much better than stereo stratos

no

look at my review at stereo stratos. mono stratos is much better in all, and it is a very good upgrade.

Similar Products Used:

Bryston, Mcintosh

Now I've had the monoblocks for over 3 months so time for me to drop a simple review....these are excellent amps throughout.

The amps have an absolutely vice like grip on the 12" subwoofer cones on my NHT 3.3, its really amazing to listen to music with tons of bass quite loudly and hardly see the cones moving! Previous amps couldn't come close to the damping factor of the Odysseys.

These amps Never run hot only slightly warm. The sound is detailed but never ever etchy and always remains smooth & musical. THe music seems to eminate from a black dead silent background, very tranparent indeed. The amps can start and stop on a dime and have full control of the speakers, They don't just have power but agility also, so the transient response is outstanding, the Imaging and soundstage are terrific and can be described as '3-D'. The dynamics (jump factor) and slam are unreal.

If you are in the market for amps you have to have these on your shortlist...

My system consists of a Wadia 850, NHT 3.3 and Odyssey Monoblocks. All cable is Groneberg Quattro Reference which Odyssey also sells and has good synergy with the amps.

About Klaus Bunge, its so refreshing when you call a company and speak to the owner himself, and no you don't have to give him your amp's serial number, he actually remembers all his customers names. And he doesn't bash other mfg's products or brush you off for asking questions. This is person who knows how to build his brand and understands customer satisfaction.

Similar Products Used:

ATI, Denon, Adcom

imaging and very detailed (straight out if the box) good looking, solid construction and the Odyssey logo is a nice touch, has surpassed my expections

none still to new to post anything

Well I was not expecting to buy amps when I first started to read Audio Review I was in the market for speakers.While reading a speaker review the person had mentioned Odyssey amps, and with that I never gave it another thought. While bored one night, I jumped on Audio Review and started comparing ratings and reading reviews. When I remembered Odyssey amps so I started to read the reviews some of you have submited. After the 30th review, I decide to audition a stereo amp. My placed my order with Klaus the next day, but as a week went by I read the remaining reviews and dug a little deeper into these amps,I called Klaus and upgraded to the Mono amp's. After an long wait, I finally received them and as I write this review, they are being broken in and sound beautiful, detail and imaging of these amps are wonderful and STRAIGHT OUT OF THE BOX,THEY SOUND GREAT. These amps have surpassed my exceptions, what a great deal! Odyssey Mono amp's,Parasound 5ch and AVC controller,Monster surge, MIT biwire cables,Klipch klf30's and CF7 center,Paradigm 3 se mklll rears, Sony ns700 dvd, Harmon Kardon Cd player To the S.F stereo store salesmen who got a laugh at my expense for ordering online and never heard of amps (2 bricks in a box).Well if you had "BRICKS" like these in your store to sell maybe you would some customers

Similar Products Used:

Parasound, Yamaha

Very Tight and Fast, Huge soundstage and great imaging

the wait (but it is worth it!)

I don't think that I can add to anything already said. I tried the plinius but it just did'nt 'do' anything for me, sounded good but just lacked something. The Integre was also a great amp (and would be a 2nd choice for me) but i was wanting Mono's not a integrated. Then i read about Klaus's company, I spoke to a local hi-fi dealer who sells all the usual stuff, Rega, Plinius etc and he said they used to sell the stratos before Klaus went direct and that they wished they still could get them as they were the best sounding unit they had, and that the Stratos compared with amps costing 3 times as much. So I called Klaus and the rest is history! I went with the upgraded 120k caps on his advice and I am not disapointed! they sound great and look a million dollars. I also tried the power cables and speaker wire/IC that he sells (Gronenburg i think) he said if they were'nt better than the dh-labs stuff i was using then i could send them back for a full refund, well the cables also made a noticeable difference over the dh t14's and bl1's so i kept them.

Klaus has always had time to answer my questions and tried to offer un-biased views on other equipment like Pre-amps, and that is rare nowadays.

The only slight negative i have is that you can wait a long time for the product to arrive, however like the old saying goes, 'the best things come to those that wait'

2ch
Stratos Mono's with 120k upgrade
Gronenburg 2.25 meter IC's and Bi-wired speaker cable
Gronenburg 1m power cables
AH! Njoe Tjoeb 4000 CDP
Meadowlark Kestrel Hot Rod Speakers

HT (using the Stratos for main F/L)
Denon Avr-3200 (used for HT and a tempory Pre-amp)
Toshiba 5disc DVD player
PSB Stratus c5i center channell
PSB Stratus Mini's for rear channels
PSb SubZero Subwoofer
MonsterPower HTs2500 power conditioner
Vibrapods where appropriate

Similar Products Used:

Plinius 8150, Integre DT

Clarity, accuracy, transparency, speed and most of all price. 20-year warranty

Weight - which isn't a real weakness. Just be ready for it.
It's accuracy makes it unforgiving with anything but good to outstanding source material

This is the second review that I have submitted on Odyssey products. In August of last year I submitted a review on the Tempest pre-amp and the Stratos stereo power amp. At the time I submitted the review, I was considering upgrading to mono blocks. Man am I glad that I did.

I can repeat every glowing comment that I made about the Stratos here, but that would do an injustice to the mono blocks. When I was considering purchasing the monos, I spoke with Klaus at great length about the differences in sound quality I should expect. His reply was something along the lines of "If you expect a significant increase in sound quality in going from an integrated to separates, then going to monos will easily be more than double the quality in sound." The quote's not perfect, but you get the point. The Stratos is an outstanding stereo power amp. The monos make enhance the music quality exponentially. At this price, I don't see how anyone can't give serious thought to going with the mono-blocks.

I don't want to engage in a comparison of the stereo power amp versus the monoblocks because it would be irrelevant for anyone who hasn't heard the Stratos power amp. Let me just say these things. With the monos, the listener gets a phenominal sound stage. You aren't listening to the amp, you are listening through it. Talk about speed - if you have a great jazz or rock recording where you know the guitarists are just going wild,these things don't miss a plucked string and it's truly like listening and experiencing the music live.

I'm not going to talk about all the technical aspects of these babies, only because I don't know enough to sound coherent. I will say this, however, I had plenty (although not unlimited) funds with which to work when I started upgrading my system. I was considering Mark Levinson equipment, Classe and a few others that are all very reputable products. I read the reviews and that convinced me to by my first Stratos. I spoke with Klaus, and that convinced me to go with monoblocks. I will now match them against anything out there at three to four times the expense.

Look, the Odyssey equipment isn't for everyone. If you are one of these people that needs to have big name stuff with a high sticker price because you automatically equate price with quality, these aren't for you. If, however, you a true music lover who is comfortable enough with himself/herself so that you don't need to match up to your friends expectation - but truly love listening to music, these are the way to go. I'm sure that most audiophile salesmen will pooh pooh these - but that's because they don't and can't sell them. I'm convinced that I am now set for life and will never upgrade my electronics again.

Other equipment of mine:
Meadowlark Shearwater Hot Rods
Rega Planar 24 with Exact Cartridge
Rega Planet CD Player
Rega Interconnects
Nordost Blue Heaven Speaker Wire (3.5m bi-wire, shot gunned)
Tice Power conditioner.


Final words - buy them and enjoy what you have been missing.

Please see my first review under the Stratos. I shall be updating the review after several months have passed.

tight bass,dynamic and always has speakers under control.

none

I've had my Stratos mono blocks since March,hand delivered
by Klaus Bunge.Everything that's been said is true,so I
will decribe my experience so far.My speakers are two stacked pair of Dahlquist DQ-10's,a very hungry speaker.
Even though the DQ-10's are said to be lacking in bass,this
is not true with the Stratos 180 watt mono's;the bass is
always tight and well defined. The midrange is great to
exprience,the vocals come alive and highs are never smeared
or harsh.At extended high volume listening sessions,I have
never had listening fatique.A good test for a amp is does it
sound enjoyable at lower volume levels-these Mono's blocks
pass with flying colors.I listen to mostly blues and jazz
on cd's,I do have a turntable but rarely use it since I've
drifted away from listening to 60's and 70's rock albums.
All those audiophile terms apply ,transparant, marco and
micro dynamics,wide soundstage and well defined bass.
What Klaus told me about how the DQ-10's need current to
really open up and keep the woofers under control is
definitely true.Klaus answered all my questions and never
sounded like a salesman just trying to make a sale.
At this price and a twenty year warranty-what a GREAT value,the real deal.I cannot see these amps showing up on
the used audio market,there to good to give up.
My equipment
Sony SACD 777es
Apt Holman --soon to purchase a tube preamp
Stratos Mono's
Stacked DQ-10's full range
Two dahlquist subs crossed at 60hz,powered by Hafler DH-500
Groneberg Interconnectors
Speaker cable- Silver Sonic T-14

Similar Products Used:

hafler

Clean, dinamic, fast, articulate and very open sound from low to high frequencies.
Kind of holographic sound imagery.
Realistic and consistent sound for instruments, very versatil to beused with many electronics and spekers.
Price, to me is simply the best buy available.
To me the best, biggest strenght is the company philosophy which is obviously conceived by Klaus and Rolf Gemein.

None, really none.

This review is only to emphasize what this product and brand has to offer to the average audiophile/enthusiast and even to those clear minded and very wealthy audiophiles, who judge by performance not by price tags.

I can't say so much about its vitues and capabilities that haven't been said yet but I rather make some considerations:

What I want to state here is that this product if great and marvelous for USA market it is even more to countries like Mexico, where Acurus, ADCOM, hk's, Onkyos are sold as high end at prices sometimes 60% higher than the full suggested retail price in USA, this same thing goes for practically all mid-fi to high end brands in Mexico. With real high end gear is really the same situation.

So we do not have many alternatives in Mexico: we can fool ourselves lying to our ears and our mind with mid-fi mass market gear or work like slaves to afford just entry level products of brands like Bryston, Krell, Electrocompaniet, BAT, Linn, etc.

Altough the price for Odyssey in Mexico is not the given for USA, considering special shipment, taxes and all expenses related, it does not reach other brands price hickes when sold in Mexico soil. The quality of Odyssey is real high end from design/contruction to sound/performance. This is what makes this product different and a bargain even in my country, plus, if you consider we also have the 20 years warranty you definitively won't find this high grade of quality and service nowhere in Mexico by any other brand.
It is just like paying (in Mexico for mono blocks)135 USD a year for such a great sound.

I have set up the amps with many configurations and speakers over short periods and after a reduced burn-in period (just 3 days, turn on all time). The results have been better than what I expected and over the time the sound has opened wide and in stages and goes deeper in bass and more natural or musical on highs and mids.

I have used it mainly with hk 6950R as pre and a hk hd7600II as CD, altough I used in some moments Acurus RL 11, Acurus ACD-11 CD, Forte 44 pre, Yamaha pre, CalLabs DX2 CD, etc. Speakers have been Infinity, Polk, Vandersteen, Boston. Interconnects I have used are Audioquest Emeralds from CD to pre and from pre to amp. Speaker cables are Audioquest Crystal. I hope soon to get Groneberg audio cables and find out if synergies arise. I replaced power cords included with units with power cords I assembled with a 3x12 cable with tinned copper braid and aluminium polyester tape(for shield puposes), Hubbell AC plug and Hubbell/Schurter IEC connector, covered by a silicon/fiberglass flexible sleeve. They look great. And no humming/interference, all at only 65 USD piece/2 meters.

I sincerly recommend all Odyssey products, from the main Stratos Stereo to the mono blocks, to all those frustrated audiophiles trying to get high end performance/sound without going bankrupt.

Sorry my english has to be improved.

Thanks Klaus and Rolf for bringing and audio odyssey this big at this affordable prices.

Similar Products Used:

harman kardon HK 6950R, ADCOM GFA-2535

Too Many to list

None yet found

Please see my review for the monoblocks under the Stratos, I inadvertently placed the review there in error.

Similar Products Used:

Krell, Quicksilver, Audio Research

Very musical, clean, detailed, and able to reveal both macro and micro-dynamics.

None

I've had my mono's for a bit less than a year, and have enjoyed every moment with them. More music has been listen to in the last 9 months, than the previous couple of years. The amps are very revealing...letting all of the information (in your recordings) come through with very little 'coloration'. I'm hearing details, that were previously obscured, I never knew were there. These amps send music to your ears! They don't sound like a system reproducing the sounds of music...you'll find yourself getting immersed into the actual performance of music. However, they will not hide a wretched recording or performance. You get everything that is there to hear...a truly wonderful experience. I don't know how they compare to the stereo units (yet), but can tell you that the Odyssey HT3 does not lose a lot, by comparison.

Associated equipment: Main audio system

Odyssey monoblocks, Audio Research REF 1, Linn Ikemi, Perpetual Tech P1A/P3A, Audio Research PH3, Linn LP12, Aerial 10T's, Groneberg interconnects and speaker cable.

Similar Products Used:

Audio Research