[jopi]

Hello everybody,

I'm trying to find a one-box solution for the living room.

Must Have:
* Good sound (haha)
* Enough power to drive AKG K1000 and regular speakers
* Decent headphone circuit for regular phones
* Built-in phono stage
* Easy to use
* Kid proof, no boiling hot surfaces, no exposed tubes, etc.
* Under $2,000

Nice to Have:
* Great sound (haha)
* Moving coil phono stage
* Remote control
* Dual speaker posts with speaker selector (to switch between speakers and K1000 phones)
* built-in tuner
* Under $1,500

 

[mkmelt]

Your system requirements can be met by puchasing used, but not abused, vintage audio gear.

You can search this forum for "vintage audio" and "Marantz", and learn all you need to know about what to look for in a nice vintage integrated amplifier or receiver.

What you won't get with a vintage unit:

- Remote control
- Digital Dolby anything
- Radio station tuner presets (if a receiver)


What you will get:

- True FTC mandated RMS power specs, not the laughable peak power ratings advertised for today's consumer audio gear.
- Phono stage preamplification built in
- Multiple speaker switching, typically two sets
- Headphone output coupled to the power amplifier, capable of driving Sennheiser HD-580s or 600s, and even AKG K1000s very well, with plenty of gain (volume).
- Money still in your pocket, as you won't have to spend a fraction of the $2K you have budgeted.

A nice vintage Marantz receiver capable of driving speakers in your living room louder than you will probably ever listen, and sound terrific driving any dynamic headphone too, should cost less than $300. Even less if you choose one of the medium power units (some believe these sound best of all the vintage Marantz units).

 

[MacDEF]

An older NAD amp is exactly what you're looking for. Even something like the venerable 304 would work great (and be less than $300!), but one of the better models could be had for not a lot more, but well under your price limits.

NAD's older amps were known for having excellent phono stages in addition to being great amps.

 

[tanfenton]

Harman-Kardon A-670 Solid-State Integrated Amplifier (ca. 1979)

This amplifier meets these qualifiers:

1. Good sound (one of the few pieces that has stayed with me from the '70s)
2. Enough power to drive AKG K-1000 and regular speakers (60 WPC)
3. Decent headphone circuit for regular phones
4. Built-in phono stage
5. Easy to use
6. Kid proof, no boiling hot surfaces, no exposed tubes, etc.
7. Under $2,000 (try under $120)

NGF

 

[peter braun]

What kind of speakers are you planning to drive? The headphone out requirement is kind of hard to come by with many new integrated amps. Why don't you spend $1000-1500 on a integrated amp, and spend the remaining money on a head-amp? Or you might want to look into an older McIntosh integrated or reciever, one of those should work quite nicely.

 

[daycart1]

More suggestions to add to the good ones above. I don't think you'll find an integrated in your price range with both a decent headphone jack and an MC phono stage. Vintage integrateds will have an MM phono input.

The current Stereophile has a review of the new MF A3.2 It has a decent MM/MC stage and lots of power, but no head jack. There have been recent reviews in S'phile of similar integrateds (e.g. the Creek 55xx).

I still like my Linn Classik which has plenty of power (less than the MF), a decent head jack, AND a really good tuner AND a nice CD player. All in a small box and probably dirt cheap NIB now that there is a HT version.

I hope you're not giving up on your other tubes!

 

[peter braun]

Quote:

The current Stereophile has a review of the new MF A3.2 It has a decent MM/MC stage and lots of power, but no head jack

I auditioned the MF3.2 about two weeks ago and it definitely has plenty of power. Although we went in an alternative direction, I would highly recommend the piece to anyone in the market. At around fifteen hundred dollars you would still have enough money left over to buy lets say, a Corda HA-1.

 

[lini]

What about the Marantz PM8000? It's a nice sounding classical amp design with all the usual features - even including switchable class A mode. And it's only ~ 500 Euro over here. Or maybe the new and more expensive PM17 MkII m?

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini

 

[evilcthul]

Try the Portal Panache:

http://www.portalaudio.com/portal_flash_interface.html

It's meant to have a killer headphone output as well as be fully capable of driving K 1000s etc.

 

[sliberman]

Maybe a 2nd hand Audiolab 8000A?

http://www.artech-electronics.com/us...000amkiii.html

It has most of the features you request. Does not have remote.

 

[jopi]

Thanks for all the responses so far.

I must say you guys are worse than my wife's friends when they go out shopping.

Vintage gear is pretty much out. For the living room I need something very family friendly, no tweaks, no broken anythings, no customer service issue within years of operation.
It's also a must that I can listen to the amp before I buy it, even if that means, it'll cost me more.

No daycart, I'm not going to get rid of my tubes, in fact those may be the show stopper. I just dropped by an audio store yesterday after work and listened to a Myryad integrated amp. Of course it was with speakers and sources I didn't know, but it doesn't even come close to my tube stuff with the AKGs.

I was hoping I could find an amp that's getting close to my Bottlehead gear so that I can sit in the living room instead of the family room for listening sometimes. I'll drag my AKGs out to the stores one of these days and see how that goes.

Another option is a longer cable to the headphones. I'd probably need between 15 and 20 feet from my analog rig to the nearest sofa in the living room.

 

[kentamcolin]

Consider a Fisher 400-X. Yes it is vintage, but it is a completely restored and updated all tube receiver for $900 @ www.2baudio.com. I have one on order that I should receive in a few weeks, and Paul is an intelligent and very nice guy. I'm not sure if this unit comes with the wood cabinet, but they are regularly available on ebay for around $75, and would keep little hands from danger.

One box solution with tubes might be hard to find if it's not vintage. If your willing to consider SS, how about a Krell or recent McIntosh receiver? Quality should be awesome, they look fantastic and the price is within your budget. I would love to have any of these:

http://cgi.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cl.p...cvr&1052930059

http://www4.head-fi.org/forums/newre...threadid=29414

http://cgi.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cl.p...cvr&1053275789

 

[Andrew Pielet]

Linn Majik, yet I haven't heard the Headphone out. The integrated itself is sweet. Get a Genki and you will be set for a long long time.

http://www.tnt-audio.com/ampli/majike.html

 

[daycart1]

Quote:

Originally posted by Andrew Pielet Linn Majik, yet I haven't heard the Headphone out. The integrated itself is sweet. Get a Genki and you will be set for a long long time. http://www.tnt-audio.com/ampli/majike.html

I've heard the Majik and it does sound nice. But I think the Classik is basically Majik (with some more power) + Genki + tuner; and probably goes for about the same price as the Majik alone now.

 

[TimSchirmer]

Try something from Conrad Johnson's line.