ASL 1003DT Integrated or Unico Hybrid Integrated

IMO, Unico would be a more useful move. ASL is very nice, but Unico is (as reviews and most folks' opinions say) a nice over-achiever.

I went from a Pathos Twin Towers to the Unico, in downsizing and downgrading my system. Although nothing has come close to the ultimate sound of the Pathos, I still find I enjoy music tremendously through the Unico.

I've never compared the Unico and ASL in my home, but have heard the ASL at a local dealer. It is very good, but not quite as dynamic, transparent and detailed as the Unico (based on my memory).

Another thought, though more expensive, would be the Belles 250i. $3k, but may be killer. I've never heard it. Or the Pathos Classic One. $2k, beautiful design.

My two cents. Good luck.

BTW, a follow up: since the Unico (and Belles and Pathos as well) is a hybrid, with just tubed input stage, the jump from SS to this would be lessened. Perhaps the better part of both worlds.....

stick with creek

What a coincidence. I am currently using an AQ-1003DT and it replaced a Unico. So I have extensive experience with both. I had them both on hand at the same time so I was able to compare them head to head. To me the Unico is a great amp. It combines the best of both worlds perfectly. You get the lushness and warmth of tubes and the bass and dynamics of ss. The ASL is exceptional for the money, actually both of them are but the ASL a little more so. I auditioned numberous tube integrateds before I settled on the ASL, including VTL, Rogue, and Cary. To me the ASL performed well enough against the big boys that I did not think they were worth 3x the price. I have used the ASL with Merlin TSM-M, wich cost almost 4x the price of the 1003, and they were never out of place. That combination was were magical. But do to financial reasons I had to sell the Merlins. I am now using Green Mountain Europas which also work well with the amp. Both amps are very well built. So why did I end up with the ASL instead of the Unico? Mainly because I value that last degree of warmth and lushness of the ASL over the extra bass and dynamics of the Unico. Also price played a huge factor. However I do miss the remote.

What speakers are you planning to use with the amp? If your speakers are easy to drive then both amps should do equally well, but if your speakers are a difficult load the Unico might be the way to go.

Let me know if you have any questions. Good luck.

I thought RJ advises more power for the Europas than the 1003 can deliver. Can you shed any light on this in terms of your listening room and spls? Or am I just mistaken?

The specs for the Europas say recommended power is 15 to 120 wpc. The 1003DT is well within that range. My room is 12 x 18 but one side is completely opened to the rest of the house which is 50 ft long. I listen at moderate volumes. It can drive them as loud I can bear with out clipping. I have used the amp with 87 db Merlin TSM-M and it did not have a problem driving them either.