Regular readers know that I am very fond of Jeff Rowland. I guess it is fair to say that I am more than a little biased toward the brand. But I frequently give other amps a chance and if something better comes along, I will not be too proud to admit it. Interestlingly though, I have never come across an amp that has entirely beaten my model sixes. Of course there is the matter of personal taste, and Rowland amps do happen to cater to my taste, but Rowlands, also the sixes, can be beaten in certain areas. Luckily for me, this is always in the areas that are, for me, less important than others. There were too many amps to list but a few come to mind because they stick out above the rest that I tried.
There were the Bryston 7B ST's, with much more power and drive and fantastic bass but only average resolution,focus and refinement. Depth layering and treble extension were even below par. One could be forgiven to think that these PA amps would have coarse or harsh treble. This is absolutely not the case. Their treble is fluid and free from edge. It is just less well-resolved and doesn't extend as far. But all that didn't stop me from enjoying the 7B ST's: they were immense fun. In the longer run though, the sixes catered more to my taste and made me consistenly happy. In a perfect world I would have several setups with several key areas of strengths but if forced to choose it would always be Rowlands.
A friend brought along a Levinson no.29. While certainly neutral and very powerful in the bass, it was also very dark in balance and lacked subtlety and sparkle.
A little background information
Regular readers know that I am very fond of Jeff Rowland. I guess it is fair to say that I am more than a little biased toward the brand. But I frequently give other amps a chance and if something better comes along, I will not be too proud to admit it. Interestlingly though, I have never come across an amp that has entirely beaten my model sixes. Of course there is the matter of personal taste, and Rowland amps do happen to cater to my taste, but Rowlands, also the sixes, can be beaten in certain areas. Luckily for me, this is always in the areas that are, for me, less important than others. There were too many amps to list but a few come to mind because they stick out above the rest that I tried.
There were the Bryston 7B ST's, with much more power and drive and fantastic bass but only average resolution,focus and refinement. Depth layering and treble extension were even below par. One could be forgiven to think that these PA amps would have coarse or harsh treble. This is absolutely not the case. Their treble is fluid and free from edge. It is just less well-resolved and doesn't extend as far. But all that didn't stop me from enjoying the 7B ST's: they were immense fun. In the longer run though, the sixes catered more to my taste and made me consistenly happy. In a perfect world I would have several setups with several key areas of strengths but if forced to choose it would always be Rowlands.
A friend brought along a Levinson no.29. While certainly neutral and very powerful in the bass, it was also very dark in balance and lacked subtlety and sparkle.
