Ayre AX-7e vs. Belles Reference 150A


Not exactly apples to oranges since it's integrated vs. separates, but I am currently using a Belles Ref150A V2 with Placette Passive Linestage fed by Havana DAC into Sonus Faber Cremona Auditors. Overall I like the sound very much and could live with this for a very long time, but it would be nice to consolidate to an integrated and also save a bit of cash. Would this be an upgrade, downgrade, or lateral, but different move?

There is so much about the Belles that I like -- the natural timbre, dynamics and decay, huge, open sound and soundstage, bass extension -- and I want to see if there something else that plays to the same strengths even more. I prefer things on the warmer side as you can probably tell by my choice of gear.
eugene81

Showing 3 responses by pubul57

Haven't seen an Aleph J listed since I sold mine 2-3 years ago - seems folks smarter than me hold on to them.
Of the three, the Pass gear is by far my preference, but you are talking about 30 watts there which may be an issue with some speakers. The J was almost as good as the XA30.5 with easy to drive speakers like my Merlins.
Yup, I think what you have right now is pretty darn good already, unless you go Pass Class A, you probably should stay put, your gear is first-rate.