Yep, a true "gem" indeed. After listening to it for a few weeks now, I love it even more. No grain, no harshness, just pure music that flows out of it. Seems to mate very well to many speakers (I tried 3 different pairs, Dynaudio, Sonus Faber, Magnepan). Really can't find any faults at all with it, to beat this one, you must go all the way up to the top and pay 8-10x the price (at the used prices it's selling for now).
Audio Research 100.2 amp
Why didn't this amp receive more attention when it was in production? I recently acquired a pre-owned 100.2 for my second system and was very impressed with it's performance. Much more pleasant sounding than many other solid state amps I have listened to with a very nice, grain/grunge free, almost tube-like midrange and excellent bass/treble. Musical, smooth, resolving without sounding etched or aggressive is a very good way to describe the overall sound of this amp. Anyone else cares to agree/disagree?