take a listen to Ayre
New Amp Advice
I'm considering replacing my amp in what I hope will be the last major upgrade for a long while. My current system is Roon Nucleus, dcs Bartok, Octave Jubilee preamp, Michi S5 amp, Sonus Faber Il Cremonese speakers, Audioquest Niagra 3000 power conditioner, Nordost Heimdall 2 cables, Clearaudio DC performance TT with Ortofon Cadenza bronze cart, Simaudio 610 LP phono stage. Room has been treated and is approximately app. 21x30. About 80% streaming from Qobuz or Tidal-the rest vinyl.
I like the performance of my system and spend at least a few hours every night listening. Made the very wise decision a few years ago to replace all the time I spent watching cable news with music. Varied taste in music-jazz, blues, R&B, country, old time rock, no rap, electronic and very little classical.
Logically, the Michi is the weak link but I think it performs at a very high level for its price, is extremely well built, and has plenty of power. Hard to describe specific improvements I'm looking for, maybe wider soundstage and better imaging.
I prefer to buy new and prefer hybrid or SS-ambivalent about the tube sound and, honestly, intimidated by the potential maintenance issues-I'm old and inept. My budget is approximately up to 40-45k, maybe a bit more or less depending on how smitten I am, but obviously happy to spend less. Exploring possibilities but only willing to make the investment if it produces a significant improvement. I've heard a couple of Macs-prefer what I have now-and the new Simaudio North 761-I like Sim products but honestly couldn't hear a significant improvement in my system.
I know I need to audition potential replacements so just trying to get a reasonable list of candidates. So far, considering Accuphase A-300, Audionet Maxx (intrigued by the soon to be released Schrodinger) Boulder 1161 (probably should wait for the new 1162 or 1163), Burmester 216, Bricasti M32, T+A 3000HV, Constellation Revelation Series 2 and Dan D'Ag s250-its a long list I need to narrow. The Dan, Constellation, Boulder and T+A are available at dealers within an hour or two-the others I'd have to travel to hear. Looking for a relatively neutral sound, I suppose, but sometimes I think, to paraphrase what Justice Potter Stewart said about pornography, you know it (the sound) when you hear it. This will be my last shot for a long while, that's what my financial advisor says, so I need to hit the target.
A long intro, but trying to anticipate questions any of you might raise. Thanks in advance for your thoughts- I respect the enormous wealth of knowledge on this forum.
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''New Amp Advice'' see here Mike |
I just read through these responses and thanks to all who offered advice.I'm going to consider all of it-trying to figure it out is half the fun, and this exchange has given me some good information to think about. @ghdprentice I appreciate your always thoughtful advice and will give your observations careful consideration. I was a gearhead when I was young, then got away from it with kids, etc., got back into it about ten years ago and a little intimidated by some of it-appreciate your thoughts. Cheers and thanks to all. |
I just switched from a Boulder 866 (with DAC) to a D'Agostino Momentum 250MxV. Before making my selection, I listened closely to the Boulder 1061 and 1161, as well as the D'Agostino. All four were compared as amplifiers over several listening sessions using a Bartok APEX as a pre, DAC and streamer (the 866 sounded better with the Bartok APEX than with its internal DAC -- no surprise there, though I was rooting for the 866). I wanted to chime in to report simply that there were noticeable improvements from the 866, to the 1161 and also from the 1161 to the 1160 and the D'Agostino. I narrowed it down to the 1160 and the D'Agostino, which both sounded wonderful to me and noticeably better than the 866 (which I loved). I would have been happy with either, but ended up buying the latter for a number of reasons, including the fact that the 1160 would have required me to completely redo my set up -- rack, system placement, etc. -- and my room won't allow for that. In sum, I have never heard the Michi; from what I've read, I'm sure it sounds great. The 866 also sounds great. But I suspect that, as with my leap, the type of jump you are considering will likely allow for significant improvement in sound. |
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