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Accuphase class A amps - going up the food chain from an A-48 to an A-80 or A-300?

Earlier this year I acquired Accuphase separates (C-2450 pre-amp, A-48 amp) and have been very happy with them.  

We have a decent resale market in Canada for Accuphase products, and I was able to snag a C-2900 pre-amp at a good price this past weekend.   We see mostly integrated amps on the resale market here, and current production separates are much harder to find.

The C-2900 sounds noticeably better than the C-2450, and it got me thinking about moving up from the "entry level" A-48 to either the mid-level A-80 or even the top of the line A-300 monoblocks (though size and expense are almost prohibitive).

Does anyone have any experience or advice about moving up from the A-48 to the A-80 or A-300 monoblocks?

BTW Accuphase pricing in Canada is significantly better than in the US - so much so that Canadian Accuphase dealers are not allowed to post prices online for fear of alerting US customers to how unfair pricing is in the US - and Canadian dealers are not allowed to ship to US customers. 

toronto416
jfrmusic
266 posts
 

@miguelderivero

I’m sure you mean the sound of the P4600 is a combination of sold state and tube and not that it is a hybrid. But I agree it sounded better to me than the MacIntosh SS sound although the M462 which is a fine amp less expensive but more than 50% heavier. Also I would not call the P4600 Entry Level at $14k. Accuphase only offers two A/B amplifiers. The 4600 (150W per channel) and the 7500 (300W per channel). Both of equal quality and performance except per channel watts.

lalitk's avatar
lalitk
5,443 posts
 

Entry Level is a subjective term. IME, every model in a brand lineup has that ‘house’ sound. Generally speaking, when you move up in the line, you get more of everything due to more freedom with implementation and parts selection. I own a Accuphase E-650, Class A - 30wpc which has been a game changer for me. When funds permits, I may move up to E-800 or separates like A-80 and C-2900.

Only you as an end user can decide whether moving up in a line up at a considerable expense is worth your investment. I know when I am ready to move up within Accuphase line up, I would want to audition those components before committing my $$$$.

miguelderivero
3 posts
 

Totally agree. Entry level is subjective but for Accuphase I believe the P-4600 is their entry level power amp together with the A-48 class a. From those lines it just goes up in price but I don't know how much better could be in sound quality vs price point.

toronto416 OP
224 posts
 

It looks like P-4600 is the class AB 'fraternal twin' of the class A A-48.  They are not really entry level as they build on a whole ladder of integrated amps below them, but they are the 'entry level' separates.

.  In my experience you always get more performance when you move up the food chain with Accuphase as I have experienced with the E-260, E-380, A-48, C-2450, and C-2900.

So I am wondering about the A-80 or A-300...

westcoastaudiophile
301 posts
 

Accuphase P4500/P4600/A48 are not entry level amps in any sense, rather lower max power brothers of the same family! All above amps use the same fist stage amp circuitry as high power A80/!00/300. As of P4600, it has a bit more class-A-region power range vs P4500, and somewhat higher damping factor.

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