when I joined I was sitting on a Hafler 915 pre-amp that I picked up as part of a trade involving a Sansui 9090 and some Nikon Gear to me and some Leica gear and cash on my part.

Then, a year later, I scored a pair of ADS 1290s and decided it was time to put the pre in service - which I did by buying a Hafler DH-500. Holy Mashugana, holy crap, holy mackerel - I am sitting here listening to a Lightnin' Hopkins CD tonight and thinking (remember I used to have a Marantz 2385 and Marantz HD-440s) this really is unbelievable how far this system outperforms anything I have EVER listened to (including Mac tube gear through JBL studio monitors - no sh*t).

To cut to the chase, I am not a tinker, BUT what if I got a second Hafler DH-500 and sent both to Musical Concepts and had them upgrade both and bridge both to mono and then biamped the whole damn works.

I listen at a moderate level and am currently feeding 255 watts into speakers rated at 300 watts per channel, so unless I talk about Cyprian Kasaris playing Litsz Beetoven's fifth I doubt if I have yet fed a square wave through to the speakers (hey, clean power like this DH-500 has is intoxicating). In all honesty I would like to hear what this amp would do through a pair of Altec Lansing Voice of the Theaters could provide, but my speakers are not of that genre.

What would I be gaining to send two Hafler DH500s in and spending $750+ per amp? When I got the ADS 1290s I did not know what I had until I got home and hooked them up to my existing Sansui 9090 and that is what lead me to the internet (it was a quantum leap over my JBLs and Sansui SP-2500s). I got the Hafler based upon advice I rec'd here and a friend. And holy cow!

Now I am conflicted though - am I spending $750+ to send the amp I have to Musical concepts for something imaginary? or trivial. What about bi-amping two Musical Concepts Hafler DH-500s? Would it be another quantum leap for "peanuts," or do I have everything I already have? Do I stick with what I have, do I "hot rod" the amp I have? Or do I bite the bullet and go all out?

I'm intrigued at this point. I really cannot believe the sound I have now - it eclipses what I had with my Marantz set up (which I always indented to replicate, ever since it was stolen). What I have today makes the big Marantz seem a distant second best now.

Will maxing out the Hafler make a difference, or even a pair of Haflers make a difference I can hear? Or should I be content with what I have as 99% of what I would have if I spend the money and not have my amp for a couple months?

Just seeking a second opinion, or third or fourth....

By the way - I am inclined to stick with what I have today at this point. BUT, if I can go to the next level (and the next level is like my last step) I am intrigued.

if it were me and i could afford it, i would definitely do so. i have two Hafler DH-110 pre's, one stock and the one in my main rig that has been modded by Musical Concepts. imo the stock version is quite nice but doesnt hold a candle to the Musical Concepts version.

Elroy is always at that place where he cant see how the sound of his system can be improved, and i always tell him it can be better. with every step up in equipment he is always pleasantly surprised and satisfied with the results.

that said, $750 per amp for Musical Concept mod is expensive (to me) and i question whether the improvement would be considered a good value by you. its an unknown that wouldnt be answered until you have heard it, but i have every confidence that there would be an obvious improvement, even if you only had your existing amp modded and didnt bi-amp.

i would recommend that you enjoy the fine sound you have right now for a little while at least. use the time to evaluate what you have and what you want in sound. then you can decide if it is worth it to invest in a step up.

btw, i thought the DH-500 could be bridged to mono (via a switch on the back) without having to be modded?

Imho, the optimum is the enemy of good.
Btw, here's an interesting ST link :
http://soundt.18.forumer.com/index.php?showtopic=3959

I took a flyer on this Hafler transnova p3000. It has a "HUGE" .2 distortion. Not sure how that's measured. Pretty flippin sure I can't hear it. I would not hesitate to pick up Hafler gear. Again, that's the wonder of this hobby. Hook it up, listen. Sometimes it's just amazing when the synergy kicks in. And sometimes a component we have sitting around collecting dust is just brilliant.

Congrats, Maestro!

always speculative, but my guess is your Marantz gear has an inflated sound in your memory. Not that I haven't heard and don't have some nicesounding marantz stuff. My system has gotten increasingly better and more diverse over the past 5 years. It's really astounding. And I have some gear I haven't even properly -*test*-('")ed in various configurations.

Congrats on your new combo. Good idea running two of the SAME amps for biamping purposes. Restoration is always a good idea but the cost at 750 per is IMO on the high end.

You made a reference to a square wave, which I assume you mean to be clipping. True, a sine wave will flatten at the tops and bottoms. A real square wave is simply a simple tone turned on and off and looks like a series of blocks.