Odyssey Dual Mono vs. Mono Blocks?

[ovenbun]

Can anyone comment on the difference between the Odyssey Dual Mono vs. Mono Blocks? I'm planning an upgrade to my Stratos and am not sure which way to go. There is also an Extreme upgrade on the Mono Blocks. What is that?

Thanks.

[WILLIAM C WALDECKER 3RD]

i have owned a pair of the khartago monos and presently own a pair of mono extremes and i my personal opinion odyssey audio offers the best cost vs performance ratio in the audio industry. the stratos dual monos are two monos in one unit with two power supplys, power cords and switchs in one box with 180 wpc and 240.000 uf capacitance total for both channels. the stratos mono is configured with one channel per unit with the same wpc and capacitance specs. the main reason for the dual mono is that it saves space but the main drawback is that it is packed inside with no room for upgrades. the advantage to the stratos mono is there is room for a additional plitron 400 va torroidal transformer and the additional capacitors required to upgrade to the mono extreme version with 300 wpc and 360.000 uf total capacitance . whatever you decide to do good luck!

[ovenbun]

Thanks for your reply. But can you tell me what the difference in sound would be between the DM and the MB? And then the difference in sound between the MB and the extreme upgrade? I'm not looking for power as much as detail.

[WILLIAM C WALDECKER 3RD]

the dual mono and the monoblock should sound nearly the same based on thier specifications. i can only speculate how good these models sound as i have not heard them in person but i know how good the khartago monos and mono extremes sound first hand. i wanted the mono extremes only because my loudspeakers were rated for 300 wpc amplification i loved the sound of the khartago monos very much $1,550 vs $2,795 if 150 wpc and 100 amps of current are sufficient to power your system i would recommend the khartago monos but if you want more power in the future the mono extremes will power anything.

[corwin99]

I have to echo what William says.. the Mono Extremes are amazing amps for the money. Most people that hear them at my place agree (I'm not sure what RGA thinks, but he's just an AN shill anyway ;). There is no difference in sound between the regular MB's and the DM.. the DM is simply MB's in one chassis. Without the Extreme upgrade (which William has explained above) the regular MB's can actually fit inside a single chassis, and you save money and space that way. There's not much reason to get the MB's unless you are getting the extremes.

[ovenbun]

Thanks to you both for your responses. I will go with the mono-blocks Extreme. As I have a Stratos Stereo now, it would cost me less to upgrade to mono-blocks than it would to upgrade to a DM. Adding on the Extreme upgrade at the same time seems wise. As well, I'll want the remote control upgrade on my Tempest and am wondering if I should get a Symphonic board upgrade to it?

[WILLIAM C WALDECKER 3RD]

i have the tempest with remote option and i also considered the tempest extreme option when i ordered the pre amp and it is my understanding after talking to klaus that the tempest extreme option is mainly to hotrod the phono section so if you use a phonograph you could consider this option and if not the money could be saved or spent elsewhere.