Belles Aria Integrated burn in time


I recently purchased a Belles Aria Integrated and so far couldn’t be more pleased. From both the manual and other postings, the burn in time seems to be about 200-250 hours. Aside from the sound, I love how quiet and cool it runs. When playing music at low volumes (baby in the house), I can’t detect any sound from the amp. In fact, I often leave it on with the mute button on and have never noticed it. 

I’m at roughly 6 hours, and think it’s absolutely fantastic. I was interested in some feedback as I keep listening. I’m very curious about what to expect, as at the moment I don’t see any room for improvement. Please keep in mind that this is the first time I’ve owned an amp of this caliber. The Belles has replaced my NAD T785 AV Receiver as I’m now only interested in analog stereo. 
msafrick

Showing 1 response by msafrick

Yesterday I had my first opportunity to really crank it up. For a few minutes I had it close the 3 o’clock position (definitely too loud) but mostly had it about 12-1, and I was continuously impressed, which is why I don’t see how it can get any better. In an attempt to be very critical, certain vocals sounded slightly different than expected, specifically Robert Plant. So I wasn’t sure if it’s the amp (and if so will change with use) or if I’ve never accurately heard his voice. The criticism is the higher end notes at times seemed slightly grainy (apologies as not sure how to accurately describe). At the risk of touching on a Wayne’s World joke, yes, it was Stairway!

Separately, Black by Pearl Jam blew me away. While I don’t know anything about the audio production, it was just awesome borderline perfect.

For the complete picture, I’m using a Pro-Ject debut carbon esprit sb source and Dali Ikon 2 speakers which I didn’t realize how nice the can really sound.