Best bang for buck integrated amp for $500

IMHO the Rega IO is a much better sounding amp than the Brio. It punches way above its price point. You should touch base with JohnnyR at the Audio Connection

That’s super interesting @joey54 can you elaborate?

Would highly recommend the Music Hall 15.3a.  Here's a review of it: https://www.soundstagehifi.com/index.php/system-one/1530-high-value-surprise-the-music-hall-a15-3-in...  

It's a fantastic integrated - I had it in a simple system, but I tried it out in my main system.  I was amazed by the sound quality - clear, fluid, with a touch of warmth.  It's $549 new, so not much over your budget, and they do come up used, so keep an eye out.  I liked it better than the Rega Brio.

Aren't the io and the Brio the same amp just less power is there that much sound difference? I'll have to take a look into that.

They are not the amp but you should listen for yourself. If that isn’t possible call John Rutan to have him explain the difference. Good Luck!

Okay because there's one on eBay the io for $450 and I spoke with the guy he owns a stereo store and he told me it's a decent amp it's not a kick-ass amp he says it's good but it's not great.

Opinions are going to probably vary from shop to shop to me the io just seemed a little on the underpowered side.

The nice thing about buying used is that you can try it and sell it if you don’t like it for little or no cost. 
Last time I went down this road I bought 4 amps (over about 6 months) and sold 3. 

Check out previous listing prices on hifi shark to determine fair market value. 

So I spoke to John over at audio connection in New Jersey somebody here recommended that guy loves the io said it destroys the Brio and he said 30 Watts for my situation is plenty he said this thing is a little gem the IO now he's got me rethinking I may go with the io.

He told me oh I'm not trying to sell you nothing I just love this amp but then he's asking me for a $50 deposit.  There's somebody selling one on eBay for $450 and it's been there quite a while nobody's even buying it and they all goes for $600 the guy that's selling on eBay just says nobody wants them in his shop don't know what to think.

NAD 356BE???

NAD 356BE looks nice.

Audio Mike,
You are about to blow it .I truly don’t care if you buy one from us.
We have matched it with Proacs, Vandersteens,1CI, VLRs and VLR CTs absolutely fantastik
What if the fellow that told you the Rega IO is only a good amp doesn't know a great amp if it bites him in the ass?
You have an 2 way easy drive pair of speakers and this amps is well more sophisticated then the above or what most really know in your application and beyond.
I would jump on the E bay deal if you can scrape up the funds Best Johnny R

Thank you for the phone call today Johnny I appreciate it I appreciate your insights into the io everybody's got an opinion you seem very enthusiastic about it some people aren't so enthusiastic so some people are going to love some amp some people ain't going to love them.

Yeah maybe the guy on eBay doesn't know what he's talking about then again maybe he does like I said everybody's got an opinion that's what makes the world go round.

Yeah I'll probably have to scrape some more money together before I can make a purchase thanks again.

And one other thing Johnny I never said I wasn't buying it from you just didn't have the money available on my card at the time still unsure really of what amp I want but the io is definitely in the top running thanks again.

you do realize the best amp in the world will generate a super wide variety of opinions.....cars, shotguns, wine, boats, etc.... all the same.

My advice is build a trusting relationship with a solid dealer. Nothing wrong w used just think about their time......this reminds me, about time to buy Johnny lunch.....

enjoy the music......

Can anyone detail some differences in the presentation between the IO and the Brio?

Well guys I bit the bullet and I bought the rega IO got to smoke and deal on it got like 10 hours of use I paid $450 for it .  Basically it's brand new remote control box warranty everything that way if I don't like it I can turn around and flip it maybe only lose $50 off of it.

Thank you to everybody for their advice who knows I may return to this thread if I don't like this amp although I can't find one bad review on it.  Should be here next week I'll let you guys know my impressions.

That's a very well regarded amp so should do nicely.

Well specially I got it for $450 I don't think I can go wrong.

The Triangle Bro 3 responds well to both class D and class AB. There are alot of class D amps coming out of China under $500 and some match up with their respective dacs. For class AB, buying used, an NAD or the Rega IO are also choices.
When I was looking for a small form factor class AB amp I came across the Keces E40 which was reviewed by Soundnews, so you can look up his take. I concur with his findings. The Keces E40 is slightly more powerful, has the same connections as the IO and adds a usb dac (not that important to me) but also a pre out for a sub or amp connection.
Compared to other amps I have tried, including an Emotiva A400z, it hands down sounded better. The emotiva added more wispy highs but the lows, mids and highs of the Keces are full bodied , and well fleshed out, and has better depth and separation. Bass and mid bass are tight. Made in Taiwan, not the ROC if that’s important. And has great looks. Unfortunately, it is a bit over your $500 budget at $630.
I havn’t heard the IO but it is also well regarded for $600.

But, the Triangle Bros will sound great on class D amps as well. I have the Focal 807w and Triangle Zetas. My cheaper class D didn’t bring the best in the Focals but the Keces sounds as good on the Focals as my Hegel. In fact it sounds alot like it at low to moderate volumes which is where I listen. 

Class D and class AB sound great on the Triangles. But the Keces makes them sound better for me but I could easily go with class D on them. Not so with the Focals, they need the punch of a solid class D.Anyone else hear the Keces e40?... let us know your thoughts.

The Keces Audio amp looks very interesting I think the DAC inside sucks and they should have put a better deck in it but most people have their own dac.

It gets very good reviews and it's pretty sweet looking I wish I would have new about that earlier it's got more power than the io too.  I would love to hear it.

Musical Fidelity a3.2 Integrated Amplifier.  120wpc, built like a tank.  Excellent phono stage, transparent and clean sounding overall.   $500 is the sweet spot in price for this model.  I have used one in my computer system for a long time.  It is transparent enough for me to hear differences when changing other components connected to it.

Jolida 502 if you want to try tubes👍

I would look for an integrated amp with a minimum of 100 watts with those speakers. The amp that comes to my mind is a little out of your budget, but the Outlaw 2160 will fit your needs. It a Stereophile recommended integrated amp and has plenty of power and tone control, and if you like the retro look, it a beauty to look at. You can also look at their website for B stock 2160 Retro amp.  Good luck on your search.

You know what I love that outlaw amp I don't think they make it anymore you have to try to find one used I've heard a lot of good things about that and I love that retro look.  I actually forgot all about that amp.

Why are you saying I need a hundred watts of power to drive those speakers the aisle that only has 30 watts is plenty so I'm getting a mixed bag of what people are telling me.

I owned the Rega Brio R.

1. High noise floor so a poor choice for a desk unless you don't mind tweeter hiss when nothing is playing.

2.  Upper mids/lower treble are a bit boosted...giving it a fun and lively sound (toes tapping). Tone/timbre is very good. 

3. Treble is a bit coarse and unrefined, even for a $1000 amp.

4. A great value at UK prices...600 pounds 

You can’t afford a tube amp. Nothing costs $500. Get a clue. 

Rega Brio. I have been using the latest version ever since it came out with my ProAc Tablette 10 Signature in my second system. Never had the urge to try something else.

Creek

Creek 4330R is a great budget integrated for under $500. Same with Audio Refinement Complete integrated. 

Well my rega IO is on the way, but while I'm waiting I went out and bought myself a Cambridge audio axr 85.  Got it all hooked up sounds okay sounded way different in my emotiva amp this amp is definitely on the warm side.  I didn't like it at first it's actually starting to grow on me and sounds pretty damn good for $400.

It has just absolutely amazing mids vocals are crazy good it's got very well controlled and tight base I don't care for the highs that much they're a little rolled off.  So I'm going to wait for the io to show up and see how the io compares to this I'm sure the iOS probably better but I want to hear them side by side and then one of them is going to become my keeper.

I have to say im loving having 85 watts at hand for my Triangles Boreas, wow they love power.  Now im afraid that Rega IO is going to be very underpowered.

Im liking this Axr 85 its nice, its has grown on me over the last 3 days.  I will say the Rega is going to have to really be something special for me to keep it.  Its going to have to wow me and be able to have some balls behind it.

I had Triangle Titus for many years. They did fine with most any amp but also liked a bit more power and current still to perform best. Most speakers do.

THing is some will prefer to hear the sound of their amps more than what speakers are capable of especially if a smaller tube amp like a SET. Not me. I want to max out performance. That usually means do NOT drive the amp any harder than necessary. That is the only way to know what a setup is capable of. If something else sounds better (also maxed out) similarly at that point, so be it.


Maxing out performance with a low power amp in most cases means the choice of speakers suited for that will be very limited and/or a powered sub is needed to fill in the low octaves and maybe offload work..


SO be it if so. Just know what you are getting into and why. It’s all good if one pays attention to the fundamentals. No amount of tweaking can max out performance if fundamentals are not addressed first.


You can easily find yourself in tweaking h-ll which some may actually consider heaven. Different strokes.

You know what I'm thinking is that the Rega IO it's probably going to sound better than my Cambridge 30 watts is 30 Watts I know it varies from amp to amp and it could play louder than it seems for 30 Watts but it ain't going to match the 85 Watts I got in my Cambridge I'm just thinking that 30 watts is going to be underpowered even for my little room I'm in.

And then there's the part where I don't know how well my speakers are going to match up with the io but I could tell you I've turned up the dial on my Cambridge quite a bit and they just scale so much better with power that's why I'm thinking the io is not going to have enough balls behind it.

I’m guessing the Rega will bring a clarity, openness, and toe tapping rhythm to your setup. Let us know how you go!

I can personally vouch for the Cambridge Audio AXR100.  It is actually the best integrated/amp I have ever owned.  I'm surprised at the low price; I believe it must have been designed so good by accident as people say it is better than Cambridge's more expensive amps.   I have it paired with Tekton Lores and the combination is other worldly.   You can find a lot of rave reviews on YouTube.

Best!

Well i got the Rega today and here are my first impressions. There is way more clarity, openness, loads more detail, more soundstage. Im am totally blown away buy the power, the kick this amp has, i mean im at 9 oclock and its blasting loud, the cambridge i had to go much higher, but it has 85 watts. The warmth of the cambridge is gone, the slaming bass of the cambridge is gone with the Rega.

I have to say im still checking it out, there 2 totally different sounds completly. I can say i miss the bass of the cambridge already, and that warmth. The Rega is so clear and defined and open, hmmmmmm tough call, need days of hearing both to decide, but its not a easy choice..  I was hoping the Rega would just destroy the cambridge and make it easy, but no.

Well guys it's come down to trying to decide between my two amps.  Things that I do and don't like about the Riga IO so far.  The biggest Plus I think is if it's on my desktop I love that it seems like it's built very well very quality made good connectors on it and a surprising amount of power for only 30 Watts I think that's the most shocking thing about it to me.  Things I don't like I don't like the volume knob it's really hard to turn it doesn't have an indicator on it it has a notch in it but you can't see it because it's black like the knob the numbers on the front that tell you what input your on you can't even see the numbers Hardly they're so small and they're not well defined.  

I think my biggest gripe so far the thing I just don't know if I'm going to going to be able to get past to keep this amp is it has no Bass the bass that it has is good base but it doesn't have low in grunt it doesn't it's just lacking base and it has no sub out.  Don't get me wrong I'm not a bass head but I do like Bass the io just seems seriously lacking.  On the other hand the Cambridge audio axr 85 has got pounding good bass.  What it is I want to take things from the Cambridge audio and put them into the Rega IO you can't do that I can't keep buying amps and shipping them back until I find the amp I want it's too expensive in return shipping.

I would have to say out of the emotiva bass x a100 the Cambridge audio axr 85 and the io I would say the best one I've heard so far believe it or not is the emotiva.  I got a couple days off of work I'm going to switch back and forth between the Cambridge and the io for 2 days off and decide which one I want if the io had a sub out it would be over with I wouldn't even be having this conversation because I could add a sub.

Well,it seems you like the sonics of the IO best. You can use a subwoofer via speaker outputs. The built in amplifiers have very high input impedance such that the amp doesn't 'see' an increased load. 

Check out the sub threads here on AG.

I’d say first off - you’ll have to let the IO run in for at least a week. Let those transistors settle down after shipping and everything burn in. Listen to it for a week or 2 and then switch back and see what you think. I’d expect the bass to open up for you as well. Especially since you like the tone and clarity. 

Okay I'll try that but I'm not a big believer in burning on amplifiers speakers yeah because there's moving parts but transistors heating up and cooling down I'll give it a try but I'm not a big believer in it.

I do like the sound of the io it's just lacking base I really wasn't planning on having to add a sub but we'll see I'll give it a little more time.

audiomike,

Please let us know how you get on with the IO.
Curious if the sound improves after  break-in.

I'll let you know if the sound changes but I won't hold my breath because I highly doubt it's going to change it is what it is.

Been running my Rega IO for hours and hours and it had 15 hours on it when i bought it.  I think the sound is what it is now it aint changing.

I like it for the most part, is it perfect no, but no amp is.  It has little things that could use improving as far as function goes.

The sound is good, do i think it could be better yes, am i going to say this is a fantastic amp, no im not.  Im going to say its very good, but not great.  Like i said before it lacks bottom end  to me, thats my opinion on it, your view may vary.  There is bass of course and what bass it does produce is good and tight and works, theres just not enough of it.

Im searching for a sub to add, and no its not my Triangle speakers cause with other amps my Triangles have very very good bass, its the Rega.  I dont want to sell the Rega and lose money and keep playing the search for amp game.  I think adding a sub will address my issues, cause the mid range and treble are very good.

I will live with the small issues i have with function, like cant read the numbers hardly to tell what setting your on, dont like the on/off button, the volume dial very hard to turn.  I can overcome those things, the amp is a little blah looking, i can deal with it. Love it fits on my desk and its small footprint, it has good very shocked power for only 35 watts.  I am yet to try out the headphone jack, i have heard its good, i sure hope so.

I just realize trying different amps how much they vary between differant brands, i will say in my getting the Triangles Bro 2s speakers the best amp pairing so far is the Emotiva Basx A100.  I sold it cause the headphone output sucked and i thought i could improve on it as far as sound, and now going down the audiophile rabbit hole.  Im done sending amps back and losing money on return shipping chasing a perfect sound, im over it, i will keep the Rega IO.  Is there a better amp out there that could fit on my desk or small footprint and out perform the Rega, im sure there is.  Its time to content with what i have and enjoy it, im adding a sub and im done.

I thank all of you for your suggestions and input and helping me decide.

Thanks for sharing your experience, audiomike!

I've read some good things about that amp and it looks like it's pretty incredible value for money wise, but yeah, you can hardly expect miracles at that price point.

I wondered how the Rega IO would compare to the Keces E40 I have. Essentially the Keces outputs similar watts but a measurement I found showed at a fairly nice distortion curve. It is also stated to be able to output up to 15 amps which if true shows some decent design.
I find its’ bass output substantial, tight and fairly layered. The stage depth isn’t flat, there some dimensional to it. I think you stated the dac wasn’t up to par and I cannot attest to that however one reviewer found it quite capable and competitive as to audio quality even though it doesn’t do more than cd quality. Same with the phono stage, ancillary but capable. Plus, it has a pre out.
The sound quality is what I was apprehensive about because there are no returns on the purchase. But the Soundnews review was IMO, accurate. It doesn’t quite give those wispy, super airy highs but the highs that are produced are musical and have body/weight to them.

The tonality reminds me of my Hegel h160 to the point that if I were to AB test both amps for someone not familiar with them, they probably couldn’t tell the difference.

Still, someone will eventually do a comparison of these smaller amps. If you listen at moderate volumes, you may find you’ve found a unicorn.

Well guys i have decided to part with the REGA IO, i have listed if for sale on ebay.  Im moving on from this amp if your interested in buy send me a message.  It like new no more than 20 hours on it, no marks, scratches and comes with box and remote.