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First foray into Class A amp -- recommendations

Thinking of checking out a Class A(or quasi) amp just to see if the sound is really better than a nice Class A/B amp. I want to buy a used amp and my budget is $2500-3000. My current class A/B amp is a McCormack DNA-1 Deluxe, rev. A.

I've been looking at a lot of amps here on A'gon and what I have come up with so far is the Krell KSA-200S, which, from what I read in reviews, operates largely in Class A into 8 ohm loads up to 200 wpc.

Considering that my McCormack is a pretty decent amp, do you expect that the Krell would offer a significant upgrade in my priority areas of bass slam and control, mid range transparency, and natural high frequencies? I also welcome any other suggestions or ideas. Thanks!
mtrot

Showing 4 responses by zd542

zd542
5,339 posts
 
I would judge an amp by how good it sounds. Who cares what type of design it is?
zd542
5,339 posts
 
Getting a Class A amp doesn't guarantee any type of specific sound. Also, its very hard to isolate what portion of an amps sound quality is due to it being Class A, or some other factors. I know my answer won't be very popular because I'm not giving you recommendations on specific models that you can act upon right away, but if you do some listening, you'll probably find it to be truthful.
zd542
5,339 posts
 
"09-12-14: Melbguy1
Mtrot, I wouldn't get too hung up on Class A biasing to be honest, it is mostly marketing bs."

Class A actually means something. Its an actual feature of the product. I wouldn't call it BS. Getting hung up in marketing, BS or not, is a choice. Sometimes learning about audio and selecting the right products is hard. And that's just the way it goes. But if you take the time to figure out what is right for you, and purchase accordingly, you'll be far happier in the end. If you don't, it never ends. lol.
zd542
5,339 posts
 
"You're right, what would I know..."

I wasn't trying to be negative with you or say that you don't know what you are talking about. Its just that your post was vague and may unfairly lump together all class a amps with bs marketing. If you could point out specific examples, that would help a lot. And you may be right. Maybe the rest of us overlooked issues that you did not.
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