Integrated Amps

Just hooked up the new Hegel H160 integrated into the system yesterday. This is one of the most exciting integrated amps I've played with. While it has 150W per channel into 8 ohms vs the H300's 250W, that amount of power is going to be plenty for most people. However, the game-changer here is the Ethernet input. My computer and NAS are in another room with all my music on the NAS and my computer with a solid state drive running Jriver serving up the music with Ethernet going to the H160 as a renderer. Previously, I had the Ethernet going to an Oppo as a renderer and the digital out of the Oppo going to the Hegel H300. I've also tried the Bel Canto REFStream Ethernet Renderer which was fantastic and planned on putting one in the system. However, you can't beat the combo of what the H160 provides for the money. It's too early to tell where everything will settle in at once it is broken in. There's enough power on tap and great bass control. The DAC seems like it will probably be in a similar quality range to what was in the H300. However, using the Ethernet input definitely takes things up a notch. Then, the addition of their Apple Airplay for streaming TIDAL takes the cake. I was using an Android app called Bubble UpNp to stream TIDAL to my renderer, but their implementation of Apple Airplay with this device seems like a killer solution for TIDAL.

Anyways, I'm guessing that the performance I'll get at the end will be superior to what I was using with the H300 because of the inclusion of the Ethernet input on the H160. Very exciting times in audio these days.
 
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I use the Teac in my office which is a Wolf in Sheep clothing, as they make the Esoteric brand as well, very well made and sonically pretty amazing. On the more beefier side of things the MF KW-500 Int. Amp has been my go to Int. Amp and it makes any speaker sound good, sonically one of the better Int. Amps I have had in my system and I have had a ton of them.
 

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audionirvana said:
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I use the Teac in my office which is a Wolf in Sheep clothing, as they make the Esoteric brand as well, very well made and sonically pretty amazing. On the more beefier side of things the MF KW-500 Int. Amp has been my go to Int. Amp and it makes any speaker sound good, sonically one of the better Int. Amps I have had in my system and I have had a ton of them.
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One of the most musically compelling systems I have heard was the mf kw500 driving a pair of dynaudio special 25s. Magic


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Jax: I have owned older Nuvista gear, nice stuff.... I even owned the TriVista gear by MF.. Out of the bunch the KW-500 stood out, ironically I had a KW-500 sold it to a doctor and 4 years later with him barely using it he sold it back to me for $2200 bucks which was a steal. I am not letting it go again! ;)

Dpod4: I am with you, however a dead tie for me as far as systems go was the KW-500 Int. Amp and a Threshold T-800D along with a Threshold T2 pre/amp to this day two of the best equipment systems I have had.
 
audionirvana said:
Jax: I have owned older Nuvista gear, nice stuff.... I even owned the TriVista gear by MF.. Out of the bunch the KW-500 stood out, ironically I had a KW-500 sold it to a doctor and 4 years later with him barely using it he sold it back to me for $2200 bucks which was a steal. I am not letting it go again! ;)

Dpod4: I am with you, however a dead tie for me as far as systems go was the KW-500 Int. Amp and a Threshold T-800D along with a Threshold T2 pre/amp to this day two of the best equipment systems I have had.
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I heard the MF and dynaudios at a high end dealer in Seattle about 11-12 years ago. That sound and the sound from my teenage system (Maggie speakers driven by a modified Hafler amp) are two of the benchmark sounds I keep in my mind as reference points. I currently have a constellation amp driving Magicos which offers quite a bit of performance but at a much higher price point. That's one reason I remember the MF / Dynaudios ...performance to price was extreme.
 
Hi, need some help here. I have narrowed down to MF M6500i or the Hegel H300. Any opinion on both amps as the MF is about 1+k more expensive. Am.using a Kef LS50 but will upgrade in the future. Hence wants to get an amp with enough juice.

For the price, I can also consider the MF M6PRX or Job 250 mono with a pre.

What are your thoughts and recommendations?

I do have a Zanden amp and Airtight pre but looking for SS amps to pair with HT.
 
I am a long term MF fan (KW 500 & A1008 integrated's) who has recently become a Hegel addict (H80 & H160)

Hegel and MF voice differently and both are excellent units - personal preference should be your guide.

In my case I stream lot's of digital content and the onboard DAC in the Hegel is excellent - something to think about depending on your source components.

Good luck.
 
I had both in my system and felt the Hegel H300 just had way too much bass, but had great separation and huge deep 3D soundstage.. The MF was much leaner in the bass and not as 3D. The MF had more meat on the bones and seemed to be more toe tapping to me.

Man, tough call. What speakers are you looking to upgrade to? That may help the decision.


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I love my new Pass Labs INT-150. It's more revealing than my previous Marantz/Parasound combo. It might look a bit industrial, but I'd prefer they put the bulk of the effort into the sound and construction.

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