$1000 to spend on an amp used

Avguygeorge - His speakers are quite respectable, as is his preamp. Also, didn’t you notice that he has a VPI turntable? (I wish I had one) You and I might spend the money a little differently, however IMHO a $1K amp would not be significantly out of place with his other stuff.

Eldarado - You might want to consider a less expensive amp (maybe $600) in order to invest the rest elsewhere. You did not mention what you have for cables, and I think that your system is deserving of ‘decent’ ICs and speaker cables. As previously mentioned, your CD player is another opportunity for improvement.

Just my $.02

Ekistler_sj,

Sorry, I should have listed the cables. Here they are:

-AQ Diamondback IC's from the TT to Pre
-Tara Labs Air IC's from CDP to Pre
-And I need a pair to go from pre to amp but, will not need to use any of the money from the amp fund.
-PS Audio Extreme speaker cables

Thanks,

Burton

Okay, Burton, I believe that you have some good cabling (although I am not familiar with your speaker cables). So, the question is whether or not you are willing to live with your CD player for a while longer. If it were me, I would split the money between amp and CD player. Maybe for you, that would not be the right decision. Maybe you don’t use your CD player that much, or maybe it’s only for background music, or maybe you have money coming for that upgrade. If any or all are applicable to your situation, then stretch to buy the best amp you can get and upgrade the other stuff over time.

If you are intent on spending $1K on an amp, you have already received several good recommendations - a newer (but still used) Rotel, a CJ, or a McCormack would be a good bet. I think that your speakers are a little power-hungry, so I would go with a minimum of 150W of SS amplification.

Again, just my $.02

Thanks Ekistler. If you were going to spilt the money between an amp and a CDP what would recommend?

Thanks,

Burton

Off of the top of my head, I would probably go 60% amp and 40% CD player. Naturally, others would disagree. In that price range brands such as Rotel and Parasound are bargains on the used market. I am partial to Rotel (having owned several Rotel pieces), and one could easily find a good Rotel power amp for $600 and a nice Rotel CD player for $400. I am assuming that a $400 CD player would be a step up for you, as you describe your current player as an El Cheapo, but that may not turn out to be the case - depending on what you have and what you replace it with.

There are many other possibilities, of course. For that same $600 you could probably find an older Bryston or McCormack amplifier, for example. Turning back to the CD player, an older Arcam or Cal Audio or Cairn unit could be had for around $400. A lot of people believe in putting most of their money up front - as in spending more on source/preamp components vs. spending more on amps and speakers. Again, if I were spending that $1K in your shoes, I would split it 60% amp and 40% CD player.

All of this advice is, of course, worth everything you’ve paid for it!