I was lucky to get my hands on the Belles SA30 class A power amp, what a fantastic sound, very organic and musical. Very happy with the purchase.
Any love for the Belles Aria or other recent Belles amplifier?
I recently heard a Belles 150a Hotrod with Triangle Zerius speakers and a transformer volume control. The sound is one of the most compelling pairings I have heard. I am considering purchasing a used 350a or a new Aria or 150a ref. v2.
Has anyone spent time with one, two or all three of these amplifiers? I'd like to spend as little as possible but still have an outstanding match with the easy-to-drive Zerius. I like the idea of an integrated if it sounds as good as the bigger amps just with less output power.
Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated!
Has anyone spent time with one, two or all three of these amplifiers? I'd like to spend as little as possible but still have an outstanding match with the easy-to-drive Zerius. I like the idea of an integrated if it sounds as good as the bigger amps just with less output power.
Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated!
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I’ve got a Belles Aria and it is fantastic. Its very open sounfing with good textures and micro details. Bass control is fantastic as well. I believe it has a damping factor of 2000 or something close to that; perhaps thats why the bass response is so good. When I popped the cover off to peer inside I was impressed with the build quality and material used. The Belles aria is a great little amp. It sounds really nice, slightly sweet sounding. I’d love to hear some new Klipsches with the Aria. I think that would be a good match. I’m currently using the Aria Integrated with some Fritz Carrera BE’s and they sound wonderful together! |
I just purchased a Belles Aria Dual Mono integrated and at 125 hours of use, I am thrilled beyond words! It "woke up" my Spendor D7.2's with a very lively cohesive dense soundstage that is immediate sounding, yet, interestingly enough, I don't get fatigued listening to this amplifier for hours on end. I have owned many amplifiers over the decades, yet, I can now listen to CD's again with this amplifier plugged into my system. They now sound so good that I'm not chomping at the bit anymore to play a record. The Belles Aria Dual Mono integrated is IMHO, the best sounding and most enjoyable amplifier I have ever owned. It has grunt, clarity, great bass, mids and detail / air up top without irritation. I also like how it is built and how form follows function. I think it looks great with the black chassis too. Finally, before hooking it up, I took a look under the hood and smiled when I saw two nice size power transformers. It claims to be 85wpc, but it sounds way more muscular than it might appear to be with my 8 ohm speakers. This would be the amp I would keep if I had to choose only one. Before looking elsewhere, take a risk with the Aria Dual Mono integrated. It is a very special and speaker friendly piece worth owning. |
I was lucky enough to find and buy a pair of Belles Aria monoblocks recently. Listening to them for the 2nd night in a row and really enjoying them. Despite having less power than either my Schiit Vidar or McCormack DNA-1, they seem to dig deeper with the KEF LS50 Metas and drive them better. The Metas have never sounded better. |
((((I can now listen to CD's again with this amplifier plugged into my system. They now sound so good that I'm not chomping at the bit anymore to play a record. The Belles Aria Dual Mono integrated is IMHO, the best sounding and most enjoyable amplifier I have ever owned. It has grunt, clarity, great bass, mids and detail / air up top without irritation. I also like how it is built and how form follows function. I think it looks great with the black chassis too. Finally, before hooking it up, I took a look under the hood and smiled when I saw two nice size power transformers. It claims to be 85wpc, but it sounds way more muscular than it might appear to be with my 8 ohm speakers. This would be the amp I would keep if I had to choose only one. Before looking elsewhere, take a risk with the Aria Dual Mono integrated. It is a very special and speaker friendly piece worth owning.)))) Greetings, Thanks for sharing your Belles Dual Mono experience. I totally agree a special amp at 3495 for sure or at any price!!!. Just wanted also to let folks know There is a Belles for everybody! Please feel free to give me a call JohnnyR Audio Connection Verona NJ
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I got the Aria monoblocks, but Johnny Rutan recommended the Aria Signature preamp. Absolutely no regrets on my decision to move to the Signature. To be honest, I probably should have plumped for the Sig monoblocks, and been done with it. The Aria integrated is one of the sleeper bargains out there. You can build a very nice system around it. Bob |
@gdnrbob 👍🏼 |
Hi all. I wanted resurrect this thread. First, wanted to thank all of you on here for your thoughts on Belles amps. My Vandersteen 2ce signatures were initially driven with a NAD 2400 and NAD preamp ~18 years ago. For the past 10 years or so, the Vandie 2ce sigs so little use but now I have the time to enjoy them again. I connected with Johnny R at audio connection and picked up the dual mono signature integrated. All I can say is that it is one heck of an amp. I have never heard the Vandies sound this good. :) |
Congrats @ahuey on getting the Belles. It’s a really nice upgrade vs the NAD and must sound great. I was at Audio Connection about a month ago listening to the Belles dual mono Signature driving a pair of Treo CTs and that was an incredible pairing. I love my Belles Aria monoblocks and now use them to drive Vandersteen 3a Signatures. John and his team are the best! |
@nymarty Thanks. My I ask what speaker cables you are running with your 3A signatures? I am running an older pair of Kimber 8TC biwired. I was speaking with Johnny R and the recommendation of Audioquest Robin Hood Zero and bass would be awesome but unfortunately out of my price range. I would not get the blessing from the wife for that. The other option was to consider the Rocket 88 with naked Bi-wire naked jumpers. I believe Johnny said the jumpers would give about 80 to 85% the performance of the true biwire setup. Has anyone tried audioquest naked biwire jumper and their thoughts to this with Vandersteens? |
@ahuey i’m running double biwire Kimber 8TC too. And Johnny R said the same thing to me about moving to Audioquest. But he also gets that Robin Hood would be more than I paid for my 3a’s. I’m on the lookout for used Audioquest but will likely stick with running biwired. And I pretty much listen to Johnny R. His advice about setup and gear pairing always gives me better sound. |
Guys, the AQ cables are what Richard voices his speakers with. They are highly neutral no matter which ones you get. I’m running the William Tell Silver with the matching zero cable and using a 3’ run. Yes, they are amazing, but I’ve also heard my speakers with the lower cost AQ cables and they sounded great. Johnny is the one to ask about going with the best AQ you and buy in a bi wire or with the proper jumper cables. He listens all the time to different cables on them and knows what is best. It’s what you pay for going to a dealer! :). Keep us posted. |