I’m and I will probably be for quite some time. It’s an expensive hobby and you lose money every time you upgrade. I could have gone form my rubicon 6 to epicons and then eventually to b&w but that would cost so much more to do. At the moment my approach is to go for my end game components even if the system is going to be unbalanced. The turntable, tonearm and speakers will stay with me for a very long time. The rest will be upgraded eventually. My phono and power amp are the weakest link (maybe the cartridge too) but it still sounds so much better than before with rubicons (which are great speakers btw).
The 250dr might be underpowered, it’s hard to say not having a comparison but as I mentioned it’s still a much better sounding system than before. I’m sure my approach won’t appeal to many but I don’t have the money to waste on half measures.
I feel that globally you have a high end system, with only one really weak link in the 250 dr, to power the 803. At least from what I could read here from people with 802 and 803.
However actually the 300 dr can be bought for 4k second hand. So a 2k investment if you sell your 250 dr. Or 8000 złotych
I’m using the Scalas with a 500 system and i’m very happy with them. The Scalas were a big upgrade from the Sopra 2s that were already very enjoyable (bigger sound stage, more detail and especially much better bass with the Scalas).
I’m thinking a 2nd 500 amp would improve the sound further on the Scalas, and I would not attempt to power the Stella with just a 500dr, though i have not had the opportunity to listen to that combo, but assuming the Stella will be more power hungry than the Scala (which is what a dealer mentioned to me as well).
I remember a Jay audio YouTube video. He had the Stella Utopia at home. He said it needed at least something like a Boulder 3060 to open them. ( 160 k, 900 W into 8 ohm).
That is a very tempting pair of speakers being offered to you at a decent price. However, there is good reason for some of the caution expressed above and I shall try to offer my perspective based on my experience of different products.
A long time back I bought a pair of naim nbl speakers. I had an audition at a reputable dealers where they sounded great and I took them away happy as Larry. They did not sound great in my home using a 300 power amp. I upgraded to a 500 and they were much better controlled but still did not sound great. It transpired that the room shape was a very poor match for the isobarik design. Something I only discovered after the event.
In the interim period I changed speakers to something I thought would work better with the room properties and I then moved home earlier this year. Having just set up the system in my new listening room, you could easily convince me that I have a new set of very different sounding speakers. The difference in presentation is quite remarkable, not all of it in a good way!
If you have an overall longer term plan to upgrade components such as your pre-amp then I would fully support the idea of upgrading whichever components become available at a great price first. Where I would be more cautious is to undertake more research to ensure that the speakers in question will be manageable for your 500 - if not, you will be tortured knowing that they have much more to offer with other amplification. Unless the seller’s room is very similar to your own, the real potential problem I see is whether those large speakers will work well with the physical properties of your room - irrespective of what sources or amps you connect up to them. They will be a sod to sell on if they don’t work well and an even bigger headache to live with if eg they overload your room with uncontrolled bass.
No harm in looking and as a very minimum, I would suggest driving to the seller with your 500 and switching between his amp and yours to at least understand if the 500 has sufficient clout to drive them well - there is a big difference between getting a noise out of them and getting the best out of them.
Very best of luck with your decision making - exciting times for you!
Good post
When I upgraded from 135 to 500 with kudos 606 it can easily be heared that the 500 is powering the speakers much more easier.
By the way - the 135 did this better than the 300dr - but that could have been my Olive bias
you are not!