Warm Replacement for Adcom GFA 545 II

07-01-12: Unsound
I think changing amps to compliment cables is altogether backwards.

That's not what he's doing. The upgraded cables improved signal transfer and in doing so revealed the shortcomings in the Adcom. Adcoms from that era are good so far as it goes (price/performance/reliability 20 yrs ago), but they only go so far before the unrefined treble gets to you.

Anyway, just about any reputable amp from the last decade will be an improvement over the 545 II. Look into something from Parasound, such as their Halo A23 , Classic 2125, or if 75 wpc will do, the Classic 275.

The Marantz amps with the HDAM module are fantastic and perform above their price range. I heard a demo rig at a local store that had a Marantz PM8004 integrated amp ($999, their lowest price amp with HDAM) powering a $12,500 pair of Sonus Faber Cremona Ms. You would *never* have guessed that the sound from the Cremonas was powered by a <$1K amp. The Marantz HDAM amps are fast, clean, linear, neutral, with great control over the speakers, yet not a hint of edginess or clinical coldness. They also have a signal-to-noise ratio around 125 dB. which makes for excellent low level and inner detail. I heard some music I was very familiar with sound bigger, lusher, and more fully fleshed out than I'd ever heard it before.