rajeshmehendiratta
Member
Any one having experience of Leben Amplifiers? Please share information about performance of these Amps.
Leben Amplifiers
- Thread starter rajeshmehendiratta
- Start date
Regrettably I sold it in my “done with hifi madness” phase. It worked really well with Graham, but not with the Harbeth Compact 7.
I owned the 300xs. It is quite lovely with the right set of speakers - a lit up musical sound, well described by Nikhil. A great headphone out too. But too warm with the wrong set.
What speakers are you looking to pair with?
I owned the 300xs. It is quite lovely with the right set of speakers - a lit up musical sound, well described by Nikhil. A great headphone out too. But too warm with the wrong set.
What speakers are you looking to pair with?
audiocrazy
Member
Leben amp pairs very well with Focal , especially
Micro Utopia,, I think this amp requires dry sounding speaker
to match well... another choice would be usher audio speakers.
Micro Utopia,, I think this amp requires dry sounding speaker
to match well... another choice would be usher audio speakers.
heliumflight
Well-Known Member
90+ db is most beneficial for Leben.
rajeshmehendiratta
Member
Thanks Vivek! I have Dali Ikon 6 and Speakers with full range foster drivers also its Lyrita Harmony 1.
Mohanv
Member
Rajesh, I have listened to 2 different power amps and 1 preamp about 7 years ago. My impressions were the Lebens are a bit laid back using Alfredo Horns with Lowther PM7C drivers. I like dynamics and the Lebens did not satisfy me.
Mohan
6 Mar 2019
Mohan
6 Mar 2019
Dev.R
Well-Known Member
Hi Rajesh , I am using a Leben 300XS . Its a very Musical amplifier with great build. The Stock EL 84 is a big let down, I upgraded the tubes to Mullard ( NOS) --The Russian Mullards are again very average ....the transformation of sound after tube rolling is Phenomenal. If you happen to settle for Leben , my advice would be to change the tubes. My speakers are Altec and the leben drives it with ease in my 20*14 room.
Happy Listening
dev
Happy Listening
dev
soundbuff
Active Member
Hi,
I sold my Leben 300c a couple of years ago, and what I say is from Memory. I used it for about four years and enjoyed my time with it hugely. Speakers I used it with were Proac Tablette RS8 (86db but flat impedence), Contrast Audio stand mounts at 93 db and Blumenhofer BF 17 at 91 db sensitivity. I think you can guess the reason I sold it. It is very difficult to find a speaker that goes perfectly with it. All three speakers sounded good, very good but not perfect. There are two problems with the Leben. One is the power. Those 12 watts are very good watts, I have no doubt, but they are not enough. I think you need to go to about 94-db speakers at least with these speakers. Otherwise you will find yourself playing them loud. I personally do not much like to play loudly. Second and this is a criticism that comes only after you have owned it for a few years, is that it is a bit of a one trick pony. It does string tone brilliantly, absolutely gorgeous, but everything else is a bit of a compromise. The Leben is not an all rounder of an amp. If I had the money to keep the Leben as an extra- amp I would never have sold it. But in the real world a more balanced amplifier, with better all round qualities and lots more power is what I replaced it with.
Having said all these things, you will never however regret buying the leben. It is a lovely amp, and not just in looks.
I sold my Leben 300c a couple of years ago, and what I say is from Memory. I used it for about four years and enjoyed my time with it hugely. Speakers I used it with were Proac Tablette RS8 (86db but flat impedence), Contrast Audio stand mounts at 93 db and Blumenhofer BF 17 at 91 db sensitivity. I think you can guess the reason I sold it. It is very difficult to find a speaker that goes perfectly with it. All three speakers sounded good, very good but not perfect. There are two problems with the Leben. One is the power. Those 12 watts are very good watts, I have no doubt, but they are not enough. I think you need to go to about 94-db speakers at least with these speakers. Otherwise you will find yourself playing them loud. I personally do not much like to play loudly. Second and this is a criticism that comes only after you have owned it for a few years, is that it is a bit of a one trick pony. It does string tone brilliantly, absolutely gorgeous, but everything else is a bit of a compromise. The Leben is not an all rounder of an amp. If I had the money to keep the Leben as an extra- amp I would never have sold it. But in the real world a more balanced amplifier, with better all round qualities and lots more power is what I replaced it with.
Having said all these things, you will never however regret buying the leben. It is a lovely amp, and not just in looks.
Whats the speaker you are planning to drive with this ? Speaker - Amp synergy is more important than individual components.
I have a cs600 for almost 9 years now and works very well with my current speakers as well as my earlier ones.although it did not work well with a pair of blumenhoffers.
abeyaby
Active Member
Where can you get these amplifiers in India?
Try http://harmonieaudio.com/
Soundbuff if the Leben has a preamp in, i would not have acted rashly. Also, as you rightly pointed out, the right speakers were it. They were magnificent through the Graham - all genres including jazz and rock. And the piano was also lit up and percussive. Same through Harbeth Compact was wooly.
Vivek
Soundbuff if the Leben has a preamp in, i would not have acted rashly. Also, as you rightly pointed out, the right speakers were it. They were magnificent through the Graham - all genres including jazz and rock. And the piano was also lit up and percussive. Same through Harbeth Compact was wooly.
Vivek
soundbuff
Active Member
ARN used to keep them, may be still does. There was a pre-amp lying with them some time ago.
The distributor is in Calcutta I believe. I was talking to the the Bangalore distributor/dealer of Creek (Venky) who mentioned this in passing.
Like Vivek_r, I too miss the Leben sometimes. It has a charm of its own, and bragging rights too!. In my view however it is very under-powered, and consequently lacking in scale.
The distributor is in Calcutta I believe. I was talking to the the Bangalore distributor/dealer of Creek (Venky) who mentioned this in passing.
Like Vivek_r, I too miss the Leben sometimes. It has a charm of its own, and bragging rights too!. In my view however it is very under-powered, and consequently lacking in scale.
The Calcutta person’s website is the one I posted. http://harmonieaudio.com/
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