Bait and switch?  Looking at the Hlly website and his eBay store is interesting - they have those Little Dot amps, but then Hlly-branded amps that look identical.  In the case of the Matrix, that would make it a clone of a clone (I'm speculating, of course, since as of now they only have the...

First off - I haven't used any of those, so I can't speak to them specifically.  However, when considering a vinyl playback system and specifically a phono preamp, the cartridge being used is very important - probably more important than the turntable itself, because it is the signal from the...

I have the M-Stage.  Neutral?  Accurate?  Yeah, I'd say so.  Since amps don't actually do anything on their own, their performance has to be taken in the context of a system - in my system the M-Stage let's the HD580s and DT880s sound like I expect them to - strengths and weaknesses.  I think...

I've had a variety of good stereo equipment over the years, and I've always preferred speakers to headphones if I could listen to either.  My first good stereo had a Superphon Revelation + pre, B&K EX442 amp, AR ES-1 turntable, Nak BX300 tapedeck, JSE Model 1 speakers (JSE used the same infinite...

I bought B-stock HD 580's way back in 2000.  As delivered, the headphones had a cutout in the left speaker.  It was caused by the cable not having a good connection.  I pulled the cables, carefully cleaned everything and reinstalled - no more problem.  I still have the phones and they still...

Olive makes a couple of interesting products that can be used together or independently.  The main server (complete with CD burner and large HD) is on the pricey side at over $1,500, though.  Haven't heard them, so no idea how good they sound.  http://www.olive.us/home.html   JB

The pre-amp outs do not mute when a headphone is plugged in.   JB

Think about going used!  For a preamp, I wouldn't hesitate to pick up a classic design from the early 90's or even 80's - there's just not much that goes wrong over time with these things.  For example, there's a Threshold Fet9 over on Audiogon right now for well under $1k that is probably at...

LOL - you are kidding about the efficiency of a Class A amp, right?  Class A's biggest inefficiencies are at low levels, where the output devices are biased with at least enough juice to develop half rated power - and if it's not developing half power at the speaker terminals, then any extra...

A couple of less obvious points in addition to the two already mentioned:   -  a receiver is built to a price point;  any phono stage is likely to be an afterthought much like the headphone jack.  Having said that, I was surprised by how good the phono stage of a budget Marantz integrated...

Quote: Like I said, I had that Marantz in my system for a month.  I know they claimed it could be switched to run class A up to 25 watts but I never believed that.  The heat sinking just didn't seem to be there to dissipate that much heat, and it didn't run hot enough (My 50wpc Threshold...

I recently bought one of these when my living situation changed (divorce, moving to an older apartment building with thin walls, etc.).  As a result, I have been selling off all my old stereo stuff (and it was some pretty nice stuff).  Turntable, integrated amp and speakers are all gone, along...

I really doubt you're going to find a truly class A amp, integrated or not, in the price range you seem to be looking in.  The closest I can think of are the low powered Monarchy Audio amps, but I have no idea if those are still in production or what Monarchy might be charging these days.  The...

Portal Audio Panache - what I'm using. If you're into the single ended tube sound, may not be your cup of tea. Powerful, with reserves that I don't think I've tapped into yet. Captures much of the midrange magic of my old LFD Mistral integrated (another SS integrated), but with better bass and...

Grounding issues can be caused by connecting equipment via analog connections - what do you have hooked up to your system? Have you tried disconnecting one piece at a time? I was able to resolve my hum problems by not connecting my TV to my stereo. JB edit: this article is very helpful in...