Heath AA-2500 Amp - Heard of it?

Yes I have 2 one kit by me and  one Heathkit assembled. 1989-90 bi amp K-Horns. w AR SP9 preamp. Very happy. 30 years is a long time and lots of moving never put that setup back together after 10yrs use
Both still running good. Present 2 channel vinyl using Music Hall preout very quiet no thumps or clipping on Marimba pr. 

I find that interesting. It just goes to show how different installations & combinations of gear / personal tastes can alter the performance and percecption of an individual component. That is why you'll often see me make such disclaimers in many of my posts.

Personally, i have two Forte' 6's and LOVE them, even in stock form. While not "slam masters" by any means, they typically produce a very pleasant, detailed wide soundstage with excellent air and pretty even tonal balance. I have had similar results in three different installations, one of them being my Fathers' system. I temporarily let him use the amp and he did NOT want to give it back. It was by far better than any of the other amps that he had ever used.

The Forte' 3 is very similar sounding but is slightly sweeter / airier but lacks bass "foundation" in comparison. The 4A is kind of a combination of those two. With that in mind, i'll be using two Forte' 3's for my tweeters, two of the Forte 6's for the mids and two Perreaux PMF-3150B's for the woof's. All of the amps have been modified / upgraded with higher quality parts, wiring, etc...

I guess that this just goes to show that one mans' torture is another mans' pleasure : ) Sean
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I owned the Forte for 6 years, 6 long years, the longest I have owned any amp. In that 6 years I hated my system. I had threatened many a time to sell it all and just get some simple inexpensive system, that nothing was expected of it. I replaced many speakers during that time trying to get some kick from my system. In '97 I bought a Meridian 557 amp and 502 preamp, to replace my Forte 6 and model 2 pre, I have a "thing" about having matched amp and preamps. I really thought the 502 preamp was going to make a huge advantage in my system, so I hooked up the 557 first and left the Forte preamp, I couldn't believe how bad the Meridian smoked the Forte. Ironically, I don't think the preamp made that big a difference.

All those years of hating it and I feel it was the amp. I have made a number of bad decisions through the years.

I am the happiest with my system I have ever been since using a little Denon integrated back in the 80's, ironically I am again using an integrated. (Funny thing is, I would like to sell and explore, you would think I would of learned!)

Out of curiosity, what didn't you like about the Forte' 6 ??? Sean
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Sean, the AA-2500 isn't real big. I borrowed it back from my friend the other day because I wanted to try a preamp and I use the ML integrated. I was curious if anyone else knew of it. I took it into my local shop years back, I can't remember why, to compare it or something, and the first thing the salesman said was, "wow, look at the size of the power supply", (I think it was the power supply); and remember, I only paid like $200 for it, granted, it was an inside deal.

I remember bringing home an Adcom amp and a friends Carver and neither were good enough to justify the change. The Forte was clearly better, but in hindsight I wish I would of never bought that either.

Brian, it was a good sized amp and was actually built quite well for its' day. If i remember correctly, it actually "doubled down" according to spec. It would make an excellent platform to build upon, modify, upgrade, etc... I've seen these "generic, non-audiophile" amps sell for as little as $200. As far as that goes, they are WELL worth that just for the chassis and power supply. Sean
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