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Best Value in Used Bryston Amps and Monoblocks

As a long time fan of Magnepan's, I have always wanted to try Bryston amps, especially their monoblocks which are rumoured to be a very good match for my speakers, and have also been recommended by Magneplanar over the years, albeit off the record.

What I can't figure out, however, is the logic to the Bryston product line, where there is value in the used market, or which version or vintage I might buy for a reasonable price.

I can't tell which ones are monoblocks vs single chassis stereo amps, I don't care about "THX" designations or multi channel and I don't know what "SST" means.

From time to time, I will see a SINGLE monoblock for sale, which I keep in mind for my next mono system, or perhaps when I want a mismatched, high powered center channel.

I find weird ads which supposedly have brand new, never opened, but 5 years old "NOS" (new old stock) which I suppose were obtained through a time machine or recovered from a sunken ship in perfect shape.

Then I find ads for what look like basically new ones, which are suprisingly expensive, or battle scarred old amps with faceplates so scratched they look like they were traded in a drug deal and ended up in a pawn shop.

I read good things about Bryston's customer service, but every time I have reached out to them to try and better understand this, I get more than a whiff of we really don't care if you buy our products or not attitude, despite the fact that there is no dealer in my area.

So in summary, can someone please explain the history of these amps, which ones sound best, and what vintage might represent the best value in today's market?

I don't have a set budget, but thinking I would sell my Levinson 23.5 for $2-2500, so < $3K would be great.

Thank you,

cwlondon
cwlondon

Showing 3 responses by blindjim

blindjim
3,092 posts
 
One of the top five all time best sounds I've ever heard from a dealership setup was a pr of Maggie 20s connected to a pr of ML 100wpc mono block amps.. back then though the ML amps actually were ML amps. Mark hadn’t yet signed off.

The imaging was such that I felt I could step in between the panels and shake hands with the musicians. Sound pressure levels were modest, and the music was acoustic and from a SCD 1 SACD player into an ML preamp, all in balanced config. So I can’t account for any assignment of the low end output, nor the height of the volume knobs influence…. But the sound was startling. More so still when I found out the amps were only 100wpc…. In a fair sized room.

The odd thing here is I had that experience nearly 20 yrs ago.

Otherwise, I’ve not been impressed by ML or Maggiesseparately. Together however it’s a different story completely…. And I’ve never heard Bryston amps. But what I’ve heard about them is well represented here in this thread so far.
blindjim
3,092 posts
 
Rcrerar

Sorry.

thinking more on it I believe you're right... the CDP was a two piece item comprised of a Sony & a Phillips. Which was the player and which was the DAC I don't recall.

Both were silver in color and one was far taller than the other resembling the boxy SCD 1, so that stuck in my mind and likely was why I said SCD 1 in error.

My bad... but to recall such a intriguing sound from that far back says something too. it may well ahve been a bit past 1990 too, though not by much. '92?
blindjim
3,092 posts
 
A good while back, it seemed in vogue to use BAT SS for panels. Maggies included. I heard from more than a few owners they loved that Combination.

so perhaps Bryston isn't the only answer... or even the optimum one, given the subjectivity of various amp & speaker configurations.

The only true given fact for panels is that they can eat up some power.
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