Sherwood Newcastle Am 9080

The Sherwood is an ok amp. It will depend greatly on the rest of your system. In a home theater setup I could be totally happy with it. If you want it for music also your speakers and taste will make the decision.

This amp had a unique sonic signature. If you told us what else you're using it would help.

I agree with Warrenwh. It's an ok amp. The biggest drawback for me was it's a monster @ ~75 lbs, and big package compared to other 5 ch amps.

At the prices I've seen them sell recently it's an excellent value, but the B&K 5 channel amps (eg AV5125) are much, much better in every way, and do a great job with music too.

Thanks for your feedback, I'm using it with Martin Logan Sequels and energy ac300 center channel. I went ahead and bought one from EBAY for 270, not bad. I can't wait to set it up.

That was a super price. I used three of the channels in one when I only had the one system. I tried it's two channel capability with my Vmps Supertower/R SE speakers I had then and didn't care for it's sound in that position. With your Martin Logins it may be a good match because if I remember right it had a soft and slightly dark sound.

Being as you have electrostatic speakers I've got to tell you that your equipment in front of your speakers can make or break your system. If you're on a tight budget you're not going to do much better although I would opt for the B&K if it's at a similar price. Parasound and Rotel make decent amps that can be purchased for little money used also.

Being as you haven't mentioned room treatment I'll say this: This is EXTREMELY important. Speaker position is free and can help alot. Your room acoustics are like a graphic equalizer set by a 5 year old on average. In other words the frequency response of the average room is plus or minus 15db. Room treatments can make a large improvement in sound quality especially for the money spent.

I realize this is more than you asked for but I get the impression you're wanting to learn to make your system sound better. You're on the right track as there's alot of knowledge here and the people are friendly and helpful. You have a system that can shine quite well.

A properly set up system with good components can sound much better than the same exact gear set up poorly. The room is the best place to start. There's an acoustics forum at audiocirle.com and audioasylum. Let us know how your Sherwood/Martin Logan setup sounds once you get it dialed in.
Cheers

congrats - you can't touch anything comparable to the 9080 IMO unless you want to pay another $200, maybe more.

btw - Warnerwh - sorry for butchering your moniker in my previous post!