Best bang for buck integrated amp for $500

Year and a half later. Did the OP find his $500 diamond? 

Follow up on my earlier post about the Brio R and Wharfedale Diamond 12.0.  The speakers were fairly new when I wrote my previous post.  It took them a very long time to fully break in. The treble is no longer “forward” and the presentation is plenty “airy”.  The performance envelope for this combination is large, and can really rock.  I tried with high resolution material from a Chord QuteHD DAC and it has remarkable PRAT.

Thanks for sharing. I would say you are fortunate regarding your noise floor with the Brio. When I contacted Rega, the higher noise floor was a known issue due to the compact size of unit and the only fix was to send the unit to an authorized dealer to perform an adjustment. The adjustment was said to reduce the noise floor but also reduce sound quality as I believe they said they would be reducing the bias. 

I want to hear the NAD D3045 in my system. I have the NAD D3020 V2 in my family room. It was chosen for its size, looks, and features, but it is very meaty sounding and avoids the typical pitfalls of Class D amps under $1000.   

@seanheis1 I realize this is a latent thread, but I would like to offer an opinion on the Rega R for the record. I owned a couple of the small amps you list above - the Rega Brio R and the Audioengine N22, plus the NAD D 3045.

I generally agree with your evaluation of the Audioengine, nice little amp for the money - but no grunt. The NAD D 3045 is a typically (for NAD) smooth sounding amp with an incredible amount of features crammed into it.

I am currently using the first iteration Brio R in my desktop office system with JRiver on a PC and an Audioquest Drangonfly Red as the source, upper entry level Audioquest cabling throughout, and Wharfedale Diamond 12.0 speakers in near field. The Brio has remarkable PRAT and engagement. The treble is somewhat forward but not the last word in airiness. Midrange tone is "near perfect", and soundstage on the Wharfedales in near field is spot on. The bass that the Brio R produces in these little speakers is very good, I would go so far as to say "very engaging", down to their modest limit.

I would have to question the noise issue you bring up with the Brio R. It is dead silent in my system. I can turn the volume to 100% with the source paused and there is zero sound coming out of the speakers, nada, even with my ear right next to the drivers. My system is set up in a commercial office building that has very noisy power. I use an inexpensive Belken power conditioner and run the Brio off the "Amp" outlet of the conditioner. Perhaps that is the difference.

And a word about power cables. The Rega R comes with an 18 guage $5 "appliance quality" AC cable. I swapped this out immediately for a 12 gauge cable I assembled from the "very best" Chinese parts and it made a huge difference with the Brio R. More of everything good, especially bass loudness, speed and impact. YMMV

-kn

I have 2 burson V5I  op amps already, could be a good thing, im looking into it.

Thanks

The Burson took a price hike to 799? A review stated priced from $544, that’s quite a recent hike unless I’m missing something?

$544 is without the OP Amp upgrade or aluminum stand. $744 is fully loaded if you buy from Burson direct. 

Yes no DAC or variable outputs. I hi level connect a REL. 

Because i have a only ok amp budget ?.  The Burson sounds interesting i may look into that amp.  

When your budget is limited you limit your choices for sure, maybe i need to save up more money and up my budget. 

Im not saying the Rega IO was bad at all, it was quite good, just lacking in low end in MY OPINION, everything else sounded very good.  I dont want to buy a sub, im in a very small room and dont really want to go the sub route.  Maybe bigger speakers front ported would have gave me more bass, im limited how far i can come off the wall on a desk.  I dont have a ideal or even close to ideal room and space to setup.

Im finding maybe i need a good headphone amp and call it a day, and when i move i will look for a larger more friendly audio room.  Trust me my box of room sucks for audio, well amp and speaker wise.

Why did you buy two okay amps instead of spending the total on one good amp? 

I took a look at the Burson Funk and if one needed an amp for primarily headphones but wanted speaker capability it could be a good option. 45/35 watts at 4/8 ohms respectively, while my amp is about 60/35 watts for speakers but hasn’t the output for headsets as the Burson. It does add preouts and a MM input, as well as a basic USB, plus two RCA inputs for less.

The Burson took a price hike to 799? A review stated priced from $544, that’s quite a recent hike unless I’m missing something?

could it be the wistling tea kettles themselves?

Former owner of many compact amps. Here is my compact amp ranking.

1. Burson Funk with Vivid OP amp upgrade - Great bass, warmth, and clarity. This amp is a unicorn.
2. Rega Brio R - Exciting forward sound, unrefined treble, high noise floor, good tone...enjoyable. 
3. Emotiva Bass X 100 - Great build and power for the money. Average across the board for sound...pretty neutral sounding. Brio R has better tone and is just more engaging.   
4. Audioengine N22 - Good mids and pleasant treble. weak bass. warmer timbre. sound lacks dimension, body, and bite.
5. Parasound Zamp V.3 - Tonally cool. Felt like much less than 45 watts. Bad harmonics. 
6. Ice Power 125ASX2 - Sounded like bad Class D. Great bass and bass grip. Mids and treble were very unnatural. thin, cool, dry sounding amp. Would be good for home theatre. 

I have moved on from Rega IO, i dont think im jumping the gun.  Way harder than i thought it would be.  Looking at other options.

I've carefully read and re-read your posts regarding your experience with the IO.  Not sure, but doesn't bass need a bit of room to fully spread out?  If your up close to the speakers as in a desktop setup, it might sound like less bass than if you are further away.  The upper mids and highs might be grabbing your attention more than the bass, perhaps?
The reviews from alpha-audio.net state this about both the E40 and the Io:
Keces E40: What immediately strikes you is the exceptional low-end that this amplifier sends through our speaker. We have seldom heard so much power and control from such a small box. The Rega Brio is the closest but the Keces E40 goes far beyond… Bizarre. A lot of modern monitors can use a kick in the butt, but of course it’s important to keep an eye on them. With our little Cabasse Surf mini-monitors it was sometimes too much of a good thing. 
Rega IO: Coincidentally, we ourselves have a fine, modest amplifier in our listening room! It’s the Keces E40 (599 euros) which, as its name suggests, has 40 watts in class A / B on board and also performs a bit above its level. It even delivers some decent watts in pure class A. And it offers, besides a phono stage, also a USB dac. So there are more similarities than differences between both amplifiers. But in terms of sound we notice some nuances here and there. The io has a more powerful bass and is a bit more playful than the Keces. The Keces is a bit more balanced to our feeling but a bit less transparent. Choices, choices, choices. 
I know how most of us feel about reviews, alpha audio says the Keces e40 goes beyond the Brio but says the IO has more bass than the Keces but suggests it's less than the Brio?  Kind of doesn't make sense.
The Keces has some kick like no other amp I've tried under a grand has but it's also smooth. I think the IO adds a bit to the upper mids and treble which if not balanced with the lower mids and bass will stand out to much so all you'll focus on is the brightness/clarity at the expense of bass (SoundArtisit SA-200A did that, way too bright in my system).
Are you jumping the gun selling off the equipment too soon because you are frustrated?  I might have jumped on the Triangles but I have the Zetas which have a titanium tweeter.  Not sure about the softdome.
As to the amp, I am very tempted.  It may give a bit more aire on the upper mids and treble but if the energy is too much, it might overshadow the lows. The Keces doesn't have quite the aire of the Emotiva A400z which was way more powerful than the BasX A100 but I liked the high frequency extenstion, but overall it didn't sound like a higher end product. The lows were a bit less, less defined and overall the SS was very 2 dimensional.
Maybe your jumping the gun.  Give it time for your brain to adjust too.  Unless you just hate your system, keeping it intact will allow you focus on what you like or need and when you do get something else, the comparisons will be more useful when you swap equipment in and out. 

Something to think about as I know how frustrating one can get from experience regarding audio.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

audiomike,

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

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.

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. 

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.

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 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.

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!

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

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 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.

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.

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.

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

Creek

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.

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

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 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 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.

Jolida 502 if you want to try tubes👍

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.

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.

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.

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

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

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.

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

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......