Simaudio 340 i hard to beat for the $$


I have a bit of a dilemma in that I’m having a hard time moving from my Simaudio 340 i. I absolutely love this integrated except I wish the sound stage was wider. I was considering getting a 600 i but after extensive research people are saying 600 is not like the 340 and I see a lot of people sell the 600. Owners of the 600 I told me they were disappointed in the unit. For some reason the 340 i is unique to the Simaudio line up. I was interested in the Luxman 550 MK2 but after speaking to a Sonus Faber dealer with good knowledge of the brand he believes that class A will not have the dynamics required to drive my speakers as Sonus Faber are known to be power hungry. He suggested staying with class A/B. I had a class A tube amplifier and yes, I agree it was lacking the punch of the 340. My problem is my budget in the used market for a solution is $5-6000. Current setup is:

Sonus Faber Minima Amator 2

Lumin U1 mini with SBooster

Denafrips Venus 2

Simaudio 340 i

I’m looking for something laid back, detailed, smooth and punchy like the 340 but with a bigger soundstage. Does it even exist at 5/6 k (CAN BTW)

I’ve had Hegel 390/360 and it didn’t impress me.

Accuphase E370? Luxman 507?

128x128dman1974

@overthemoon 

There seems to be a lot of love for the Audio Research by Sonus Faber owners. I’m wondering if that will be my next move. Maybe Tube integrated. 

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I had the 340i with my original SF Concerto. I never felt that it lacked sound stage and absolutely loved that amp.

However, when I upgraded to the 700i everything improved radically (as you would hope and expect.

I did hear to 600i in a demo recently and did not feel that it was hugely lacking compared to the 700 (perhaps a little less of everything) ... I doubt that you would have any issues if you upgraded to same, especially as they are available on the DH market die to Moon’s generous upgrade policy.