I was going to check out the Odyssey Stratos amps. However, even though they offer a 30 day return policy. They explicitly state the the unit won't be "broken in" for 6 weeks of being powered on. So you effectively don't know what you're buying until after the 30 days is up. Straight from the horse's mouth:

"Within the break-in process, we distinguish four distinct phases of performance:

First Period: After turning on your amplifier or preamplifier for the first time, the units will require a few minutes to stabilize. The sound will be rather harsh on the higher frequencies, and the dynamic range is rather restricted with a flat overall presentation. This sonic signature will always be apparent when you turn on "cold" components.

Second Period: This stage will be reached after approximately 1-2 hours of playing time and lasts about 3-4 days. This stage is all about the charging of the power supply, and during this time, the dynamics, soundstaging, focus, and transients will improve noticeably. Essentially, your unit will start "opening up and relaxing." However, please also note that the amplifiers do a "Jeckyl and Hyde" during this time to some degree. Meaning that one day you might not have any bass whatsoever while the next day you might have too much of it, for example. Overall, the presentation might be very unstabile.

Third Period: After approximately 10-14 days of playing and being charged, the upper midrange and highs will "smoothen out". The bass will improve in speed and articulation with less overhang. The result is more even and natural tone balance.

Fourth Period: After about 6 weeks + of operation when left on continuously, your unit should be very close to being fully broken in. The sound and performance has progressively improved and your unit will perform to it's full sonic potential."

I've been listening to my 755 quite a bit since I received it and I'm not sure if I'm happy with it yet. It's definitely not sounding that great with the Dahlquist DQ-20i speakers I used to have for mains. I just took delivery of some Magnepan 1.6's so we'll see if things improve over a few days. I was VERY happy with my Adcom GFA-5802, but I didn't feel like dropping another $5k on 2 more for my center and surround channels.

Cheers,

oops, that probably belongs in the 755 forum, not the 990 forum. Doh!

Cheers,

Independent evidence that Pythogore's 990 was either defective or setup incorrectly:

http://www.ultimateavmag.com/avreceivers/705outlaw/

Enjoy!!!!

I could never trust, let alone purchase from, any company that spewed out nonsense such as this.

I know, but Odyssey's amps are extremely good, despite their marketspeak.

Basically, Klaus Bunge obtained the U.S. distribution rights to a well-regarded German design, and has added his own, er, creative descriptions. Apparently, this *helps* sales more than hurts them.

They *do* have a slightly different sonic signature when left on continuously in standby mode, than if they are constantly power-cycled, though the effect is not nearly as extreme as described.

I've seen other companies guilty of such non-technical gobbledygook despite making a sound product. In fact, it appears to be du regeur in the "high end" -- look at any review of a high end component when it comes to subjective opinion. This may be pure garbage, to sway, a purchaser of somehting as "high end", and therefore esoterically described, but a piece of garbage nevertheless. Or, it may be there to *help* sell a decent product with high-end aspirations but a mid-fi price (the Stratos Plus sells for around US$1200).

Klaus claims he wants to sell high-quality equipment on a mid-fi budget, IIRC, so I suspect he includes some "high end voodoo speak". He also sells expensive interconnect cables. That doesn't mean I'd buy them, but if the profits on cables help keep the amp prices down, I'm all for it.

I can state however, unequivically, that the Stratos Plus is an overbuilt Class A/AB design, that performs excellently in my system, and is a steal at $1200.

The six week break in market speak does work against the 30 day return policy, but if, like me , you see the market speak for what it is, you'll try one and send it back if you don't like it within a weak or two, knowing that it doesn't really take six weeks to settle down. The only real downside to auditioning one is that it is heavy at 54 lbs. and ground shipping both ways (at least to Monroe, WA) is around $120 by UPS.

Upgrades are, by the way, *free*, in the sense that the cost of the upgrade is equal to the difference in price. There is the nagging shipping cost to deal with.

Bottom line: if the Odyssey were as poor or over-hyped as the market speak might suggest, it would not carry a 20 year warranty. I'm as fond of mine as I am of my 990.

I did not mean to take anything away from the actual piece of equipment, just the marketing and attitude of the company.

I also like overly built class AB amplifiers that deliver tons of clean power with high damping - that's why I'll be going with pro amps.

I did not mean to take anything away from the actual piece of equipment, just the marketing and attitude of the company.

Agreed, there.

However, I expect that from any audio company. Outlaw is a bit of an exception here.

But, if you are looking for a decent 150 W/ch class A/AB into 8ohm stereo amp, do consider the Stratos (in any of its various configurations in spite of the marketspeak voodoo -- it's also available in a monoblock 300W design, as well as dual mono (independent power supplies in one chassis). www.odysseyaudio.com is rather a bare (and dated) site. www.odysseyaudiosg.com offers more and better information, actually.

The amp is overbuilt, with a 400 W toroidal power transformer, 60,000, 120,000, or 180,000 uF of filter capacitors, heatsinks on the left and right side of the chassis, and balanced XLR inputs as well as RCA single ended inputs, with gold-plated WBT speaker terminals. Power switche(s) are on the back panel, and the unit is intended to be left on all the time. There is no provision for a trigger input.

I am extremely happy with the performance of mine.

Other areas where Klaus goes a bit overboard are the personalized nameplate stuck to the rear panel, and his praise for the isolating feet.

The nameplate comes off after a couple of days and really detracts from the professional build quality. And, I doubt the feet make that much of a difference. The manual, though technically complete, can best be described as stark: no diagrams or pictures -- rather something that kids starting a business in their garrage might produce in a hurry. Still, the amp is a steal at around US$1200. I own one, but I have no financial interest in the success of the manufacturer (they are a private company).

Klaus said he likes the nameplate to be a personal touch, that he builds the amps himself -- this is probably more true than not, given that he has "two and a half" employees. Odyssey amps have to be custom ordered (particularly if one wants one of the many cosmetic anodization treatments of the front panel and/or case), and are made to order. This is strictly a mom and pop shop that does final build and test on a tweaked licensed Symphonic Line design. I can appreciate the sentiment, even if I find the execution a bit cheesy -- I get the impression that Klaus builds amps like Lambourghini builds cars: one at a time (well, Lambourghini builds four at a time, the last time I checked, but you get the idea). The difference is that the Stratos performs like a sports car at the price of a family sedan.

Klaus likes to spend time with a prospective customer to determine their needs, present and future. For me, I'm slowly building a 5.1 or 7.1 system over time to replace my 20 year old stereo system, so I'll need amps and speakers as time goes on. I've just started with the 990 and the Stratos (replacing a Carver TFM-22, with a noticible improvement driving the 4 ohm Radia 520i speakers).

SteveCallas: if you like overbuilt amps, do consider auditioning the Stratos, if you can afford the $100 or so shipping costs if you end up returning it. In fact, if you call Klaus (it will take some time for him to return your call), he might set you up with a local owner, if possible, to check it out first. The biggest amp they make, power-wise, is their Stratos Mono Extreme: a 300Wpc class A/AB monoblock, with a damping factor over 800 and a distortion figure under 0.04%, IIRC.

Odyssey also makes a smaller amp, the Khartago, at 110 W/ch into 8 ohms in a stereo configuration and 160 W/ch into 8 ohms in a mono configuration. This design cuts costs: the speaker terminals aren't as good, and the input is strictly single-ended, to keep the price under $800. But, when I inquired, Klaus noted that he could upgrade the connectors and include a balanced input stage, if I wanted. (I'm considering it for surround speakers). You just won't get that kind of personal service at that price anywhere else.

Is the Stratos the be all and end all of amplifiers, a Krell-killer? No, of course not. But, in the $1000-range, give or take, it strikes me as excellent value. I'd be inclined to compare it to the Bryston's of old.

I appreciate all the info, and again, it sounds like a quality product, but I can get indistinguishable performance out of a $300 pro amp.

Please describe this "$300 pro amp". Seriously.

If you mean an amp designed for professional stage use, the ones I've seen usually have lousy performance (i.e. high distortion figures). Of course, they are built like tanks, given the abuse the get being moved around all the time. For the intended application, they're ideal, but I've only seen a decent one once, and that was a Crown amp that cost more than $300.

rene and steve .. the wierd break in period was also pushed by parasound sales reps in the 90's .. so its not the 1st time a company has recommended it ..

and rene i agree yes pro amps sound alright on PA systems but for high quality imaging and reproduction you need a nice full amp.. low distortion and some decent headroom .. i personally like ATI .. they make many manufacturers amps .. they are the old sae .. very neutral and powerful ..