Current delivery, speed, deep articulate bass, great midrange and sweet accurate upper end. Build quality. Klaus is not only a great guy to talk audio with but also is a music lover himself. Great product!

None!!!!!

I ordered my Stereo Stratos Extreme in early December after reading several postive reviews on this amp and after auditioning 6 to 8 other amps. Klaus and I talked for about 40 minutes on the phone and he answered every one of my questions thoughtfully and concisely. I met Klaus at a Cracker Barrel restuarant midway between my home and his facility (he offered and I don't trust UPS anyway!), as we both are Indiana based. We had a couple cups of coffee, chatted audio and guitars, and then I was on my way. I hooked up the amp and began the break-in period. It is now about 3 and a half weeks later and I am so pleased with my purchase and the system synergy I enjoy. The Stratos Extreme brought my Magnepan 1.6QR's to life in ways my Anthem MCA 20 could only dream of. With the MCA 20 (and Ayre V3, Audio Research 100 and McCormack 125, for that matter) my soundstage would start to compress at about a third of the way up the volume control. Not so anymore! Plus this amp sounds so nice and full at lower volumes I don't feel the need to turn things up like before. Soundstage is wide, deep and accurate. Acoustic guitars (I play so I know!) sound incredibly lifelike. Cymbals are hangin' right where there suppose to be with excellent decay. Bass is deep and articulate. I am so pleased with my overall experience with Klaus and Odyssey Audio. As a matter of fact, I just ordered some Gronenburg cables and speaker wire for a test run. In summation, I would highly recommned the Stereo Stratos Extreme to any and all. I'm especially apt to suggest this amp to fellow Magnepan owners. I have a fondness for dealing with and supporting the littler guys trying to offer a great value such as Klaus at Odyssey and others like Blue Circle and Magnepan.

Similar Products Used:

Anthem MCA 20 Ayre V3 McCormack 125

Lots of power, sturdy, 20 year warranty, runs cool.

Sound authenticity, sparse documentation, 100$/yr cost of leaving on 24/7(takes days of re-break-in if turned off), takes hours of play to warm-up to peak even when left on, can't use headphones with Stratos/Tempest system(no phones jack). .

I spent hours reading all the Stratos reviews here. I spent two hours on the phone with Klaus trying to determine if the Stratos/Tempest system with the 120k cap upgrade had the sound qualities I was looking for. When convinced, I bought it. I expected a lot. What I got was disappointed. The Stratos/Tempest combo running through a quality pair of monitor towers evidenced several fatal flaws that prevented it from being a keeper. Almost everyone will agree that the name of the game in high end audio is faithfully reproducing the musical performance as recorded, in all its intended glory. My Stratos/Tempest system fell short of this goal in several important ways. First, the soundstage was unrealistically deep, distant and disproportionate regarding instrument location and the spatial relationships between them. On that stage, there were gross inaccuracies in the harmonic details of various instruments. The Stratos arbitrarily rearranges the soundstage, giving midrange elements, especially vocals, false prominence. In the same way, the Stratos alters percussion making it sound distant and muffled. While some may appreciate these tweaks, they void the music’s authenticity. Bass was full ranged, reasonably articulate and tight but, lacked punch. Highs were extended but, too rounded to be totally convincing. The Stratos creates an interesting, hollow sounding environment with absolute smoothness across the entire audible spectrum. While this combination has a certain charm, it unfortunately sacrifices transparency and crispness in the process. In other words, the Stratos was the antithesis of almost everything that I like. Needless to say, the Stratos and the Tempest were promptly returned to Odyssey for refund. Klaus was not as easy to reach during the return phase. He did not return calls or email. After calling Visa, a credit was finally issued. Bottom line…shop around and listen close before buying the Odyssey Stratos or any other amp in the high end price range. Keep your wits about you and don’t be swayed by brand, price, rave reviews or what the salesman tells you. You might find a rig you really like better for a lot less money. For example, I bought a Harman Kardon 3475 as a backup amp after I sent the Odyssey stuff back. It sounds much better overall than Odyssey and only cost $279. Go figure. I give the Stratos 2 stars for value because 2 stars is defined by this site as "a little expensive." I give it 2 stars for overall because 2 stars is defined as "not completely happy" and because there are much better amps out there for a lot less.

Similar Products Used:

Other equipment used: Pioneer, Marantz, Harman Kardon, Krell, B&K, Yamaha, etc., too many others to list over 30 years.

More of everything you desire.

Long burn-in necessary to achieve best results.

I just recently had my Odyssey Audio Stratos Stereo Amplifier upgraded to the Xtreme version. After the requisite burn-in period, I was finally able to do some critical listening. The soundstage had become more spacious; the transient passages became more sharply defined. Bass response, which was already quick and well-managed, became even more controlled and satisfying. The upgrade is more than worthwhile--it is liberating. And of course Klaus makes the entire experience a pleasurable journey towards sonic nirvana.

Similar Products Used:

Classe, Sony, Parasound

It makes me question reality.

It makes me question reality.

I've had the Stratos for 2 years but have recently had the unit upgraded to Extreme. It was already awesome before but I've now been listening for about 2 months with the upgrade. For the following narration keep in mind that the whole system is required for this kind of result but also don't forget that the Stratos is an integral part of attaining such a lofty goal. Have you ever watched the ice dancing couple Orville and Dean. The whole notion of critique just vanishes. I just sit spell bound watching the end-to-end top-to-bottom performance. So it is with listening to music now. I never before realized that if I was noticing bass, imaging,etc. that this eccentricity or caricature feature was an indication that perfection or near perfection had not been attained yet. Such as it is, now every 3D point within the massively wide, deep and tall soundstage appears equally nourished. So it is with the frequency band: from the lowest low to the highest high each sound is fully presented with no particular frequency pullung rank over another. But here is the surprise of surprises. Although the Stratos delivers power and presence up to the loudest sane listening level, there is no longer any sweet spot in terms of listening level. Not only do I now really enjoy listening to music at any level, it performs miraculously at low levels. My speakers are not particularly efficient and the impedance jumps around significantly with frequency. In other words, for all practical purposes they are not speakers that anyone would select for low level listening. Yet, the Stratos is able to totally be the speaker's master at low listening levels. This simply was not the case before doing the Extreme upgrade (about $300). I don't know if you are appreciating this but I am a very technically savvy guy and I would tell you that this is an impossible feat excepting that Klaus and company have made it a reality.

Similar Products Used:

Denon, Carver, Marantz, Parasound

Music performance/price, waranty

None

The Odyssey Stratos is an excellent product with bargain price. I am not new to the Stratos. While Odyssey was using retail stores to sell their products, I already got a chance to audition the Stratos in 1998. Their current products remain the same signature but with better clarity and dynamics. Last year (2002), I wanted to build a home theater, and I simply do not want to use my ARC VT100 for HT. It does mean VT100 cannot handle HT but it is not its strength. I bought a Mono Block and Duo Mono to cover my center and front speakers first. Since I found the Mono and Duo are so musical, I decide to contact Klaus and bought two Stratos to cover my side and rear speakers. Now I feel I am in HT heaven. To do comparisons of music presentation, I connected the Stratos to Thiel CS2.3 speakers. Thiel speakers are known for power hungry. Amazingly Stratos handles them with ease. Comparing to the highly regarded $5,000 ARC VT MKII tube amp, Stratos is inferior in clarity, but it is more forgiven. VT100 is very analytical (may be too much), and some recordings sound harsh. But, I never heard harsh sound from Stratos. Comparing to the several mid-price SS amps, e.g., Rotel, Adcom, B&K, and Parasound, the Stratos easily outperforms them in the music presentation. For HT, I connected it to the front speakers. I found Stratos is very dynamic, and it handles several explosive scenes very well. Because I just use Stratos for side and rear speakers, I feel they are really over killed. The Stratos is an amp for music as well as movie. It is very musical and dynamic. For MSRP $1195, Stratos is a bargain amp, and it can compete any amp under $2,500. If you want to setup a HT system without losing music presentation, Odyssey amps are no-brainer. For budget at around $1,200, Stratos is the first choice. For higher budget, DM or Extreme Mono Block is the way to go. For newbis, my suggestion is try Strtos first. If you like it, you can upgrade it to the Mono or Extreme Mono in the future. Klaus is very flexible on it. Or, like me, you can put it for side or rear speakers. One more good thing of Strtos is its 20 years warranty with 30 days return policy. It is the best warranty policy in the amp word so far. So, you have nothing to lose. I live in Indiana, and personally met Klaus several times. He is a genuine man. You can trust him. James Tang Associated equipment: CD and DAC: Rotel 975, MSB Link II, and Monarchy DIP Pre-amp: Audio Research LS15, Rotel RSP1066 Amp: Audio Research VT100 MK II Speaker: Paradigm Studio 40 v2, Thiel CS2.3, Roger 3/5a, HSU TN1220 sub Cable: Harmonic Technology Pro Silway II, Acoustic Zen Satori, Synergistic Research Master AC Coupling, DIY Belden 89259. AC conditioner: RGPC 400s, PS Audio 300, and DIY AC conditioner. Music: Beethoven 9 Symphonies, by John Eliot Gardiner, ACHIV Beethoven Violin Sonatas, Perlman and Ashkenazy, DECCA Brahms, German requiem, by John Eliot Gardiner, Philips Dvorak, Cello concerto, by Rostropovich and Karajan, DGG Faure Requiem, Sir Marriner, Philips Handel, Messiah, by Pinnock, ARCHIV DVD/Movie: Eagles, James Taylor, Gladiator, T2, Titanic, Matrix, Shrek

Similar Products Used:

Rotel, B&K, Adcom, Parasound

Everything

Break-in time, recharge time if turned off

Well, I don't know too much about stereo equipments. All I can say is that the Stratos changed my system. It just sounds good. I love listening to music now. At less one hour per day. The sales experience with Klaus was very friendly and educational. If you are looking for a good amplifier at a very good price, give it a try.

Everything. Extremely musical. Well designed and well built.

You must be joking!

It's time to get rid of your old amplifier, why because the Stratos is much more musically satisfying and more musically involving then what you probably have. I have heard many amplifiers in my time and I can't remember any of them sounding this good! The clarity and detail will amaze you, not to mention excellent soudstaging. You can hear the singer breath and the instruments clearly as if they are in the room with you, extracting every nuance of detail. I agree with the reviewers below, Odyssey (Klaus) has got a clear winner on his hands here and the price makes it the deal of the century.

Similar Products Used:

B&K, Conrad Johnson, PS Audio, ARC, McCormacks.

Performance. Quality. 20 year guarantee. Price. No need for me to buy another amp.

My 14 year-old daughter has forgotten about her stereo and wants equal access to the Stratos! Oh yeah, that burn in period. Also, I wish Klaus would team up w/Chris VenHaus and ship the Stratos with an upgraded PC like the Flavor 3 or Flavor 4.

I’m usually on the lookout for great bang-for-the-buck, esp. after a decent income tax return check. So, first I bought a slightly used Tempest preamp to replace my NAD preamp. Read numerous Stratos-related glowing reviews online. Could all the hype be true? I was moved enough to purchase the Stratos w/cap upgrade to replace an NAD amp that was running just fine (do you detect a theme here?). Got Groneberg interconnects, speaker cables, and a Groneberg PC from Klaus. Burned in the Stratos w/o doing too much critical listening before 200 hours, but I do admit to checking in now and then to see what was going on. I am over-the-top impressed with the sound and build of the Stratos. No heat produced to speak of, esp. when compared to the NAD. Solidly built (feet, binding posts, etched front glass, case [however, the black paint may suffer scratching if you’re not careful – I think Klaus’ literature cautions the user to use reasonable care]) and aesthetically pleasing - I esp. like the case design, blue light, and rear on/off switch. I find the amp fairly neutral and abundantly musical, w/plenty of punch for the older modified Polk SDAs I own (the Polks seem to thrive driven by the on-demand power of the Stratos). In a large room used just for music, the Stratos throws a wide soundstage (the Tempest widens it even more, and makes it noticeably deeper). Excellent bass (more on that later) and overall response. Very trasnparent. Got around to throwing on some vinyl on an older turntable, and was blown away by what I was hearing (could also be due to the Tempest's phono stage)! I run a Jolida JD-100 CD player, another great bang-for-buck purchase (tubes are pricey Sylvania Gold label 5751 blackplates, well worth it), and the Stratos effortlessly shows off what it can do. My ex-wife (not an audiophile bone in her body) was over one day for what was to be a quick child-exchange visit, and she was so blown away by what she was hearing that she begged to stay to hear a few CDs. Her comments about the Stratos included, “Wow, you can hear every bit of the music now”, but most of the time she was visibly enthralled with what she was hearing. It seems the Stratos is only as good as the source it is reproducing, so try and feed it well. I subsequently changed over the Stratos’ Groneberg PC to a cryoed VenHaus Flavor 3 (yes, another great bang-for-buck upgrade!), and after it burned in, was blown away even more by the Stratos. The VenHaus cord provided even more detail, depth, and bass punch – the bass just blew me away, as did the amount of increased detail and improved soundstage. (Went to VenHaus PCs on all my equipment, with similar mind-numbing results.) Also, Klaus reports the Stratos should be run directly from the wall, and my hearing tests show I agree w/him. An upgraded outlet doesn't hurt, either. I truly don’t know how you can beat this amp at its performance-price point. No way. Period. Thanks much, Klaus, for an outstanding amp.

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Owned NAD, Sony ES. Heard lots more including B&W, Rotel, Krell, Bryston, Marantz, Adcom.

Overall build quality, neutrality, tonality, and value.

Break in time.

It’s my turn to chime in here with a review of the Odyssey Stratos. As a twenty plus year veteran of the audiophile hobby, I am known to my friends as somebody who changes stereo gear way too often. I am interested in the various discussion groups and follow the internet closely. I decided to check out some internet darlings, amplifiers, and cables and DACs, mostly. For the record, I am not a category person. I like tubes and solid state amplifiers if the sound quality is to my taste. Over the past year I have accumulated an Odyssey Stratos, an AVA Fetvalve, a PS Audio HC2, a Carver Tripath digital amp and a Musical Fidelity A3. There are a lot of PS Audio and Musical Fidelity amplifiers for sale, so it was easy to sample the variety that these amps have to offer. Any hit I would take in resale is worth the fun. This review is not a pseudo technical experiment but more the culmination of experience over a longer period of time than one evening would allow. Endless hours have been spent listening and experiencing the various musical styles and system matches by myself and with friends who sometimes bring different components and accessories to the mix. The Stratos that I own is the newer version with the Plitron transformer. In a side by side comparison of these amps, the Carver and the Musical Fidelity can be quickly dismissed. The build quality of the Stratos is over the top. It is completely over built and is oozing with quality and solidity. Both the PS Audio and the AVA are built well, and both amps are attractive, which I cannot say for the Carver and the Musical Fidelity. More to the point, it seems that the Stratos has to be the most expensive amp to build and has by far the best warranty and support. My loudspeakers are the B&W N 803s and the Magneplanar 1.6 QR. The front end is a Wadia CD transport, a Rogue Audio 99 preamp and also, a Morrison Elad preamp. The cables I’ve used are too numerous to mention. The biggest problem that I’ve had with the Stratos is the burn in time. It takes very long to completely burn in, and if you let the Stratos discharge, when bringing it over to a friend for example, this amp will not give you the best for a few days. No kidding around… All three amps are very smooth and all have very good control. The AVA is the best in retrieving detail and information from any source. It is similar to the HC2 with a cool more digital signature, not like you would expect from tubes. The Stratos excels in the natural flow of the music. It is the least Fatiguing amp of the group. Comparing the Stratos to the PS Audio, it images a lot better, has much better bass, and is more musical. I have to agree with dozens of Stratos owners and magazine reviewers. They called the Stratos unlike other solid state amps and smooth and involving with a neutral tonality more to the warm side. On the net, are several people who have compared the Stratos favorably to the HC2, and I have to agree again. The Stratos has more of a bloomy nature where the PS Audio is more digital sounding. Musical versus analytical, I believe that this is the most significant difference. For the right person and in the right systems the HC2 and other digital amps I have heard might be ideal. I haven’t found any sibilance from the Stratos unless the amp is cold or unless there are sibilant components in the chain. Input equals output here on a grand scale and the Stratos will always be true to the music. This amp has exceptional quality and is still the least expensive amp of the group except for the Carver. The cost of the Stratos is over a third less than the PS Audio and nearly half of the AVA. The Stratos is the only amp that will stay in my system. That, for me, is simply amazing!

Similar Products Used:

AVA Fetvalve, PS Audio HC2, Carver Tripath, Musical Fidelity A3

Very detailed, especially in the microdynamics. Fast, handles transients very well Smooth mids Stable imaging Runs cool Apparently could drive a Mack Truck!

Some harshness and sibilance in the treble Exhibits a slight midrange hump Clinical sounding and on the cooler side of neutral.

After hearing my friend rave about his Stratos (even stating it bettered a Jeff Rowland) and hearing it in his system, I was pretty much ready to buy it. However, I was also very impressed with the PS Audio HCA2 (also reviewed). Thankfully, he was nice enough to let me borrow his broken in unit for a blind (amps were hidden), level matched comparo in my system. My speakers are B&W CDM 7NT's which aren't the most efficient and are fairly tough to drive. We used a Cardas Golden Reference power cord for the shoot-out. I invited him to join me and these are our conclusions: First, the Odyssey had no problems whatsoever driving the B&W's. Listening to mainly big band/swing, jazz, blues and jazz vocals, the Stratos proved to be a very dynamic amp that excels in the microdynamics. When listening to Count Basie, you could practically count the reverberations from the plucked standing bass. It is very smooth in the mids and provides decent slam. It also had no problem with the sudden transients which are everywhere in big band. There was some sibilance in the upper octaves, especially on female vocals and a bit of a midrange hump. Nothing bad, but Satchmo's gutteral voice was emanating from his throat instead of his chest. Also, we both noted the image for some reason was slightly left of center in comparison to the HCA2. Weird. All in all, the amp performed admirably, especially considering the price. It would be hard to find a new ss amp at this price that would top it. If you're more into the tube sound however, this is not the amp for you. The Stratos is the very epitome of a solid state amp: Dynamic, deep bass, good slam, some harshness in the upper register, a bit of midrange glare and leans to the cooler side of neutral. It displays a somewhat clinical personality. Mind you, these aren't just my observations, but also the owner of the amp who had no idea we were listening to it. For my taste in my system, we both agreed the HCA2 was more musical.

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PS Audio HCA2, Rotel, B&K, Krell, Sunfire, ARC, Adcom, Anthem