Hegel H300

Same of H200, with a DAC built in like the h100 did,
Regards

I'm waiting for my dealer to get one in so I can audition it. Suppose to be technology based on their reference amp and preamp. Could be outstanding.

I heard the H200 and the H300 at RMAF this year. The H300 with the internal DAC sounded better than the H200 with Hegel's (I believe) HD11 hooked up. Clearer, better musical realism, better in every way over the H200. Both were heard through the Thiel 3.7 speakers.

Hegel 300 is much better than H200
More dynamic, clearer, more power, quiter.
Yet again neutral.

Hi there

just in case this can helpfull...

Just got one 2 weeks ago.

I previously and recently had a pair of Audiolab 8200MB (sold) paired with a Hegel HD20 as preamp and DAC (currently selling). This kit was awesome.

My speakers are Opera Grand Mezza modified with Seas Excel drivers and Scan Speak tweeter, speakers cables are Cardas Golden Five.

Compared to my previous kit, the sound have a kind of similar signature than H20, that was very nice, but with more precision, sound stage is more clear and real, and bass is near similar but more accurate, a bit less spectacular overall but very more precise and musical.

Only 2 weeks, maybe another 2 weeks will give differents results...after burn in.

Even the Audiolab had 250w, the 250w of the Hegel H300 look more to have a 25% more power at same level.

Definitely I am very pleased with this integrated. Very very pleased.

Curious how the Hegel H300 and the Musical Fidelity M6500i going head to head, as to which one would be the better performer? Anyone have an opinion comparing the two?

There's a review of the H300 that directly compares it against the M6 500i at goodsound.com.

Donjr..I read Hans Wetzel's reviews of the H300 and the M6 500i. No clear winner. The Hegel is more neutral and forward, and the MF is warmer and more laid back. Hans did have a problem with the remote control with the M6-500i when adjusting the volume. I previously owned the Musical Fidelity A308 Preamp back in 2004 and had the same problem. The remote would only work in a straight line in front of the Pre and would not work when sitting to the left or right. The remote for the MF M6-500i looks like a very cheap piece of plastic junk that comes with a home theater in a box system at Kmart. You would think after all these years later that Musical Fidelity would apply a little more class and provide a remote with much better build quality. Its just not a concern with them.

I'd love to hear the Hegel. My dealer tells me he's going to have one for me to addition soon. He just got in the Ayre AX5 today and texted me a picture. There's a pretty decent price gap between the Hegel and the Ayre. I have this funny feeling I would like the Hegel better with my Harbeth C7es3's than I would with the Ayre. I tried the AX7e and it just didn't have the guts to get my speakers moving. The new AX5 is 125 watts but that's just a number. I want current.

I've never heard a MF. I'm surprised they don't give you the option to buy a upscale remote with their flagship integrated.

Hegel H200 enough juice to power anything,
Quiet, refine sound.

Thanks for all your responses.

I went ahead and bought a Hegel H300 to go with my Harbeth P3's. Even though the Harbeth's are amp friendly, I am impressed with the upgrade in sound that comes from the increase in power.

The Hegel is both refined and dynamic. The smooth, tube-like richness of tone is intoxicating. I may have found my forever amp.

Now maybe I should audition the Harbeth 30.1......

Purchased H300 two weeks ago and just finishing burn in. This is an awesome amplifier. Ran squeezebox hi res files digital in to the Hegel and the DAC is superb.. My "other" system is Modwright KWA150 SE, First Sound Pre and PS Audio Perfectwave DAC. Not missing the big guns like I thought I would. Absolute Sound review this month is dead on with regard to the quality of the sound. Can not recommend more highly.

One positive point to note..A week ago Anders at Hegel denied in an email to me that silicon germanium transistors
are used in the H-300 integrated. He finally admitted in an email I received form him yesterday that they are used in the H-300 since I disclosed to him an article and review
in a French High End magazine from last year on the H-300 that silicon germanium transistors are in the Pre-amp
stage of the H-300. These same transistors are also in the flagship H-30 amplifier and the new P-20 Preamp.

I have a Hegel H100 and I couldn't be more happier

Another Integrated amplifier that may be a better investment than the Hegel H-300 is the CODA CSIb which has better build quality than the Hegel with a larger power supply and a transformer twice as large as the one in the Hegel. WBT binding post and tiffany RCA inputs. 330 watts into 8ohms and 660 watts into 4ohms. Easily drive 1ohm loads. Very rich, warm tube like sound. Smooth as silk. Retails for $5800.00 Hand built in California with a ten year warranty. Weighs 55 pounds.

I own a Hegel H-30 amplifier, using it as a stereo amp driving a pair of Venture speakers; it replaced a pair of Bryston 28sst squares, and it is a much better amp. I have all the detail; bass, slam, sound stage, and detail...I leave it on 24/7; and have had no reliability issues. Have owned it for around one year now and absolutely love it. I think it plays well above its price class..one of the best anywhere. If you are considering Hegel; trust your instincts and enjoy your purchase. As other posters are pointing out; there are other contenders; and system synergy must be taken into account..in my system it works tremendously well. Good luck.

Audio zen, what's so great about the Coda? I don't care where it's made and I live in New York. A transformer twice as large as the one supplied with the Hegel? I don't believe you. Back yourself up. Have you ever heard the Hegel? Who sells Coda or who's the distributor? Half the inhabitants of California are not Americans.

Back myself up? You betchum junior! The founding engineer's
at Coda are Eric Lauchli, Doug Dale, the President of the company, and Lorin Peterson. They are legendary. They were the designer's with Nelson Pass at Threshold back in the 80's. Threshold was a world class leader in soild state components. The build and sound quality of Threshold was outstanding. The Hegel H-300 uses a 1kVA transformer. The Coda CSIb uses a 2kVA transformer. Twice as large. The Hegel peaks at 120 amperes per channel. The Coda peaks at 150 amperes per channel. Coda only sells factory direct in the states. Over 80% of their sales are in Europe with France being their largest customer. They don't advertise in the states. Why? Very strong word of mouth reputation.
Their products sell themselves. Would Hegel be in business if they didn't advertise? I doubt it.

Just read the late April review of the H-300 in TAS by Chris Thomas. Very disappointing. Too short and too brief of a review. Chris describes the sound as a little soft but did not go into detail of all the performance aspects that are covered in more extensive reviews. He must've wrote the review while he was stuck in traffic.

Audiozen, I'm having a difficult time finding the Coda website. I keep running into a speaker manufacturer. Can you help me out with this?

I didn't mean to come across as being brash but I've heard some Hegel gear and regardless of the specs you posted it sounded amazing to my ears.

Donjr..Thr Coda web address is Coda.cc

I find Coda's website here: Coda

Recently spoke to a dealer who is most knowledgeable on the Hegel line. H300 is a great integrated amp, particularly if you are looking to upgrade your DAC. H300 is one of Hegel's newest amps and benefits as a result. Most people will find it a better sounding amp relative to the H200 and the reasons go beyond just the 50 and 80 extra watts into 8 and 4 ohms respectively. Despite that, the H300 is not the amp that the H20 is terms of quality and sound - but close. Simultaneous to buying a new integrated amplifier, if you are in need of a DAC upgrade the H300 is a no brainer as its built in DAC's sonic performance is easily equivalent to Hegel's stand alone HD20 DAC and probably falls between the HD20 and the HD25. While time (3 or 4 years?) will erode the value of the H300's internal DAC, for a cost of $1,100 over the DACless H200 you get a better and slightly more powerful amplifier along with an integrated DAC that would have cost you $2K + if you could buy it stand alone.

The Hegal 300 is superior in everyway then the 200-100.
The others donot match alll the FETs ,also the amp,preamp section is a dual mono active preamp stage,and weighs some 55 lbs.the pre,and amplifier section
Are scaled down versions of their$$ flagship preamp-amp. The dac is AKM
Latest and the same unit used in Brystons latest dac.it is a very respectable dac at least equal to any $2k dac out there,and their jitter reduction circuit works with any digital cable you use. If anydoubt
Call and speak with one of their techs. I listened to the 300, and 200
Hooked up to a Meitner dac-1 which is great and $7kand it was not hard to pick out the h300.from the 200
It is the best integrated out there under $10 k currently IMO,and can be bought for under $5k.
The modwright was reviewed with the 200 ,because the 300 would just pull away from it,and the 200 was a closer match.The modwright is warmer sounding.the H 300 has also won 7-8 awards worldwide and has plenty
Of power and control to workwell with most speakers out here.

IMO, the CODA CSIb is a superior integrated compared to the Hegel H-300 for under $10K. Cost is $5800.00 and is better built than the Hegel and far more powerful. Much larger transformer and power output. Puts out 330 watts into 8ohms and 660 watts into 4ohms. Peaks at 150 amperes per channel. Much better build quality and a superior remote control. The Hegel has average quality RCA inputs you would find on the back of a A/V receiver. The CODA has heavy duty tiffany RCA inputs which are much better quality. Also, the Coda runs cooler and the top cover is solid so you don't have to worry about dust getting under the hood and onto the boards and chassis floor. And the CODA engineers have a more distinguished resume going back thirty years over Hegel.

not once did you mention listening to either Integ Amp.
Your basis appeaars to be based on specs, has anyone mano mano these superior products

Audiozen, I have to respectfully ask whether you have had the opportunity to audition both the CODA and the Hegel amps? From your post it appears as though you may be reaching a conclusion on which is better based upon research alone.

has anybody compare the h300 with the h20?

Audiozen, I have no dog in this fight other than that I own a Hegel H300 but I have to ask, do you work for Coda or something? Your posts seem overly bias towards Coda. As I have not heard the Coda side by side with the Hegel I can't comment but I do find your build quality comments pretty funny as the H300 is a very well built, excellent sounding unit. In the time I have it, it has performed flawlessly.

Hello there, the equipment I have right now is oppo 105 connected to my vintage Technics Su- G95 integrated amp/receiver,speakers I have Technics SB-A55,also I have HSU-VTF 15H Sub.i have researched a lot and finally reached to buy a integrated amp one of the following, Hegel H300 or Music Fidelity m6500i and Modwright KWI 200.so what amp should I buy,will really appreciate suggestions.will be waiting for some advises.

Everyone still loving their H300s? I'll be placing an order for one tomorrow. I'm trusting that all the praise here is warranted because I've never even seen one in person. But I do know that Hegel does a lot of their research and development with my speakers, the Amphion Argon7Ls so I know there must be some synergy. What are you all using for front ends? I think I'm going to get a NAD M50. Anyone running a laptop into the H300 with USB and having great results?

Hello folks, any further updates on the Hegel H300 after time and further run in?

Is this amplifier strictly neutral in tonality or does it swing into sweetness as suggested by the TAS review (referenced above)?

Is the amp a bit soft as in not as incisive as leading integrated amplifiers in the US$5k to 10k bracket?

How would the Hegel compare to the Ayre Acoustics’ AX-5 or the Simaudio Moon Evolution 600i or the Jeff Rowland Continuum S2? Any opinions?

Thanks

I just loaned Hegel H80 (rated 75 watts per channel at 8 ohms.)
Sound fantastic with my Quads ESL 63 loudspeakers, may be even better (at half price)than Luxman L-505ux integrated amp.I returned luxman to the dealer because of hum noise heard in stage headphone, something you can not expect in such good brand. I can't think how good my speakers will sound powered by H300(my local dealer do not stock H300). The dealer has a set up (H80) with Magneplanar 1.7 speakers. Impressive sound.You don't need Audio Research to drive them to excellent result.

I tried the Hegel H300 recently and think it may be the best amp I've heard in my system.
There is a better than 50% chance I will trade in my Modwright to get one.

But an interesting anomaly that I'm not quite sure what to think of.
Hegel's website, and every review I've seen, say the amp weighs 55 lbs.
When I picked it up I thought "there is no way this thing is 55lbs", so I put on the accurate shipping scale at work.
Just under 43 lbs.
Trivial perhaps, and it's the sound that matters, but it has me wondering about the accuracy of the specs on their website.

Is it possible that 55 lbs. is the shipping weight with the box and all packing?

I heard a H300 lately and IMO for all practical purposes hard to see how an amp could sound better.
No doubt that's the ship weight.

I currently have the H100 and will probably upgrade to the H300 at some point but right now I'm enjoying the H100 with my Usher MD II's. The H300 sounded very good at RMAF last year.

For the shipping weight of the H300 to be 55lbs the box, styrofoam and manual would need to add up to 12 lbs. Not likely IMHO

I recently bought the H300. To be brief, I am very very impressed. I had been looking at the Pass Int-30 and Int-150, but the former didn't have enough power for my insensitive speakers, and the latter didn't have the same rich sound.

The H300 solved the problem--and then some. It has a remarkable level of transparency, and the mid range really is extraordinary. I don't know how they've done it, but the soundstage has impressive breadth and depth. I have not heard a solid state amplifier with this kind of soundstage.

As an aside, it is also a more conventional size. So, it goes in my rack/cabinet. Most outstanding integrateds are now getting pretty wide and deep. Everything about this speaks to luxury--and convenience.

We all wonder about the reviews. Here is a product that really lives up to the buzz. And you can lift it!

Bravo.

So who has compared the H200 and H300? I don't care about what you've read. I thought the H200 sounded better than the Modwright. I haven't heard the H300, but have heard there's not much of a difference between the 200 and 300.

I had this amp as well as the H100. Both are good amps but at $5500 the H300 was not magic. I don’t think I really cared for the DAC implementation. I would take an LDR passive with a used Job 225 and save myself a few thousand dollars.

The all new and significantly improved Hegel H360 is due for release on September 1st and will retail for $5,700, just $200 more than the H300 it replaces. Check out all the details on it - http://www.hegel.com/products/integrated/h360

One thing I have noticed, Hegel sure comes out with "new and improved" amps way too soon, IMHO. Buy one, and just around the corner, you have an old model.

I am in possession, not of the H300, but the H80.
I'm a bit disturbed that there is less mention of how instruments and voices sound, or any allusion to how it sounds compared to say, Audra McDonald at the Met, or Bob Dylan live, or a symphony at Carnegie Hall. Stats mean nothing whatsoever: we ALL know that, don't we? Otherwise, transistor amps would be KING - but they're not. Tubes are just as much KING as solid state.
What I notice about the H80 is how good it is at the stop-on-a-dime timing ability which is not common in amps, thereby upsetting the rhythm and timing of a song. In real life, the music form that would suffer from the lack of this is swing music, which, in order to work, must have the ultimate in timing. Basie and Ellington are proponents of this. Has anyone played a Basie or Ellington CD to see how well it swings? Well, I have. The Hegel swings GREAT! Which means its inter transient capabilities are very high, since there must be silence after that stop on an eighth note.
The amp is great, and my only comment is that it lacks a bit of solidity to the individual instruments, although they are quite clear. Perhaps a weightier CD with a phenomenal mid bass would cure that. It's certainly not my Nordost Tyr 2 or Valhalla 2 or Frey 2 cables, nor is it the Nola Contender, which can stop on a dime exceedingly well for a $3600 speaker.
Less stats, and more discussion of how music sounds, please. This all reminds me of Audio Magazine.