Starkrimson Mono Ultra Premium LPS – Limited Edition Silver

I purchased the monoblocks lps to power Borrensen low sensitivity speakers. The sound is great and the new amps are very efficient compared to the class a amps I was using. A great upgrade!

I’ve owned my McIntosh MC501s for over 20 years, and they’ve been flawless—smooth, forgiving, and spacious, with that classic warmth that makes them perfect for bright speakers. When I passed them down to my son, I replaced them with the Starkrimson Mono Ultra LPS, and the difference was immediate. These amps brought my Dunlavy SC IVs to life with tighter bass, faster transients, and a soundstage that felt wider and deeper than ever. They simply disappear, leaving nothing but music—clear, balanced, and effortless.

I also tried the Starkrimsons in another system with an Eversolo A-10 streamer and Tekton Double Impacts. Two very different rooms, two very different speakers, yet the result was the same: holographic imaging, natural depth, and improved bass response. In one setup, the stage stretched wide and layered; in the other, it was intimate and almost 3D, reaching right to my chair. No matter the system, the Starkrimsons delivered consistency and musicality that kept me listening for hours.

If you want an amplifier that gets out of the way and lets the music speak, the Starkrimson Mono Ultra LPS is the one for you.

I have sent a review. Did you receive it?

Like another reviewer, I recently received my new Starkrimson Mono Ultra Premium LPS a few weeks ago. Mine also were black, and I was expecting them in Oct/Nov. I have had them for a few weeks now, and I am completely blown away. I probably have 40+ hours on them, and I am using a tube preamp, separate DAC, DDC, streamer, CD Transport, all are what i would call mid HiFi, nice stuff, but not outrageously priced stuff. These amps are the most expensive component I have now.

I thought i had a great system, and thought no way an amp alone can have that much of an impact over a previous high end amp. Man was I wrong. I had no idea what i was missing. WOW!

I am not an “audiophile” where I can use big words to describe things that i hear. Here is what I know. These sound amazing, everything is more clean, i feel immersed in the music, and i hear things i never heard before (like instruments, strings on guitars, breaths, and even other voices). I can distinguish multiple singers and instruments and I think i can pinpoint where they are an a fake stage in front of me. All my music sounds new, exciting, and just better.

These are not inexpensive, and I saved up about 10K to upgrade my system this year. I was going to spend all of it on a new amp, and after demoing these in my home after several other more expensive options, these were far and above the others, all of them, and the lowest cost. These are a great value IMO, as they easily beat other amps more expensive (one more than 2x the cost). And because they cost less, i was able to upgrade my speakers as well.

I am a researcher and like to learn. I appreciate Leo taking the time to answer questions and educate me so i could make the best purchase. These are built like a tank. Some complain about the lack of aesthetics and lights, i can tell you i would rather have all the value put into the sound quality, beside who needs two more lights or more fake meters on two boxes where the sole purpose is to create great sound, not me. And they look high end, no fuss, simple, clean and all business when it comes to amazing, clean, dynamic power.

These are my endgame amps (unless Leo outdoes these, lol). Thanks Orchard Audio, for making such an amazing amp at a reachable price point. You all are amazing!

could not be happier!

By pure chance, I was afforded the opportunity to purchase the first pair of Leo’s Starkrimson LPS (linear power supply) Ultra Premium Mono amps. I was in deep research mode at the time. I was looking to replace a Class A behemoth from one of the most noteworthy amplifier designers of all time. I really loved that amp, and owned it for 9 years. But I came to the conclusion I could no longer justify the electricity it consumed, or the heat it generated.

My search led me to the new generation of GaN products, including those by Orchard Audio. Eventually I decided to accept Leo’s offer and reserved the first two LPS Ultra Premium Monos. When they arrived, I was impressed with the packaging. The amps looked good in person. I installed them on my rack and carefully checked all connections before powering up.

Usually when inserting a new piece of equipment, I play various music and test discs through the system for a week or ten days before doing any real listening. I had the same intention after installing these LPS monos. I put in a favorite disc and began playing at a low volume, intending to put it on repeat and leave. Instead, I heard something that led me to sit down in the listening chair for a moment, still intending to leave. I found myself gradually turning up the volume. With each increase, I heard enough to lead me to listen more intently. That first day I listened to two discs all the way through, but somewhat below my normal preferred listening volumes. I put in a test/burn-in disc from Reference Recordings, put the player on repeat, and left. The next day, I swapped out a few discs to play throughout the day, but never stayed to listen. The third day I intended to continue the process. But by that night, I broke my own rule and sat down to do some serious listening. I ultimately listened to five discs. My speakers are large, nominal 4-ohm floorstanders, relatively efficient at 92dB/1W/@1M, so the amps were loafing even at somewhat loud volumes. These are my impressions utilizing some of my most well known CDs and SACDs, none of which would be considered to be typical “audiophile demo discs,” but all well produced nonetheless. In other words, I wasn’t listening to traditional “hero discs,” but none of them were poorly executed, either. I just do not listen to music that is subpar as produced. There is too much well recorded and mastered music out there to waste time on crappy recordings. First impression: These amps are SO FAST. Leading edge transients explode out of the ether. Things like plucked strings, drumstick strikes on a drumhead, rim or cymbal can be startling in their sense of reality. The “click” of a nylon-tipped drumstick on a cymbal is holographic the instant before the follow-on sound arrives. The control these amps exert over the entire audible frequency range is extraordinary. Images are rock solid. A solo vocalist in-studio is fixed in 3D space with no bloated or indiscriminate localization cues, properly sized, yet the reproduced ambience of the space around the voice gives a clear sense of the size of the room. The degree of transparency, and hence detail retrieval, is astounding. But the amps never got strident, unless stridency was in the recording. This extraordinary transparency and expression of detail increases the retrieval and depth of tonality information as well. Things like the body of an acoustic base exhibited a most realistic “woodiness” when Stanley Clarke slapped the bass with his hand. Drum strikes exhibited tone and reverberation of the air that just sounded more like real, live drums. Vocals involving two or more singers clearly separated each singer so that you can clearly distinguish the number and location of each vocalist. Male and female duets are especially striking. In one recording during a particularly cacophonous climax, I heard a strained, almost howling male voice that before had never been distinct enough to separate from the wall of sound closing the piece. In other recordings, especially loud and complex rock music like one of Jeff Beck’s rowdier pieces, I clearly can hear the realistic sheen of cymbal work that previously did not escape as distinct elements during some of his band’s signature crescendos. Quieter works such as Miles’ “Kind of Blue” have never sounded better in my listening room. Bass is extremely well controlled, as you would expect. Nonetheless, it is important to understand these amps will reproduce everything that is fed to them, in extraordinary transparency. They will not romanticize the midrange, bloat the bass, obscure or soften the treble. If that is the sound you seek, look elsewhere, or rely upon the character of your speakers to provide those characteristics. But they will neither sound edgy or fatiguing, either, unless those qualities are in the signal they receive. These amps would make great tools to evaluate other gear, they are that transparent. They are not at all difficult to drive…my hybrid passive/active preamp has no issue driving them. But they are a little less sensitive than more typical amps. True passive preamps may not be the best match, but Leo can certainly advise on that matter. To sum, I am very impressed. These amps are giant killers. They run completely cool and are extraordinarily efficient. One of my ladder DACs gets relatively warm just idling. These amps have not felt warmer than ambient temp to the touch, even after playing for six hours straight. They replaced a beloved pure Class A amp in my home at roughly 2/3 the current retail cost. Highly recommended if you value neutrality, transparency and detail without edginess; accurate reproduction of the entire signal; and no apparent euphonic colorations. Finally, they should be able to drive just about anything out there short of something like a pair of Apogee Scintillas. But ask Leo if not certain…