Roksan Kandy k2 Amplifier. Speakers??

[seasonsdownfall]

Hi all

recently sold my set up and will be buying roksan kandy k2 amplifier at the weekend. I've heard the amp before through various speakers but in a dilemma I wondered anyone with experience with this amp may have some feedback.

Really keen on b&w's 684 floor standing speakers but I have not been able to demo these with the roksan only an arcam fjm19 which I was impressed with, but price I'm collecting roksan for has steered me towards this amp.

thought the b&w's sounded great through arcam, and as these two amps are compared a lot I wondered if anyone thought whether the roksan k2 amp with the b&w 684s would be good combo.

Particularly looking at floor standing speakers so if anyone can recommend any that match well with the roksan it would be appreciated

 

[Thompsonuxb]

The K2 will drive most of the boxes under a grand well.

Take a walk into town and have a listen to a few if you can.

Only you'll know what you like. Have fun.

 

[davedotco]

You hear a combo that you really liked, then bought something else on price?

Cool......*dirol*

 

[seasonsdownfall]

Funny comment given one of your topic posts has the words 'on the cheap' in the title. . .

 

[davedotco]

Funny comment given one of your topic posts has the words 'on the cheap' in the title. . .

It may have sounded flippant but it is a serious point.

The interaction between amplifier and speaker is absolutely fundamental at this level. There is much more going on here than most seem to realise, the way the two components work together is complex and difficult to predict on paper, hence the need to listen to the options.

When you get your K2, try it with some different speakers, B&Ws are difficult to get right at the bass end, if the Arcam works well, that's great, but no indication that the Roksan, or any other amplifier, will do likewise.

 

[SteveR750]

To the OP, I had a K2, and listened to 684s, Rega R3, DM602 S3, Spendor S5e, A6, and ProAc D18s.

It worked with all of them to be honest, and the 684 I recall went especially low in a nice controlled way, but the rest of the presentation was somewehat veiled, though musical, but B&W manage to find this balance of detail and rhythm very well at the budget end of the market. Rega 3 was nice, but had a bizarrely scooped mid, but I suspect that was a demo room issue.

DM602S3 was quickjly upgraded to the Spendor S5e, which I bought 2nd hand, and was a very nice combination, if a little laid back, but that was the Spendors. The A6 was a much more lively proposition, but a bit too much. The D18s were OK with the K2, but they benefitted from a better quality amp to get nore from them, though the K2 was perfectly capable of driving them.

If you are prepared to look at 2nd hand you can get a lot more performance for your cash, and the K2 is good enough to drive a whole range of £2k speakers.

 

[drummerman]

When I had a K2 and a pair of Monitor Audio RS6 on home trial, I thought it was like walking through treacle ... soft and mushy (I've never actually walked through treacle so this is purely imaginary ... ).

Swapping for some Ushers did eliviate the issue to some extend but even then it never completely shed a slightly soft and cloying sound.

If I were to buy that amplifier I would try and pair it with a bright and fast speaker with good damping, such as one of Rega's designs.

 

[seasonsdownfall]

Thanks for the comments guys, good help for my ongoing search.

im really hoping I will like what I hear with the roksan and b&ws.

Perhaps could have been the combo but felt although I was impressed when I've heard the 684s albeit through an arcam amp I didn't find them bright at all, but detailed I wasn't taken away by the lower end of the spectrum with these.

ive had a pair of monitor audios which in all honesty seemed to give a bit more bass than the b&ws seem to. Again this could have been my set up.

 

[davedotco]

Strangely some speakers sound bright on some amplifiers and not others, this alludes to the amplifier / speaker interface i was banging on about above.

Some people blame metal dome tweeters but this is rarely the problem, the most common cause is the way the amplifier handels the complex impedence shifts at tthe crossover point. If the amplifier is not so good in this respect the result is a bright sounding 'speaker', a 'better', more suited amplifier solves this problem.

Similarly there are variations at the bass end, B&Ws are known to be very low impedance at bass frequencies, ca. 3 ohms, and how your amplifier deals with this is important.

Low impedances will draw more current from the amplifier, giving an impression of more bass, however control might be lacking so the issue is not more/less bass but the clarity and precision of the bass lines. Many people think more bass is better, but in these situations the opposite is most likely the truth.

I could go on, for example, the low impedance at bass frequencies can demand more power than the amplifier is capable of, this causes the power supply to become depleted so the amplifier may clip, this causes the speaker to sound bright.

I know this sounds technical and complex but it does explain why listening to amp / speaker combinations is important. It really is not hard to tell when a combination works well and when it doesn't and also explains why some otherwise good components fail to shine in some set ups.

 

[seasonsdownfall]

Thanks Dave I won't pretend to understand all of the above but some makes sense

Will let you know how I get on, regard costing I'm paying just £350 for the roksan amp which I think is a great deal

 

[Vladimir]

Lower Z speakers demand lower Z amplifiers otherwise electric damping is insuficient and amplifier will deviate from flat FR.

 

[davedotco]

Lower Z speakers demand lower Z amplifiers otherwise electric damping is insuficient and amplifier will deviate from flat FR.

And the bass cone will not stop quickly enough so you get boomy 'overhung' bass and bass resonances are less well controlled. yadda, yadda, yadda.

The important thing is that these effects are very easy to hear, but since most budget and mid-fi combinations suffer from them you really need to have a handle on what the music should sound like.

Loath though I am to suggest using a hi-fi system as a reference, try listening to a really decent system, it may give you a good idea of what to aim for.

 

[shafesk]

Agree with what has been said here, auditioned them with some bnw cm7s and they do sound great if a tad on the softer side (which I honestly prefer). Would probs go great with something like PMC 22 and add a bit of sparkle (but not too much). To be honest I consider the cm7s far superior to the 684s though but the tonal balance should be similar for both.

 

[CnoEvil]

Agree with what has been said here, auditioned them with some bnw cm7s and they do sound great if a tad on the softer side (which I honestly prefer). Would probs go great with something like PMC 22 and add a bit of sparkle (but not too much). To be honest I consider the cm7s far superior to the 684s though but the tonal balance should be similar for both.

It's good to see you back.

 

[shafesk]

thanks CNO, around the forums more now, hope to be back full time

 

[seasonsdownfall]

Haven't considered them they been discontinued now haven't they?

 

[shafesk]

yes they have been which means you can get them at big discount, certainly better than getting a BnW 6 series

 

[hybridauth_Facebook_100004593196321]

hi i have a roksan k2 amp and demoed various speakers and found the dali zensors 7 to suit my taste they sound fantastic to listen to for hours and never get listening fatigue .if you do choose them make sure they are positioned facing straight out or even toed out slightly

 

[stevee1966]

ive had a pair of monitor audios which in all honesty seemed to give a bit more bass than the b&ws seem to. Again this could have been my set up.

I may be getting some new speakers in the next couple of weeks which leaves me with a pair of Monitor Audio RX6's looking for a new home.