Integrated Amp -- $1,500 or less.

If your speaker is easy to drive, than I vouch for the 47 Labs Shigaraki integrated that can be had for the stated price or even lower used. It has a separate power supply and 3 inputs only, but when it comes down to drive and sound quality, it matches well into very expensive 5K combination, as I had playing before I got into it. It has 20 watts, but you have to hear it to believe it. It is amazing. It can match about 100% of the sound quality that a First Sound Presence Deluxe preamp offered partnered with a 200 watt DNA 225 would pound out....as long as the speakers you are driving are medium efficient, in dynamic terms. Furthermore, it gives the midrange insight that the same preamp would give with a 300B Western Electric tubes would provide, or least I call it a good 95% of it. I doubt that there is an integrated mentioned here that can do both of these feat together into one.
Mine sits beautifully on top of my McCormack Amp, which has become a $2700 amp rack for it. All other components in my system are becoming irrelevant as I speak. I have ran it with Epos ES11 monitors, which give a slamming sound, that I have not been able to hear from it, and now, I run it with a pair of horn loaded Fostex cabinets. Most excellent quality of sound.

PAUL

If you already have had Bryston gear have you thought about a B-60? They can be found used for half of your budget, and with thier 20 year transferrable warranty, what is the point of buying new?

just my 2c

Ellery

Tom, keep an eye out for a used Joule Electra VAMP integrated amp. Joule sold these for $3,800 new and Jud (Joule) lost money on every one he sold. I stole mine for $1,000 and I it is a keeper. I actually need to sell it to free up money for a preamp for my main system but I can't bring myself to do it. It's too damn good.

I am very familiar with the Joule products (own a VZN80 OTL amp). The midrange of the VAMP is killer. It works very well with my Merlins VSMs. Think midrange similar to his OTL with control/convenience of solid state. Solid state is not supposed to sound like this. The highs are not as extended as the OTL. (What is?) When I get some time I am going to roll a few tubes in it. It comes with a remote, multiple inputs, etc. etc. I'll put it to you this way. If I were forced to get rid of the VZN80 and run the VAMP I could get by and still experience world class audio.

A classic piece of audio equipment.

Another poster mentioned Aronov. I have owned an Aronov amp and did not like it at all with the Merlins.

Best of luck.

Jim

I use a Plinius 8150 int. amp with my Tyler Taylo monitors and am quite pleased. My source is a Linn Ikemi. Happy listening.
Joel

I stumbled across a used Primare A10 recently, it is one helluva nice integrated and set me back all of $550. Really nice build quality, good remote, and puts out a respectable 50wpc. Not that well know cuz it's Swedish but the ergonomics, component selection, and inputs/outputs are very well thought out. A headphone jack would have been nice, guess you can't have it all. It has a somewhat dark/laid back quality to it that I enjoy; similar to the Audio Refinement with maybe just a touch more mid-range bloom. Certainly worth considering IMHO. Jeff