Guys, I really appreciate all the responses. I'm relatively new to high end hifi and I'm trying to educate myself. Yes, indeed my dealer wants me to trade my 100.2 and give him $500 for the D240. Labtec nailed it. I am looking for tube like sound and my dealer swears that the D240 is the most tube-like SS amp ever made. I auditoned the new JM Lab Electra 926's and 946's on that monsterous new Rogue amp. To make his point, he switched back and forth several times between the D240, a 200wpc Plinius (don't know the model #) and the Rogue. Of course the Rogue was the winner, but while the D240 didn't have quite the soundstage of the Rogue, it more than held its own. In comparison to the Plinius, it didn't have quite the "punch" but it was much more articulate and detailed. Now, there was one caviat that the dealer offered that I forgot list. He said that the D240 wouldn't have quite the "punch" of the 100.2, but he would throw in a hard wired Straightwire power cord (don't know that model # either but it was sky blue in color) that he said retails for about $300. Regardless, it sounds like I'd still be coming up with the short end of the stick. I agree with Tubegroover, market value should determine price point, not personal taste or preference. Besides, I'm more than pleased with the 100.2 and how it performs with the my B&W's. I just wasn't sure how the 100.2 would perform if I decided to upgrade to one of the JMLabs (which by the way sound spectacular!) Any thoughts are welcome. THANKS!
ARC 100.2 vs. D240?
My local high end dealer offered me a swap of my 100.2 plus $500 for a mint condition D240. I'm currently running a pair of B&W 640i's with an eye toward uprading to the JM Lab Electra 946. I also use an Aragon Soundstage pre-pro. I probably listen to 70% music (mostly acoustic jazz) and 30% movies. My listening room is an open floor plan that measures 20'x 30' with 10' ceilings. Which one would offer a more "tube like" sound? Is the the D240 a significant upgrade over the 100.2 or is my dealer full of it? Any advice or suggestions is greatly appreciated!