Separates vs Integrated

In my earlier system I went all the way up the Naim amplifier chain to the NAP 500DR and  the 552DR together with the 101 tuner. Between them they took up a helluva lot of rack space and with the separate power supplies a helluva lot of cables.

A chance discussion at Munich some years ago motivated me to try a Vitus SIA 025, despite my doubts about its power output. The Vitus sound quality was significantly better and the power output was entirely adequate..The decluttering benefits and cable demands  were very welcome.

A couple of years ago I upgraded to the Vitus SIA 030 which is even better though obviously more expensive.

I have not heard the integrated Vitus Reference series in my home,but only at demos and they too are very good, but not as good as the Signature series I have or had, which reflects their lower price. Here in the UK the Vitus integrated amps hold their value well which is a big plus. Depreciation can be very costly when you come to upgrade.

Vitus do have their separate pre and power amps, but I am entirely happy with my integrated 030.

Integrated amps have the advantage of being “integrated” by experts ( you would expect). Whereas you have to integrate separates. That provides flexibility but the flip side is there are more possible outcomes that are not all equal.

I am not an expert. With separates it took some trial and error to end up at a better place.

Integrated amp technology has come a long way. Definitely the lower risk option.

@jsalerno277  awesome you are in the Burmester club, its awesome gear and imo will run with the best of them

My destination integrated is a Dartzeel CTH 8550 MK2. = Close to Heaven 85% of the separates at 50% the price.

For what you get with a great phono stage at $43K it is a bargain.

The SQ, to me, puts it in a class all by itself. 
After 53 years at this, the Dart runs circles around any pricey separates I have owned. 
 

Maybe I will say a strange idea for the forum, but try to look at this topic from the point of view of your life. We will never find "that very sound", because we listen to different music and our perception of sound changes with age. But if you are interested in searching and experimenting and you can afford it, why deny yourself the pleasure of trying new different components? And when it stops bringing you happiness and you just want to listen to your favorite song, you can change the whole system to one good integrated amplifier and not dance with cables, etc. I also consider integrated amplifiers more of a lifestyle, one beautiful thing looks good on a modest stand or an expensive chest of drawers in a strict interior. But not everyone is interested in this. And there is a compromise option: deal only with the source that you listen to the most, for example, take an integrated preamplifier-amplifier, and select a DAC + streamer separately. For example, I listen to vinyl more, so I use a separate phono preamp, and the DAC, streamer and amplification are all in one integrated amplifier. It seems to me that you need to look at the needs, and not how it sounds, because everything sounds good in its own way in this price segment.