@bourbonkernel, new gear day for you soon! The CXA61 should sound pretty neutral. Really interesting though that it doesn’t have a pre-amp built in though as I considered that a pretty standard feature for an integrated. I don’t use built-in pre-amps so it wouldn’t be a big deal for me (I use my Cambridge solos), but just making sure you’re aware of that!
At this point since I finally have sensitive speakers, I would probably order multiple amps in the future and audition them and pick the best one when it’s time to upgrade! My PMA-800NE is a non-mosfet amp (was only a $700 amp). The PMA-1800NE has mosfet components, so that would be interesting to audition. I’d probably pick a Cambridge and a NAD and find a seller with a fantastic return policy.
@jamesecox Keep us updated on what you think as time goes on. You have a similar size room to me, but mine is a little bigger (plus vaulted ceilings) and I had add a little EQ "oompf" to them to get a feeling that they are connected to the ground. They don't seem to be too punishing on subpar pressings which is nice. vinyl scratches/imperfections are a bit more frontward compared to my cheapies, but not overly so. Compared to my cheapy polks, the Zus kinda "unstitch" music and allow each component/instrument to expand as it wishes were my Polks had a "mesh" sound that kinda made everything sound good, but boring without depth. I wouldn't say the Zus make bad records worse, but they let you know that the recording has more easily detectable faults. Pretty cool! For superb recordings I feel like I'm experiencing music completely differently and hearing things I never heard before.
@wolf_garcia Zu is very good about buy and try. They make it pretty accessible and have no problem if people don’t really like what they hear! You had the DWMk2’s probably which was a pretty good speaker for the price. The DWMK1’s were lackluster according to a couple reviews I’ve read (mainly because they had cost reduced parts). An upgraded DW MK2 and MK6 is basically an Omen II MK2 which is tried and true Zu speaker. The MK6 just takes it further with a redesigned cabinet that is supposedly superior to the finger ports of the past where you had to play a lot with the height of the speaker. There’s probably a good chunk of people that don’t spend enough time playing with the finger port heights and placement that send them back. The finger port height is critical for getting that full/lower sound. But it’s inferior IMO because it comes at the cost of not being able to tilt the speaker. Let’s be honest, while the Zu speakers look sexy as hell, a full range driver being placed that’s centered a little bit below 3’ is pretty low for 90% of listening heights (I have very low MCM couch/chairs) and they really deserve some level tilt-back to really get them at their full potential. Doing that with older Zus would be a no-no cuz of those damn finger ports.
