Class A integrated amp recommendations

When it came time to replace my 25 year old CJ PV 5 & Solid state amp combo a few years back, I lusted after an Ayre EX-8. As my wife let me know that was out of the question, I settled on a Luxman L-550AXII.

ive continue to be quite happy with the choice. It has a bit of the richness and depth I associate with tubes, without the loss of resolution. It’s a polar opposite of the plastic 2d sound of class d. the build is superb. Every day, after listening to much more expensive gear at work. I go home and enjoy the Luxman. At the time, I considered the 590ax II, but the president of Luxman America convinced me the power of the 550 was more than adequate for my 91db speakers. As I’ve heard it driving much more difficult loads, I do not doubt it would be good enough for the Joseph’s. It has far more current capability than the Pass, for example. While it doesn’t match the Ayre for detail, at 60% of the price, it is always enjoyable. The phono section is quite good, as a bonus!

Pass INT-25.  Best sound for the money and perfect for higher sensitivity speakers. 

More dynamic and transparent than the Luxman models.

i am a pass owner and big fan

but i think there would be many who would argue with the feelings expressed above, both on the question of value for $ as well as sonic differences vs luxman

Thanks all for sharing your thoughts. The suggestions to move up the JA line have always been on my mind and is something that I aspire to. Used JAs are fairly rare and I'm patient.

I should note that I'm not looking to replace the I5 but to try new amps in order to explore how the JAs sound with other amps. The I5/RM7 sig combo has been with me 20+ yrs, it's not going anywhere and is my point of reference (sure there are much better systems but also much worse).

Suggestions have been made to add a subs but I think  they might overpower my space and I don't really have good placement options for them anyway. More powerful amps have been suggested, but for my listening levels I don't feel that I really need more raw power. If that were the case, I'd probably move up the Sim Audio line because I do like that house sound.

The rational is that I rarely exceed 32 on the volume setting which is .1 dB steps from 0-37 and .5 dB steps from 38-51. And most of the time volume is set from 24 to 30. Given that the I5 is rated for 70W with Class A operation for the first 5W, I'm guessing that for those levels, the I5 is delivering somewhere in the neighborhood of 25 to 40 watts. Of Class A/B power. So what would 30W of pure Class A sound like? I'm dying to find out...

Lastly JA owners, are you out there?

@jjss49 Do have any thoughts on the Pass int-25 vs the int-30?

Suggestions have been made to add a subs but I think they might overpower my space and I don’t really have good placement options for them anyway

I respectfully disagree with this. I think adding two small subs could be revelatory to your listening experience. An example would be a pair of SVS SB1000 Pro subs that measure only about 13” square yet still get down to an honest 20Hz (-3dB) and include DSP integration software that makes them relatively easy to seamlessly blend them with your speakers and room, and a pair will only set you back $1150. Plus, and very importantly, subs are not only about bass — not by a long shot. Properly integrated subs will greatly enhance both 3D imaging and greatly expand the soundstage in addition to providing more dynamics and better bass overall. SVS offers a 45-day, risk-free trial period (including shipping both ways) and I’d highly recommend checking them out. Even if you upgrade to something like Pulsars in the future you’ll wanna keep the subs. Just something else to chew on FWIW.

https://www.svsound.com/products/sb-1000-pro-subwoofer