Integrated Amplifiers

Bob

It is only in the $2500 range, but only 12wpc, so not for the average speaker owner. While it may look and sound great, it wouldn't work with anything at my house.
 
You are correct Paul, I was referring to the Unison. The Gryphon was $15,000 when it was reviewed in 2008, so probably a bit higher now.
 
Jack said:
Bob

It is only in the $2500 range, but only 12wpc, so not for the average speaker owner. While it may look and sound great, it wouldn't work with anything at my house.
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Jack you will be very surprise with Class A 12 pure watts. I tried on my 87 db speakers and my Vienna Music speakers ( yes that monsters ) and drove them without any problem in fact it sounded so good.
 
To David, find the right balance where beyond a certain price point you pay more than just quality sound but also for the design, the casing, the material, the weight (goes with the material in some cases), the internal premium aircraft parts, the prestige, the name, the exclusivity, the rarity, the time to make and assemble, the small scale garage factory, the labour, the people, all type of people, and all that jazz.

Me I don't know where that balance truly stands, as no two audiophiles are alike and think alike. ...Perhaps it is five grands, or less, or perhaps it is ten grands, or more.
It is all so indefinitely hearing and pride dependent; no absolute scripture whatsoever. Here @ the Shark my guess, for the average person, is between $2,000 and $20,000 more or less. ...Another audio site and it's $1,000 or less, another and it's like here or more.
By the way, how many members here would pay more than $20K for an integratred amp? ...I'd say less than twenty.

Do a survey in the neighborhood where you mainly operate, of what the average person's income is. ...And then how many audiophiles (percentage) living in that area truly exist. Maybe 0.0000001%, at the very best?
 
I rather have a $5,000 system in nice treated room with $100 k worth of softwares vs $100 k system in bad room with few CDs or lp's
 
MrAcoustat said:
There are GOOD integrated amplifiers out there, since the move to a condo i had to scale down on my gear, here are a few integrated amplifiers that i have owned and the last one that i still own.

Bow Wazoo XL
View attachment 574

Grant Fidelity RITA-880
View attachment 575

Chord CPM-2600
View attachment 576
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MrAcoustat said:
Integrated Amplifiers that i would like to try in my system.

Jeff Rowland Concentra 2 = View attachment 577 - - - MBL-7008 = View attachment 578 - - - MBL-CD-51 = View attachment 579 - - -

McIntosh MA-7000 = View attachment 580 - - - McIntosh MA-6900 = View attachment 581 - - -
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AudioSalon said:
One of my favorite integrated amps was the Jadis DA60. I still have it but the NOS Genalex gold lions are long gone.


View attachment 735

View attachment 736


View attachment 737
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MrAcoustat said:
Yes the McIntosh MA-7000 is quite a unit and the ones that don't like it probably can't afford it.

View attachment 773
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Andre started this thread, and those above were the first few posts.
 
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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NorthStar said:
To David, find the right balance where beyond a certain price point you pay more than just quality sound but also for the design, the casing, the material, the weight (goes with the material in some cases), the internal premium aircraft parts, the prestige, the name, the exclusivity, the rarity, the time to make and assemble, the small scale garage factory, the labour, the people, all type of people, and all that jazz.

Me I don't know where that balance truly stands, as no two audiophiles are alike and think alike. ...Perhaps it is five grands, or less, or perhaps it is ten grands, or more.
It is all so indefinitely hearing and pride dependent; no absolute scripture whatsoever. Here @ the Shark my guess, for the average person, is between $2,000 and $20,000 more or less. ...Another audio site and it's $1,000 or less, another and it's like here or more.
By the way, how many members here would pay more than $20K for an integratred amp? ...I'd say less than twenty.

Do a survey in the neighborhood where you mainly operate, of what the average person's income is. ...And then how many audiophiles (percentage) living in that area truly exist. Maybe 0.0000001%, at the very best?
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Pretty much agree with what you noted, my budget for a integrated amp is $5,000 max which supports my retirement and my pension. Can I afford more, sure but I not trying to impress my rich neighbors that live in $500k to multi-million dollar homes. Do they care, nope. And I can tell you, from these neighbors I've spoken to they really don't care about audiophile equipment. They enjoy their 5.1 AVR sound system and their movie rooms with ceiling projectors and comfy chairs and their boats and cars. The only person I know that has upper end audio equipment is a golfer friend that I can call filthy rich ( another retired bells labs designer) and he has all McIntosh gear and they are feeding JBL Everest DD65000 speakers. Does the music sound good, sure but he enjoys my little 2 chl stereo system and my TT and my old Kef 104/2 speakers. Don't get me wrong, I admire those that enjoy their hobby and are willing to put down mega bucks on audio gear but most average people would rather invest wisely, prepare for retirement while keeping their wife somewhat happy. If your single go for it.
 
Well Devialet will announce the 400 soon, which is two 170s (or 200s now - confusing!) in master/slave, much like the 500 (now 800). Price will be about the same as a current 240.


Design Audio Video said:
I need to establish a reference integrated for my shop. My question is where should the ceiling be on price. I have a Devialet D500 but that's 29k. Also a Constellation Argo coming but it's 22k. It seems maybe 10k should be the limit. Lots of integrated gear out there for that amount and below. I would like to get several around that price and establish one model to compare other models. Past 10k and your getting close to some entry level separates. Any thoughts?
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CPP said:
Pretty much agree with what you noted, my budget for a integrated amp is $5,000 max which supports my retirement and my pension. Can I afford more, sure but I not trying to impress my rich neighbors that live in $500k to multi-million dollar homes. Do they care, nope. And I can tell you, from these neighbors I've spoken to they really don't care about audiophile equipment. They enjoy their 5.1 AVR sound system and their movie rooms with ceiling projectors and comfy chairs and their boats and cars. The only person I know that has upper end audio equipment is a golfer friend that I can call filthy rich ( another retired bells labs designer) and he has all McIntosh gear and they are feeding JBL Everest DD65000 speakers. Does the music sound good, sure but he enjoys my little 2 chl stereo system and my TT and my old Kef 104/2 speakers. Don't get me wrong, I admire those that enjoy their hobby and are willing to put down mega bucks on audio gear but most average people would rather invest wisely, prepare for retirement while keeping their wife somewhat happy. If your single go for it.
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i agree with your post, but for some people it is not about impressing the neighbors ,its what you want to hear and how you want to hear it. a budget is hard to set on that. but of course some people it is all about impressing the neighbors.lol.
i recently went down in stereo gear pricewise and up in musicality and enjoyment. sold a pair of amps and bought another pair and banked $1500. sold a preamp and bought a phonostage and free volume controller and banked another $1500. got a better sounding setup and i am enjoying the music more. its not in the money you spend its in the enjoyment you personally get out of it. i think you should listen to everything you can find and decide what you like best, then think about the money part. and for the $5k youd like to stay at there are a million good ones out there to listen to. and you might find you like a $2800 one better than the $5k ones your looking at.
im looking at an integrated that i know with some wheeling and dealing i could get for a little over $5k. of course im going to put a couple thou in tubes in it.lol. but its exactly what i want and i prefer it over all the similarly or higher priced integrateds that ive heard in the past. what i like is not for everyone.
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!!!
 
Rufus McDufus said:
Well Devialet will announce the 400 soon, which is two 170s (or 200s now - confusing!) in master/slave, much like the 500 (now 800). Price will be about the same as a current 240.
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I have a D170 and a pair of Magico S1s. I recently installed the new firmware and have the SAM file for the S1s activated. I couldn't be more happy with the results.

For the money I don't think you'll find a better option than the D170 if you like the sound of the Devialets. For less than 10k you get everything you need. I replaced a Simaudio integrated and phono pre, and an Ayre QB9 dac and the sound is much better. When you account for cables the price of the D170 is actually less than my old rig.
 
Great post! Is SAM actually mapped for the S1's now? Can you describe what it did sonically?


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Mike said:
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.

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


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