Integrated Amplifiers

Great post! Is SAM actually mapped for the S1's now? Can you describe what it did sonically?


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Yes. SAM is mapped for the S1, B&W 802D, Wilson Sophia 3, and some French monitors I've never heard of. You can select them in the new online configurator.

When I first got the S1s I thought they lacked bass when used with the D170. As the S1s broke in the bass improved but I was still considering adding a sub.

With SAM I no longer want a sub. The most noticeable thing is the improvement in quantity and quality of the bass. The S1s being sealed always had a nice tight bass but with SAM it's a total improvement. I also notice an increase in space between the instruments on some recordings. You can toggle SAM on and off with the tone button on the remote so it's easy to compare.

The new firmware also provides an additional 30w to the 170 and give you the option of adding another to run mono block for a total of 400w.

If/when they add DSD and DLNA and I'm all set.

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That is so cool. Love the technology. Thanks for sharing.


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PA-60X from AM Audio.
Price is €19000 it's built like a tank, and will last forever.
No op-amps or line-transformers, only the best discrete parts are used.

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I would listen to this beauty, and if my ears were satisfied I would buy it and make it my reference.

Viva high-end integrated amps!
 
... i know a guy who is rich as rich can get. he loves music and we play alot of guitar together. he has about a million dollar worth of fine guitars all over his house, and he says listen to this song on cd before we try to play something and he puts it on a $179 aiwa all in one stereo and disconnects the speakers from the sides.lmao!!!! . i try to talk him into high end stereo for years and he could care less. just wants to play it.
to each his own in the music world.
good luck in your search!!!

Man, can I totally relate to this! Thank you for that real nice spin on another aspect of reality.
At the end the amount of happiness is proportional to our deep passion in life. ...Some' like that.
 
The Devialet stuff is very cool. I'm finding attention to power delivery and cords (& interconnects/digital cables etc.) are important with it though. Without a good supply of power it can tend towards harsh. Same goes for most equipment obviously, but recently testing a JR Continuum S2 against the Devialet it was apparent to me that the S2 was more forgiving, possibly why Raidho have used it for shows as it's a good reliable performer with less-than-good power supplies that you might typically find in a show environment, whereas the Devialets I've heard at a show have been a bit disappointing.
 
The Devialet stuff is very cool. I'm finding attention to power delivery and cords (& interconnects/digital cables etc.) are important with it though. Without a good supply of power it can tend towards harsh. Same goes for most equipment obviously, but recently testing a JR Continuum S2 against the Devialet it was apparent to me that the S2 was more forgiving, possibly why Raidho have used it for shows as it's a good reliable performer with less-than-good power supplies that you might typically find in a show environment, whereas the Devialets I've heard at a show have been a bit disappointing.


The Devialet stuff is indeed very cool. I found to get the best out of the Devialet 170 (auditioned with Raidho D2 speakers) the Devialet was very fussy about the power cord. The Devialet was very disappointing with stock and entry level power cords - but much improved with Ansuz Ceramic and Diamond. Interestingly the unit did not seem to care too much about the speakers cables.

As good as the Devialet was it did not seem terribly powerful and overall was not good enough to replace my Gryphon Diablo. I am now considering a Hegel H300.
 
Interesting Kiwi. It is does seem sensitive to power cords, and also requires a good digital cable if using a transport, otherwise that can add to the thinness/harshness. A Transparent Reference XL works very well in that respect though at a price. I once read a comment that due to the low output impedance, speaker cables don't make much difference. I feel they do make a noticeable difference but probably not as much as with other amps. It also benefits greatly from grounding boxes.
 
There seems to be a resurgence in the interest, and availability, of good quality mid-high power integrateds (like Hegel...). I'm a vintage guy myself and since I've got fairly efficient coaxial and 2-way speakers (speakers and drivers from the mid-50's thru the mid 80's); listen with my Kenwood KA 3500 (40w/ch) and my great sounding 65w/ch Onkyo A7 (just started to experiment with its Main-Ins and a circa-2000 line level tube preamp with my Marantz SA 8001 CD player: warm, detailed and oh so easy to listen to...). Mainly keep my integrateds for use with my JVC QLC A7 turntable since the phono sections are so sweet...
But if I had the cash, I'd more likely invest in a new integrated than go seperates.
 
Even better than Hegel and Electrocompaniet is Abrahamsen, IMO. There is currently a clearance sale and their brilliant amplifiers are sold for ridiculously low prices.
 
As you know Ralph, I loved the MF integrated that I tried.
The Nuvista is supposed to be amazing, I think David is getting one, And I look forward to hearing it !
 
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