What home stereo amp?

[warnsey]

Well i feel it's time for the NAD to go. I'm getting the upgrade itch. I'm pretty sure i have narrowed it down to two but am open to suggestions.

Rotel RA-1070

Denon PMA-1500AE

Any thoughts?

 

[GreatDane]

Out of the 2 I'd go with the Rotel.

Gotta love that 5 year warranty...oh and they sound great for the money.

I also like Denon. I have a PMA-500V(pre/main amp) that's about 20 years old and still kicking.

 

[CRESCENDOPOWER]

Denon, and Rotel are a sideways move from NAD in audio performance. You might be getting more power, but that power certainly is not better. I would look into a mint used Primare, Creek, Portal Audio, Bryston, Krell etc., and step up in class.

 

[lini]

Creek's new EVO series integrated might be worth a try as well. Both the EVO series amp and the cdp are supposed to go for 750 Euro each over here.

Greetings from Hannover!

Manfred / lini

 

[GreatDane]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CRESCENDOPOWER Denon, and Rotel are a sideways move from NAD in audio performance. You might be getting more power, but that power certainly is not better. I would look into a mint used Primare, Creek, Portal Audio, Bryston, Krell etc., and step up in class.

Krell , Bryston...hell yes. How much you got

lol

 

[drarthurwells]

Buy a Chinese amp.


http://www.xs4all.nl/~viver/chinese%...sun%20v6i.html

There are Chinese amps that cost 1/10 of the price of famous branded amps but are exactly the same - came off of the same assembly line.

Hyperion sells a KT88 Class A amp for $3000 that cattylink.com sells for $300 plus shipping.

 

[CRESCENDOPOWER]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GreatDane Krell , Bryston...hell yes. How much you got lol

You could easily get a Krell KAV 400xi for $1600.00 USA used in mint condition. Older Krell integrateds go less than that. A Rotel RA-1070 lists for $1200.00 USA, and that is without taxes. The Krell is in another league.

The Bryston B60 used goes for less than $1000.00 USA

A mint condition/demo Porta Panche goes for $1295.00 USA

Primare, and Creek used are way under the $1200.00 USA mark.

 

[warnsey]

I'll look into the Krell. What makes them better than a Rotel? ie so if i'm not getting more power what other advantages do they have? (how am i getting better sound?)

 

[CRESCENDOPOWER]

Quote:

Originally Posted by warnsey I'll look into the Krell. What makes them better than a Rotel? ie so if i'm not getting more power what other advantages do they have? (how am i getting better sound?)

There are 3 watt per channel amplifiers that sound superior to 1000 watt per channel amps, it all depends on the circuit, and parts used.
The Krell is superior in every positive audiophile terminology you can think of like: resolution, transparency, detail, impact, slam, smoothness, imagining, speed, extending the frequency extremes, etc. But, the good thing about the Krell is not just that it sounds better, it also has a lot of power for an integrated amplifier.

 

[Duggeh]

*Duggehs usual and generic QUAD recommendation*

 

[warnsey]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CRESCENDOPOWER There are 3 watt per channel amplifiers that sound superior to 1000 watt per channel amps, it all depends on the circuit, and parts used. The Krell is superior in every positive audiophile terminology you can think of like: resolution, transparency, detail, impact, slam, smoothness, imagining, speed, extending the frequency extremes, etc. But, the good thing about the Krell is not just that it sounds better, it also has a lot of power for an integrated amplifier.

And here i was thinking Rotel was the bees knees. The Krell does look quite nice Bloody expense here in Aus though.

How does Creek rate? the Creek 5350SE looks quite nice.

 

[CRESCENDOPOWER]

Quote:

And here i was thinking Rotel was the bees knees.

Actually it is the bee’s knees in mid-fi land. Rotel is clearly one of the most respected, and reliable audio brands in its price range from a company that backs its products. I just think if you truly want an upgrade over what you have already you’ll need to step up in class.

Quote:

How does Creek rate? the Creek 5350SE looks quite nice.

It is not the “current” monster that some people have said it is in their reviews, but it is a very smart buy for someone powering a pair of smaller two-way bookshelf speakers that are properly placed. In comparison to Rotel you will hear no roughness in the upper midrange, better detail/clarity, and imaging characteristics unsurpassed by any mid-fi priced integrated.
A personal friend of mine drives a pair of PSB Stratus Mini Monitors with the Creek 5350SE, and absolutely loves it. Just like anything else in audio your mileage could vary however.

 

[DennyL]

From your sig it seems that you have the Grado 325i and AKG 501 headphones, but you don`t have a headphone amp, so are you looking for a stereo amp that will drive the headphones well? The K501`s are hard to drive will as they need a lot of power and voltage swing. I have K501`s and three mid-range stereo amps, and the results they produce with the K501`s is strikingly different (two are terrible and one is listenable). I have noticed that there are some stereo amps that claim to incorporate a headphone amp (eg Metis and Cronus). Maybe they would be worth looking into.

 

[pho_boi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by warnsey Well i feel it's time for the NAD to go. I'm getting the upgrade itch. I'm pretty sure i have narrowed it down to two but am open to suggestions. Rotel RA-1070 Denon PMA-1500AE Any thoughts?

those are both great amps, i've had the pleasure of auditioning both models and i preferred the rotel.

if you do decide to look into chinese brands, i can recommend the classic 6.10 or that korsun amp mentioned above.

there is a place in brisbane qld that imports a whole bunch of chinese gear and it might be worth giving them a visit if you live in brisbane.

 

[warnsey]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DennyL From your sig it seems that you have the Grado 325i and AKG 501 headphones, but you don`t have a headphone amp, so are you looking for a stereo amp that will drive the headphones well? The K501`s are hard to drive will as they need a lot of power and voltage swing. I have K501`s and three mid-range stereo amps, and the results they produce with the K501`s is strikingly different (two are terrible and one is listenable). I have noticed that there are some stereo amps that claim to incorporate a headphone amp (eg Metis and Cronus). Maybe they would be worth looking into.

To be honest i am loosing my interest in headphones. Obviously a headphone out would be great but not absolutley neccessary.

The Creek and Bryston are also looking interesting.

To many choices.