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Integrated amp for B&W 805S under $1200?

Hello everyone,

I got a great deal on a B&W 805S earlier this year. Unfortunately, I haven't found the "right" amplifier for it yet, given my budget and musical tastes. So please help a new audiophile!

I mostly listen to classical music, and also some opera and jazz. So I want an amplifier that does justice to the grand symphony sound (think Mahler's Fifth or Tchaiokovsky's Sixth). Sounding musical is very important also: in particular, in violin and piano.

I had a Rotel 1062 from my older B&W CM1. I felt that it struggled with the B&W 805s and the sound was harsh. I next tried the Musical Fidelity A3.5. It sounded much better and I was pretty satisfied. But I noticed I was getting listener fatigue after listening to a moderately loud volume after an hour or so. I next tried a YBA YA201. Wow, musical! Strings and vocals sounded incredibly silky smooth on it. It brought to life my favorite violin and cello concertos (Mendelssohn, Elgar) and Ella Fitzgerald just sounded wonderful. Unfortunately, it was weak on pianos (sounded a bit muffled) and lacked a wide soundstage.

So here I am, trying to find another integrated amplifier. I'm a grad student so $1200 is a somewhat hard limit. Any suggestions? I was considering a Naim Nait 5, a Classe CAP151, or a Plinius 8200.

My CD player is a Rega Apollo.

Thanks in advance,
Mike
mabdelmalek

Showing 1 response by mabdelmalek

mabdelmalek OP
1 posts
 
Thank you all for your feedback. Much appreciated! I thought I'd update you with what I'm going to try next. I found a Classe CAP 150 (sonically the same as a CAP 151) on here for sale, and it should be arriving tomorrow. I'll post my review once I've had time to listen to it and compare it to my YBA YA 201.

I'm hesitant to go to the separates world, so I decided to stick with integrated. I don't have room for separates in my small entertainment unit in my apartment. I'm also a bit hesitant about tubes or hybrids: I'd like to try them out in my system but I don't want to commit to buying one. It seems tubes lack the dynamics of SS and that's important to me in orchestral works.

In terms of my short list. A lot of people say Bryston and Krell are harsh so I'm staying away. The Naim Nait 5 is very highly recommended, and I may try a unit if I find one here that lasts for more than 5 minutes! But I wonder if it's enough to drive my 805S. I called Joe from Portal Panache, who was incredibly helpful and nice. There's a 12 week wait on the Panache! The Marantz PM15S1 is new and I'd feel more comfortable seeing more reviews online before buying it.

Thanks all!
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