No solid state harshness or hash. Very quiet operation. Just all around great sound. Another huge plus for Odyssey Audio is their owner, salesman, guru, and chief bottle washer, Klaus Bunge, one of the best guys in audio. If you are interested in Odyssey products give him a call. His customer service is legendary.

Sonically, there are none, but if you like compact size amps these are not for you. Two large chassis.

I've had a pair of Odyssey's Extreme Mono Blocks for about two years. I won't go into the usual audiophile-type descriptions except to say that these are the best amplifiers I've ever heard in my system. I've had several "name" amplifiers in previous years, and the Odysseys are far and away superior to all of them. Odyssey (Klaus) says these need to be broken for some weeks before they sound their best. They were great from the get-go in my opinion and just got better with each passing day, with great bass, a fabulous mid-range and smooth highs. They deliver about 200 watts per channel of high current power and drive my speakers beautifully with plenty of slam when its called for. I use the balanced inputs which are recommended by my preamp mfg., and alhough they are not true balanced inputs, I get great results. Odyssey Audio is still one of the best kept secrets in audio. They probably would be better known and get more respect from the audio rags if they cost twice what they do. Can't have superior low cost products blowing away glamorous big ticket units, you know. Bad form in audiophile land. As it is, these amps, derived from German Symphonic Line designs are an absolute steal at their price and can hold their own against competition that charges much, much more for their products. Don't confuse Extreme Monos with standard monoblocks. At Odyssey they are different products with the Extremes a significant step up in performance from the already superb standard monos.

Similar Products Used:

Bryston, Classe, Musical Fidelity amps in that order. Each was a step up from the previous, but the Odysseys are a different ballgame altogether. An entirely new dimension in sound for my system.

20yrs warranty, superior WBT binding and well built. Excellent customer service and technical support, make sure you request for the WBT nickle post. Unfortunately WBT website does not have the photo available only the platinum or gold it's worth the upgrade

Long break ins, needs more power and packaging

Well balance, good sonic imaging, natural and neutral tonal, dynamic range. It is better than the Rotel RMB 1095 which I was eyeing for, the Rotel's tend to have a lot of huming sound issues and for the sound qualities. Odyssey extreme came out better in musical terms. Straight out form the box pure dynamic range opened up the musical beauty of my B&W604 S3 sounding like the 804's. Long break ins but each time you turn on your amps it's just like getting new things. After the first few days of continous playing you hear the dynamic range getting better and bass getting thighter. Then after 3 weeks sound is alot sweeter and details of each tone more defined. With my current setup with AV I have used the DVD movie "House of the Flying Daggers." make sure you placed it on the original chinese language and just read the subtitles of the movie....breathless scene from the movie chapter Echo Dance you can hear the drum beat exact same tone and seed scatters detailedly. Then next scene where the forest fight scene is truly amazing in term of the sound of the leaves falling. Musically from Kenny G to Peter Paul and Mary album you can see 2 different world of openess in Kenny G's sax and untainted sound from PP&M first I thought someome was banging my walls or someone was upstairs but it was actually from the original recording that the group was actually singing too close to the mike that you hear the boom sound. Overall the amp I got is worth the bucks, however a bit dissapointed that power rated is only around 180 - 200W, I was anticipating a minimum of 250 - 300W as in the website. Hopeuflly Klaus can juice it up a little more. Other than that highly recommended if you have the funds.

Build, bass, quality connections and parts along with enough power to drive most speakers.

Long break-in (took a month). Size may be an issue for some.

Fine service, build and outcome after break-in. Best sound after after 35 years of of dinking around in this sport for 35 years.Always value oriented and did the research and listening before buying.Gone are the days in most cities when you could take a product home (demo) and try it for two weeks before buying.So, I sent back a few and bought many over the years. The Stratos Mono Blocs combined with my new (but broken-in) Gallo Reference 3's are as good as it gets. You do need the Bright Star Ref 3 dedicated stands as well. The Stratos Mono Blocs are a best buy for value, quality and performance in my desired system, music taste and room. While my present room is smaller 20'by 12'I know from previous experience they will work well in a larger space. Klaus does not get the press he deserves in delivering this product at an affordable price in this day of mega buck merry-go-round audiophile tango!A sincere value at a real world price. If I sound happy/satisfied you got it. I have never ever purchased on the Internet prior to hearing a product first in my own system until now. Still, high end retailers in todays market place are in most cases forcing this alternative!

Attractive, heavy and awesome construction neutrality, openness control

you might want to upgrade to the xtreme versions

These are awesome amps in every regard and detail. I upgraded from a PS Audio digital amplifier which didn't work at all with my tube preamp and made me look for a more neutral and less cold sounding amplifier. The combination of the Cary and the Odyssey has speed, ample information, a huge and open presentation and perfect neutrality. I have the Dynaudio Contour speakers, and the amp - preamp combo showed their flaws. As it happens I am now auditioning different speakers and the electronics prove to be an awesome evaluation tool. You have to hear the awesome way it shows different aspects, strength and flaws in different speakers. This auditioning process makes me want to become a reviewer and I catch myself writing notes about the different setups. If you want unlimited power and control and speed, a neutral and wide and open presentation, then you have to try the Stratos monos. Maybe you want to become a hobby reviewer too.

Similar Products Used:

Cary, PS Audio, Rotel, Arcam,

Amazing bass control, transparency and detail is probably limited by my preamp.

Common complain, long lead time.

I happened to stumble upon the Odyssey Audio web site in Singapore while surfing the net. I first read about Odyssey in the Absolute Sound review. The Stratos was reviewed against the B&K and Rotel RB1090. So out of curiosity I visited the showroom to see if I have a chance to audition the mono block extreme. However, there was only a Stratos Plus on demo. As luck is on my side it so happens that someone has just purchased a pair of monoblock extremes but has yet to set it up. I manage to convince the wonderful folks at Odyssey audio to see if it is possible to t-loan to me for my home audition and they managed to do so. So I hook up the mono blocks to my Harbeth Monitor 40. I was using my tube Lazarus preamp with my Rega planet cd player. Aural symphonic conductors to my speakers (bi-wire)and Groeneberg interconnects borrowed from the Odyssey audio guys. As the amp has yet to run in, it sounded pretty congested and bright upon powering up. After 6 hours of warm it begins to show some of its potential. 72 hours later the soundstage and transparency starts to improve and layering becomes more obvious. So let it run further, 120 hours passed by, mid range starts to mellow and more details are being revealed. Listening to Joyce Cooling the transparency and dynamics was amazing. Put on UB40 and the bass response from some of the better recorded tracks really knock your socks off. Next on line Stacy Kent and Linda Ronstadt, passed with flying colors. How about some male vocals, so Steve Tyrell and Michael Buble, not the best recording but come through very well. OK, so far so good, so on the pretext of running in the amp for the new owner I manage to convince them that I will sacrific on my utility bill. So the amps stay with me longer, I will continue to run it in and I cannot wait to hear how it sounds another 120 hours later. Will keep you folks posted. Till now I am convince that this amp offers the best value. For SGD6k+, 300W/Ch, 20 years warranty, no amp will ever come close. Meanwhile, my cheque is on the way to Odyssey audio.

-binding posts -Detail of sound when properly warmed up -Oh so tight bass without spilling over -A wonderful sounding amp that would be hard to beat at that price point without having to go to tubes. -Sound gets a perfect 5 stars

Ok, here's the part where I seem like the bad guy that ruins all the perfect reviews Klaus has receivd thus far on the Mono's. But I have to me honest to myself and the readers of this article and give an unbiased opinion. First, A minor issue related to the highs which can are a little harsh, almost having a metallic sound when the Mono's are not warmed up. Klaus recommended to me to leave the Mono's on at all times, which does work elimatating the harshness and replacing it with wonderful detail. Mind you this is just an observation, not necessarily a weakness. Second, the housing of the amp is built rock solid, which I like, however the Odyssey light on front is a bit chintzy. Even with all the lights out in my house the light is dim and dull where you can even make out the word "Odyssey" unless you within 4 feet of the units. Also, the light is no consistant across the lettering leaving the center letter brighter than the one's on the end. The lights in my opinion detract from the overall appearance because they do look cheap. If I had a choice I would have perferred no ligthing at all on the Mono's, just a solid front with Odyssey stenciled into the metal. Now that would've looked cool! Third, the personalized name plates on back that fell off after a month. I like the plates and I think it is a neat idea but a better adhesive needs to be used, something that will last years instead of weeks. -Build gets 3 stars

Since Odyssey doesn't keep inventory I had to wait 5 weeks for the Mono's to be built, which I didn't mind. When the day finally arrived and the UPS driver pulled up in front of my house I was gitty with excitement. After unboxing the Mono's (nicely packaged) I hooked them up to my Linn Wakonda Preamp, threw the power switches in the back and watched the Mono's come to life. I then grabbed Diana Krall's Live in Paris cd and popped it into my trust Rotel 1072 player. Now understand after dropping 2 grand on these babies I'm somewhat apprehensive of what I was going to hear because my original amp (Anthem MCA 5) got really good reviews (http://www.soundstage.com/video/revequip/anthem_mca5.htm) so the Mono's have a lot to live up to. And of course I didn't follow Klaus' instructions by allowing the Mono's to properly warm up before I put them to the test. Sound: Hearing Diana sing S' Wonderful, I immediately notice detail I've never heard from my Anthem. I could hear nuances like Diana breathing in before singing the next lyric, something I never knew existed. And mind you, this is right out of the box, not after the 6 month break-in period Klaus recommends. Not being an Audiophile, the way I would descibe the characteristics of the Mono's compared to the MCA 5 are: -Mono's offer better separation of sound with much more detail. -The bass was much more tighther with the Mono's and not boomy. For the first time the bass sounded like it was supposed to and didn't spill over and become boomy. Now after 6 months of use I'm still thrilled with the sound of the Mono's. I leave them on all the time which gives the Mono's a warmth of sound that's hard to describe without experiencing it for yourself. However, the nifty little personalized name plates that Klaus creates and puts on the back of the Mono's both came off after the first month. I suppose the constant heat from the Mono's from being on all the time loosens the glue. Too bad though because the name plates are pretty. I was disappointed with that. Overall: Bottom line is the sound is absolutely wonderful. It can be a bit harsh if the Mono's are not given time to warm up. I have to wonder now if I get this much sound with the standard Mono's what would I have gotten if I upgraded to the Extremes?

Similar Products Used:

Anthem MCA5

Catagorically glorious sound - any attempt to describe it wouldn't do justice. Adds an entirely new level to our musical enjoyment - for me this is the ultimate compliment.

None known.

Magnificent departure from my old Adcom 5800 amp in every catagory. Shocking at how much more emotionally involving the music has become. These amps are outrageously good at making beautiful music (along with the VMPS RM40's). I had no idea they were going to make this dramatic an improvement. I won't ever need to shop for new amps (but may sometime upgrade them to the Extremes).

Musically: Amazing soundstage and separation. Physically: Built tough, looks great. Economically: Affordable compared to other stuff around.

Long break-in period: It took my system 9 months to reach this state. I don't make a huge deal since right out of the box, the speakers did sound nice. The wait: Took about 8 weeks to get these to me. Lack of auditioning opportunity: Odyssey offers a 30-day no-questions-asked return period but if you need to package/ship the amps back to Odyssey it would be...a big hassle for me. Highly unlikely this would happen to me or others.

I have owned a pair of Odyssey Audio's Extreme Monoblocs (Stratos) for close to a year now. They are being used to drive a pair of Martin Logan Ascent electrostats and are primarily used for 2-channel listening. First off, I want to confirm most (probably all) of the positive reports from other reviewers in this forum. This product is robustly built, looks great, sounds great and comes with perhaps the best customer service one can expect in this type of business. Now to some specific impressions based on my experiences with listening to Indian/Eastern music. The soundstage: I am constantly amazed at the sound image produced by this system. I listen a lot to a type of Eastern/Indian music called Ghazals (Urdu/Hindi poetry). In Ghazals, the focus is typically on the lyrics and the manner in which the singer recites the poetry. My 2-speaker system seems to put the singer almost always in the center of the stage and I can usually "make out" locations of the accompanying musical instruments around the singer. Several times I feel my big center channel speaker is turned on when it's really not and I'm just being fooled by the sonic image being produced by the system. Separation: Another type of music I prefer listening to is Indian classical music that primarily uses stringed instruments like Sitar, Guitar, Santoor, Sarod etc. Each note seems to "hang around" for short time time rather than get attenuated abruptly due to the start of a subsequent note. The music keeps flowing smoothly. To me, this tells a lot about the capability of the mono extremes to keep the notes separate. Klaus, the owner/manager of Odyssey Audio, warrants a special mention. He helped me tremendously while I was selecting the other components in my system and never forced me to buy Odyssey's speaker/pre-amp combo although that would've been in his best financial interest. He takes a personal interest in making sure that the entire experience is positive for the buyer in the short and long-run. I ended up with a Rotel pre-amp based on my discussions with Klaus. Well done, Klaus and Odyssey Audio.

Similar Products Used:

Several.

Odyssey offers the best upgrade path. The extremes are everything the monos are and then some. $ 2600 US new is silly.

$ 2600 US new will turn some potential customers away if they believe that ultimate sound quality has to be in the costly amp range

This review is about the extreme monos. We started out with a stereo unit that we reviewed here too. Since then we are in contact with Klaus a lot and upgraded the stereo Stratos to a pair of monos and finally to a pair of Extremes. Living in Toronto, UPS made some money on us. There are a HT3 and 2 stereo Stratos in our Theater system too. Staying with the extremes. When we upgraded the original stereo Stratos to a pair of monos everything got better in every area. More grip and power, more liquid and more detail, better definition overall and smoother. Klaus told me to get the extreme monos when I upgraded. We learned a lesson here. Should have listened to him because it took us extra money in shipping both ways. When we received the monos back in the extreme format, my wife and I were stunned again. What is it with Odyssey that they can turn out incredible improvements for very little money ? To keep it short, we paid another $ 550 US plus shipping to upgrade to the extremes and again the amps are better in every detail. In the extreme format they are so good that they replaced our long time favorite amp, the Mark Levinson 33. We considered the price difference and it is silly. Very well done Odyssey.

Similar Products Used:

many

great build,large platinum WBT speaker posts,musical,robust sound with great highs,natural midrange,great slam and depth in the bass region

large and heavy..had to but new racks just for these babies!

I had never heard of Odyssey before I walked into Klaus"s room at the Frisco Sterophile show and had no intention of buying anything there..at the time!After listening to all the megabuck systems there,and being somewhat unimpressed, I was amazed at the immediate emotional impact Klaus"s little $1500 system he was playing there had on myself and I think others!Anyway I kept thinking about it after I got home and even though I was very happy with my custom hybrid 400watt/channel monoblocks I already had....I wanted the "magic" that I heard in the Odyssey room so I picked up the phone with the intention of buying the stratos monoblock and had a very nice chat with the owner Klauss.After talking to Klauss who lives up to his reputation as an audio enthusiast I must say,I decided to go with the fullblown monoblock extreme with blue faceplate and Groneberg powercords.OK so how do they sound after 3 weeks in my system and not fully burned in?hhhmmm what adjetives to use that havent beem used already? he he they sound damn good! Even right out of the block they blew away my old monoblocks which were designed by George Kaye himseld and had gobs of power! The Extremes so far are very smooth,and tubelike yet have tremendous slam and control my speakers like I have never heard them before!And according to Klauss there is more to come as they break in more! I told Klauss that if the amps worked out(which they did) that for synergys sake I might just get his preamp also and all groneberg interconnects and even maybe his speakers! He told me once I get these amps I might not want to sell my speakers!And guess what? He"s right! so I respect him for saying that even though he probably lost a sale on his speakers!Well In my opinion you cant beat the bang for the buck one gets with these amps....and the blue faceplate and glowing blue Odyssey logo on the faceplate is beautiful to look at also I might add.

Similar Products Used:

audible illusions l1 preamp,Phillips sacd 1000,george TicePower Block 3b Hi Current Signature series Power Conditioner,Mit 330 interconnects,Tice and Groneberg powercords,Arcarian Systems Alon 4 Speakers with Black Orpheous Tri wire speaker cable