Best Integrated, period.


Has anyone compared, Gryphon Diablo, Gamut Di150, Vitus SS101, Krell FBI, APL UA-S1 Jeff Rowland Continuum 500? Please add what you found to be best integrated.
perrew
I loved the sound of my Krell kav300 il but it broke 4 times in 5 years so I replaced it with an Anthem 225. I found the Krell more musical but the Anthem is still breaking in and the demo I brought home sounded powerful and alive.
In the thread title a request is made for the best integrated amplifier. No consensus will ever be reached on that subject.
The one I have been using for the past year is the Jeff Rowland Continuum S2. It is surely the best built and probably the most ergonomically sensitive with the exception of the inexcusably cheesy plastic remote. The amp itself is a beautifully crafted, solid aluminum chassis which you can order with a terrific phono section, an onboard DAC, or neither.
The look and feel of this unit are both to die for. It is powered by a Pascal amplifier module providing 400 watts per channel and it rivals any separates on the market, even the Rowland flagship gear. The only real problem with it is the price tag which comes in just under $10K. Of course, you have to expect that kind of pricing when you are discussing "the best" of anything.
For solid state LFD zero LE 1V. Tubes-Leben 300XS. That's it. Have both, tried many.