2. amps-preamps
  3. 166469-161155

Pure analog system with high power

Dear Hifi lovers, I introduce myself, I'm new to this forum. 
I need your marvellous experience in order to choose my next gear. I currently have a Rega Brio amp driving a pair of Wharfedale Evo 4.2 and I'm looking for a big step up, starting for now from the amp.
I am a vinyl lover, I basically play just lps. I also added a Rega Aria phono stage.
Now what I'm looking for is a kind of purist's solution, don't need to pay for dacs, or particolar digital inputs or functions. I want an integrated, or separated amp+pre is also well appreciated, capable of at least 150W in 8 ohm / 250W in 4 ohm as sooner or later I'll buy for sure some Magnepans, maybe the .7, or anyway some Harbeth's. My aim is to get the best money value for my purpouses, that's why I was mentioning a pure analogue solution. Anyway I accept also recommendations based on gears with dacs or digital inputs as that's the market now. Prefer new stuff but also used is fine. Budget is around 3.500/4.000 dollars. Thanks in advance to all people willing to share some knowledge and sorry if something wasn't clear, you can ask me any kind of questions!
adversam

Showing 5 responses by ghdprentice

ghdprentice
6,473 posts
 
Schiit is great budget gear, but not at the same level as Pass. 
ghdprentice
6,473 posts
 
It will certainly depend on the character of the amp you are looking for. The Mggies like power. Unless you are looking for very warm Pass is an excellent solution (then the Pass XA25). I agree a used Pass x250 is a good choice... I owned a Pass x350 for ten or fifteen years. Highly recommended.

I just saw your comment above on the cost in EU... sorry to hear. I have owned Pass since about 1979...until a couple years ago. I also owned ribbon and electrostatic during that time and Pass was a great match,
ghdprentice
6,473 posts
 
I have auditioned Maggie’s many times... they sound great with lots of good clean and natural power. But I have never bought them even though I have owned other ribbon and planar speakers. Then when I started attending the symphony moved to traditional speakers and found that although certain recording sounded not quit as magical, overall all music types started sounding much better. Overall, the musicality and fidelity has increased in my systems using traditional speaker system. But it depends on what kind of sound you value and what kind of music you listen to. For instance if I listened primarily to rock, I would have a McIntosh / B&W speaker system. If I valued holographic I would have a  Rowland / Wilson speaker. But I value highly detailed,  warm, natural, large sound stage presentation, so I have Audio Research / Sonus Faber speaker system.
ghdprentice
6,473 posts
 
@dhites “To continue on rfnoise's promotion of Audio Research....”

Me too. Too long a list for me as I first got an inexpensive ARC preamp... then phonostage... and now all ARC gear. The span of time from first component to all was 40 years. I could have taken a more direct path if I had zeroed in on all ARC from the beginning... and of course, had more money when I was younger.
ghdprentice
6,473 posts
 
ARC has been making preamps for 50 years. I bought my first as a pretty old used one so it fit in my budget. It sounded magnificent. Then I upgraded over the decades. Used mainstream audiophile stuff always sounds good and is a great way to go.
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