Recommendation for Class-A integrated amp

Luxman L-595A Special Edition is worth consideration as well: http://www.luxman.com/product/detail.php?id=38

Heads up that I'm a Luxman dealer.

Truly depends on the speaker pairing.  What are your speakers?

I did think about the Luxman L595ASE, but can't find much internal difference to justify the higher cost, so any information about the internal improvement would be very helpful.

The amp will be dual used in main system that has Abyss AB-1266 Phi TC, and the secondary system has Ascend tower with RAAL option.

Of those choices I'd lean towards the Pass or Luxman.  The Sugden would be a better fit with higher impedance speakers that aren't 25W minimum like yours.  Your Ascends drop to 4 ohms and I'd think the Pass and Luxman would cooperate very well with that.

I do lean more towards either Pass or Luxman at the moment, but also curious if there are more choices available I should be considering.

We used to sell luxman and their gear was excellent however we found the coda csib to sound even better

The coda csib is a unique integrated which is exactly the same 6300 .8 amplifier with a Coda preamp board

https://hometheaterreview.com/coda-technologies-continuum-no-8-stereo-amplifier/

The csib offers 18watts of pure class aand 160 watts class ab

You can send the amp back for rebiasing and get 250 watts class ab with 12 watts class A

You can also go to the 400 watt class ab with 8 watts class A

So you have a very flexible integrated amplifier based on the highly regarded Coda.8 amplifier

The coda throws a huge soundstage is tonally neutral has great bass and excellent clarity

Dave and Troy
AUDIO INTELLECT nj
CODA DEALERS

The Luxman gives much more flexibility with Bass and Treble controls.  I would take the Luxman, hands down.

The Sugden Signature A21se is an awesome amp. It lacks the bells and whistles of the others, but sounds heavenly. Besides, it is the original class A solid state amp, the one that started it all back in 1967. At $3250, it’s a bargain. 30 watts into 8 ohms/40 watts into 4 ohms, plus a larger power supply. If you can’t forgo the pretty VU meters, then buy a seperate VU meter such as the One little bear & Douk Audio, model vu1, off of eBay. It’s a great little VU meter for 50 bucks....you don't even have to wire it in, as it has a built in microphone, pretty neat.

Sugden Signature A21se was indeed on top of my list of amps to consider until I discovered the cost now is $3750 from the dealer covers my area, a $500 jump from the 2020 price, then I decided to look at other possibilities.

Luxman or Pass appears to be more capable in the lower impedance (4 ohm) region, although more costly, but appear to be a better selection.

Meanwhile, I am still hoping to check out other amps that is capable to provide 20-30W per channel of class-A output.

I have heard a lot of plausible hype from Coda folks. I nearly went that route but decided Pass had resale and Coda? Well probably not so much.

Luxman is out in my opinion. 

Compared Sudgen to Pass. No comparison-Pass much better.

Some nice Nazi gear out there. I prefer my service in the USA.

Buy a used Pass for about $5k if you can find one. 

Stereo 5 we had the 30watt class A lixman and the csib sounded better so who cares about tone controls?

JVC X-1 with its "Super A" circuit is still a formidable contender against these newcomers! I have one! 

"Some nice Nazi gear out there." FFS.

https://elusivedisc.com/cayin-265ai-pure-class-a-solid-state-amplifier/
Various models from Accuphase and Esoteric.
Or this: http://www.pureaudio.co.nz/?page_id=485

+1 on the Coda. I have yet to find a speaker that it will not play well with. Why limit your speaker selection with relatively low output integrated amps when you can be set for life with the Coda.

Building a system based on resale value is one of many roads to disaster in this hobby. Why not buy something really good that works with your speakers and be done with it. Unless that is, you picked the wrong speakers for your tastes and environment. Then the endless dance of changing out proceeding components in the hopeless attempt to change the character of the speakers begins. Very common. Dealers love this.

You can also look at resale value a different way. Many products that have decent resale value, do so because much of the manufacturer's budget is used for marketing. It's very expensive if done right and the consumer pays for a chunk of it. So, for example, Pass will have good resale value because of all the money they put into marketing. Coda put all their money into their gear, none for marketing. Based on my experience you're getting slightly better sound for less money with Coda.

It also seems like US buyers are more susceptible to marketing. Coda is huge in Asia and Europe (where most of their product goes). Why these audiophiles are less susceptible to marketing is anyone's guess.

@twoleftears ,

Thank you for the suggestions, forgot those somehow, now I am going to find local dealer to see if I can demo them.

Check out the Canor Audio 1.20.  30w into 8 ohms.  In the very near future (this week I think) Andrew Robinson is going to be reviewing the tube based 1.10 and the hybrid 2.10 integrated amps.  
Canor is a brand that has been around in Europe for 25 years and is just coming to the US.  I am the importer so I am biased but it is pretty awesome gear.  

Mu buddy has the Luxman 595 and is a former owner of the 590 AXII. The difference in price is justified according to him. Here is the list of differences.
What we understand is that there are over 120 parts detail differences between the L-590aXII and L-595ASE;

* Different main power transformer, with special attention paid to noise entering the circuits. And with special vibration control of the transformer itself.
* New, special power supply capacitors. Also installed with special vibration control mounting.
* Anti-resonance chassis design elements implemented in the extreme.
* Peel coat PCB’s implemented where it can make a difference.
* Special copper clad critical signal path shielding.
* Special “Line-1 gold direct onto copper (KAPPA) alloy” RCA style input jacks. (For best sound quality)
* Special selected Nichicon and Nippon Chemi-Con capacitors used throughout.
* First introduction of Luxman’s proprietary “ODNF-u” (Only Distortion Negative Feedback – Ultimate) in an integrated amplifier application. (An advancement over ODNF 4.0)
* Special, very low -impedance speaker relays. (Higher damping factor= 370)

Problem with CODA (if you consider this a problem) is resale value. You’ll get crushed if you buy anywhere near MSRP. Coda has far fewer dealers than Luxman or Pass so you can get better discounts with LUX/PASS than you probably will with Coda. I have Coda 8 + 7 Pre-amp so Im certainly not a Coda basher. I bought the pair for around 6K combined with only 6-9 months of use on them when they were listed. Think the MSRP is 13-14K on the pair. OUCH!

Not easy to find these days but you could also consider a Kelvin Lab The Integrated.  I'd love to get my hands on one!

Take a close look at Stereophile’s measurements for the Pass:
https://www.stereophile.com/content/pass-labs-int-25-integrated-amplifier-measurements

At lower impedance (4ohms) distortion rises with higher frequencies. Something to consider.

You should not worried about
cOdas resale the brand is gaining a huge following and the fact that thete are next to 0 being sold used means their scarcity will keep the resale high and make selling a used one easy

DAVE AND TROY

audio Intellect Nj
CODA AUDIO DEALERS

These are all solid choices.  Regarding the Sudden $500 increase, don't know if it's justified or not, but my math is you will probably own a piece like that for 10 years.  $500/10 years is $50 per year for what you may want.

My philosophy.  Best of luck finding that dream integrated.

OP: All three contenders on your list are excellent amplifiers in their own right. I'm surprised that one particular dealer here is making a bold proclamation that Coda is better than Luxman without any supporting data. The truth is that at this price point, it's not about which one is better in general, BUT which one is a better fit for your preferences, speakers, and room. IMHO, it's silly for people to objectively state that one is better than others.

BTW, you should also include Ayre in your list. 

@celtic66 ,

Fully agreed on the financial side of logic, and I am not putting Sugden off yet, instead, I am still consider it could be a good possibility, but since I am not sure how well it will work with Ascend Sierra Tower that is in my secondary system, where the impedance will drop to 4 ohm, and the Sugden amp spec show 30W at 8 ohm, 40W at 4 ohm, which put a bit of concern whether there is enough power to sustain.  I could end up with one to test down the road anyway, where I know it will be fine with Abyss AB-1266 Phi TC used in my primary system, but I need to get a few more things tested with an amp that is capable to drive both so I can have a solid baseline to draw from.




@arafiq ,

Thank you for the Ayre suggestion.

Let me give some more props for the CODA. I now have the latest CODA 07x preamp and CODA #8 amp. I moved up from the CSiB integrated which I bought on A'gon used.

This gear is stuff I will never be selling. I think this 07x + #8 combo is good as the Luxman c900u preamp and m900u amp that I was so gaga about a few years ago. Luckily I could not afford them back then.

BTW - I bought the brand spanking new CODA from a CA dealer for a combined $11K. I also had some custom work done on the amp which added to the cost and likely killed any chance of resale (which I have no interest to do). So the guy buying used CODA pair for $6K sounds about right to me.

If you would love class A sound without the heat check out the new Technics integrated, based on GaN technology

OP - I am biased - but give the new Krell K300i a listen - uses new patent pending ‘sliding bias’ to stay in Class A longer. Pushes my Maggie 1.7i to new levels of clarity. If it can handle Maggie’s - any other speaker is a piece of cake. New the integrated runs $7k. Not cheap but build quality is great.

Went to demo and buy the luxman s and was left wanting.   Bought the Esoteric F03 with a milks discount but way over my initial budget.  Have no interest in resale as it has been the most enjoyable amp I’ve owned

CODA vs Krell vs PASS - one opinion:
https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/new-stereo-times-review-on-coda-csib-integrated-amplifier

+1 @arafiq

OP: All three contenders on your list are excellent amplifiers in their own right

OP: it's more a matter of personal sonic and feature preferences rather than one performing better than another.

Coda Csib is not a class A integrated, which is what the OP is looking for.

Class A integrated amps operate in class A over their entire spec’d power band, not over some small fraction of it.

Coda is a class A/B biased to operate in class A over some small number of watts (6, 12, or 18 depending on configuration I think, but don’t quote me on that). Nothing wrong with that, but don’t call it a class A amp, because it is not

i too was wondering about the wisdom of all the conversation about the 400 wpc class a/b coda when the op is seeking advice on a 20 to 40 wpc class a unit...

... i guess if you have a favorite hammer all in the world is just a bed of nails...  🤷

@tom8999,

Not familiar with Krell K300i, but I will look into how they work in Class-A region.



@ tennisdoc56,

Interesting suggestion.  I will have to check out the Esoteric F03 too.



@kennyc,

OP: it's more a matter of personal sonic and feature preferences rather than one performing better than another.

Agreed, I am looking for suggestions that I may have missed, so I can go demo them.

elan120

Have a good look at the Gryphon Diablo 120, killer high biased Class-A sound but with up 120 watts of A/B, they pop up used sometimes also, and they will be a keeper as they can drive anything for the future because they have big current ability.
https://gryphon-audio.dk/shop/integrated-amplifiers/diablo-120/

Cheers George

Esoteric F-03A

As others said, I have the last Coda 07x and the No 8 (v1) and the resale value is not a problem for me as definitely they are keepers. 10 years warranty is not bad either if you are the original buyer, 5 if you don't. 

     What is “ Nazi “ gear ? 

Too many to list.

@gubaface,

Thank you for the suggestion.



@georgehifi,

I am not familiar with Gryphon gear, could you describe further on how Diablo 120 sound compare to some of the Class-A integrated amps listed?

I’m going to do something this coming Friday I NEVER thought I would do.
Pay full retail & order the Pathos "Inpol Remix Mk.II" from the Distributor before word gets out & they raise the price another $2000.00....You might want to have a look at it if your looking for pure Class A...
Come to think of it Pathos has several integrated amplifiers that run Class A...They are Class A Tube(Triode)SS hybrids that reportedly sound very very good...