how much better would the 35i be & could I(we!) live with the added inconvenience?
So I have spoken to the dealer & he is going to lend me the 35i for a few weeks to live with side by side at home. At this stage I'm pretty certain that if I can figure out a way to live with the volume issue I'm going to spend the extra money. Maybe it will just come down to sticking little volume indicator stickers on the dial! I'll let you know how I go.
Sorry if I've hi-jacked the thread, just wanted to share some more experiences with the AMS-35i, certainly a magical amp.
Thanks again Alex for your detailed experiences, it has been fascinating to read about your journey. I will be following with interest, look forward to hearing more. Let me know your thoughts on the Diablos if you get a chance.
best regards,
Michael