Peter Nielsen said:
The Boz 216 and 2200 seem to have a lot of capacitors in the power supply. They may well have all the power reserves that I need... This raises the question of the ICEpower and its power reserves. It's so small that there is no room for a lot of capacitors...
As somebody said, the best thing I could do is probably to pick up an ICEpower based amp and give it a try. That's probably the only way to find out if I like it or not. The same goes for TacT, but that's a rather costly experiment if I decide that I don't like it.
And, yes, you're right about the value issues. If I'm concerned about that, then my best bet is to pick up a used digital amp on Audiogon. (I only missed your BOZ setup by a few days. When I saw it, it was already sold).
I also realize that if I go the TCS/Boz216/Boz2200 route, I am pretty much painting myself into a corner because of the digital only inputs and the proprietary volume control via RS-232. If I want to upgrade the preprocessor in the future, I have to rely on a future TCS Mk III upgrade or a Boz preprocessor. (I would be running my two Martin Logan Descent powered subwoofers directly off the preprocessor, so it is necessary to be able to keep the Boz216 volume synchronized with the preprocessor volume. Because of this, I could not rely on the Boz216 volume control alone. The preprocessor and amp volume will have to be syncronized).
What's your take on this? I vaguely remember reading that you had some more details about the split between the TacT founders Boz and Lynggård... Is the TacT/Boz split that something to be concerned about? (Feel free to PM me if you have info that you don't want to post here).
Boz and Peter Lyngdorf had some differences and split the company. Lyngdorf is its own company in Europe and has its own amps. Even though they have the same form factor, they are no longer a part of TACT, which is now Boz's company. Lyngdorf has had some trouble getting his own room correction implemented, as the cutting edge TACT room correction hardware and software was retained by Boz at TACT. A recent review of Lyngdorf's released room correction was not very flattering.
Personally, I would stick with TACT (i.e. Boz). His room correction is very well developed and I don't feel Lyngdorf offers anything else that TACT can't.
I do not think the TACT amps will have sufficient power for your Maggies. They are wonderful amps, but I think the ICEpower amps are better suited for your application. I use the TACT Boz amps in my 5.1 setup, where I am bi-amping and externally setting crossovers for each of my Andra IIs, so I don't need as much power as you.
You have some really great gear there, but if I were you, I would replace those heat monsters with 1000w monos like the Bel Cantos. I don't think you will have anything to worry about. As for the pre/pro, IMO, if you care about sound, there is nothing better than the TACT TCS MKII. I think the TCS MKII coupled with any monoblock of your choice would truly transform your listening experience. It would be the single biggest improvement you could make to your system, as advanced room correction applied to a multichannel system can truly produce "night & day" differences.
The only reason I would tell you to wait is b/c there will inevitably be a TCS MKIII. Personally, I wouldn't wait. It could be years, and there is no pre/pro available that can do what the TCS MKII does.
I have spent a ton of money buying all sorts of gear to figure out what really matters to me. You already have great speakers. I think you are getting too wrapped up in amplification, as your room is probably affecting your sound more than any amp could. Using a TCS MKII will make you realize that all you need out of your amplification is sufficient power and transparency. Trust me, the Bel Cantos give you that in spades. Add the TCS MKII to your system, and I believe you will have an aural revelation.
