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Warm, rich, smooth, 3d tube integrated amp, budget $6000

Hey guys sorry to ask again but now I'm considering a tube integrated for my vienna acoustics haydn grand, atc scm7 and yamaha ns5000. Want something, rich with forward mids.. something 3d sounding.

So far my top contenders are conrad johnson cav 45s2 and prima luna evo 400.  If it doesn't get super hot that would be nice but not mandatory.

Right now I'm using my elekit tu8600 which is a very good amp.. works well with grand haydns but not enough power for ns5k or scm7.

Thanks !

smodtactical

Showing 2 responses by larryi

larryi
3,743 posts
 

If the Elekit works well, I would expect a 40-60 watter is a viable candidate.  I understand you don’t want a built in DAC, but it would be a mistake to not consider the Synthesis A40; I would take it over any other candidate even if it had no DAC.  It is better, for my taste anyway, than anything I’ve heard from any other company up to at least twice its price.  It’s sound is rich, harmonically saturated and weighty, without being murky or dynamically polite.  

larryi
3,743 posts
 

I am a broken record on this, but, the integrated tube amp that I am a BIG fan of is the Synthesis Audio A-40 (40-watt, pushpull, KT-66 tube).  It comes with a killer good DAC included.

For a price a bit out of your range the Synthesis A-100 (100-watt, four KT-66 per channel) is the way to go (yes, it also has a built-in DAC). 

Both amps are among the best sounding tube amps on the market.  The sound is both rich and bold sounding, without being sluggish or murky as some other warm or rich sounding tube amps can be.  

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