I own and still do the Destiny 1. It is a great amp solid build and very good sound. In my audio travels this is about what it takes to get what I consider acceptable sound. You can pair this with almost any decent speakers and a decent DAC and get some very excellent sound. Ill still take my separates any day but if I had any friend who wanted a good sounding stereo I would say the Destiny is an awesome foundation. I've seen these as low as 1000 here on audiogon and that is a heck of a buy. Why don't you email creek and ask the difference. I had a question about mine and mike creek himself promptly answered my email. |
Early Destiny amps were made in Great Britain. Later ones are made in China if that makes a difference. |
I think Creek products are very underrated. I haven't heard one that was made in China, so I really can't comment on it. But if you find one made in GB, I would definitely recommend it. I would also consider a 5350. I'm sorry I sold mine. |
Thanks to all who responded so far; I needed info about the newer Creek amps because I am downsizing again to save shipping cost from Hawaii to somewhere in California next year. I previously owned a 5350SE Classic which I enjoyed for 4 years until upsizing the system to separates in 2008 .Nice sounding amp but I often clipped the amp because 75RMS was not enough power to do justice to Yes, Jeff Beck or Beethoven.
I think I had the later model made in China because it was kind of junky, like the volume knob and push buttons The only other integrated that is better is either the new Sim Audio or Krell 300i which sounds bright to me. I am sure there is much better integrated amps out there but the cost may be 3 times that of the original Destiny 1 |
I also owned the 5350 and the destiny is better but it's only weakness is it doesn't play extremely lound with inefficient speakers like dynaudio or revel. I've had mine shut down a time or two when really cranking some music for a while and that was in a bedroom. If you are thinking of filling a large room at a high level this might not do it. Other than that it sounds great.I've played my destiny with revel M20 dynaudio contour 2.5 and Von schweikert vr 1 and they all sound good.
I also have a simaudio i5.3 that has 80 watts compared to the destiny at 100. The sim sounds great too but is a little more finicky with the speakers it works with. It's ok with the revel great with the dynaudio and not so great with the Von schweikert. It seems to have more power than the destiny and plays with a little more authority but the destiny is great too and very musical and easy to listen to. The sim audio is a brighter more revealing sound with more refinement and space the destiny is a little warm and fuzzy compared. You would prob have a favorite side by side but either on their own should satisfy most anyone as long as you aren't used to 20k separates. |
"I think I had the later model made in China because it was kind of junky, like the volume knob and push buttons The only other integrated that is better is either the new Sim Audio or Krell 300i which sounds bright to me."
I don't think that any of the 5350's were ever made in China. You may be confusing it with the Evolution 5350. I'm pretty sure about that but not 100%.
Also, when you say that you know the Krell and Sim are better but they sound bright to you, are you sure? If you think they are too bright, that tells me you have some issues with how they sound. I recommend you look around a little more. There's no shortage of good sounding integrates out there, at all price levels. You really don't have to settle. I would also caution you to not to take power ratings too seriously. Every manufacturer has their own way of measuring how powerful their amps are. Sometimes, these ratings can vary greatly. Someone above mentioned that the Sim seemed to have more power than the Creek. That may very well be true. Sim may be more conservative in their measurements. |
I just thought I'd chime in on a Creek thread. I am the delighted owner of an EVOLUTION 2 integrated amp. When used in a well-balanced system it is capable of providing both musicality and fidelity.
I am a strong believer in the synergistic complement of one component to another. In my system I pair the EVO with a pair of Tannoy Saturn 6 bookshelf speakers and source my musical selections from an Arcam CD-73.
The system is timbrally true so that instruments have the honest character and color of the materials used in their construction. Inner dynamics are excellent with each musical voicing is easy to follow within the soundstage presented. 24" Lovan speaker stands toed-in slightly do the trick in delivering realistic height, width and depth to a recorded performance.
The system is forgiving of less-than-stellar recordings
and has an overall flat response that is not partial to musical genre which is appreciated since my listening runs across the full spectrum.
Cabling was chosen from TaraLabs so as to provide a bit more forwardness and sparkle. I consider cabling a choice similar to the "season to taste" instruction that goes with food preparation.
As you can probably tell, listening to music is a passion of mine. Perhaps an addiction would be a better term with over 5,000 cd's in my collection.
I welcome any and all comments. |
To zd542. I forgot to add a comma between Sim and Krell. The Krell, NOT the Sim, integrated sounds bright. The Sim sounded very good, but the power is a bit low, and as indicated in this article, it can be finicky with different speakers. However, thanks for the comment, I indeed need to keep looking.
PS, there is the new Bel Canto integrated, but it has both a DAC and phono input, and some inputs for computer audio which I do or will not need. Jim |
Sunnyjim, I'm surprised nobody has chimed in thats heard both. I hope someone can give you some perspective on the matter. That said I own a Deatiny 1 and think its an outstanding piece, I use it in a second system, though sadly it gets almost no time.
The funny thing when listening to it comparing my main rig at the time (Audio Research SP11 and Bryston 4bst) I thought the Creek sounded wimpy. When I removed from the rack by chance I placed it on its side. Low and behold there was a switch on the bottom that reduced the preamp section output by 6db. Voila, a wimp no longer. I wonder if yours has one like it? |
landerson. I don't have either a Destiny 1 or D-2. I have read about the switch you mentioned. One thing I am confused about is how by lowering the pre-amp out put by 6db, made your Destiny I sounder better. The Creek 5350SE Classic, I owned for 4 years had no such switch. Actually, in the reviews, I have read of the Destiny I and and 2, I always wondered what that switch did when the reviewers were talking about technical features. Thankyou for your input |
Sunnyjim,
Sorry, I think I was somewhat vague and inacuarate in my response. To note:
Destiny offers both passive and active preamp operation, switchable from the front panel. Another switch on the underside of the amp (to be operated only when the main amplifier power is switched off) permits choice of 3, 6 or 9 dB of active gain in the preamp section.
So when I was originality listening, my preamp was set to passive. Swiching it to active and rolling the gain to 6, or 9db of gain made it sound wonderful !
I hope that helps. |
Ianderson, Thank you for clarifying your comment. Now if I can only find out why the Destiny 1 is/was discontinued, and if so what makes the D-2 a worthy, improved replacement |
Let me had one more wrinkle to the discussion. What is a better sounding integrated in terms of overall musicality, transpareny and smooth ness?? The Destiny 2 or a Krell S300i. Both retailed for between $2500-2795. I will appreciate any comment or advice. |
Sunnyjim, Why don't you call a Creek dealer, surely they would have heard the old and new version and could share an opinion, just watch out for bias. Also new models will always try to entice the customer with more - what that is varies, all the while trying to lower the cost of goods to increase profitability in order to pay the bills. Newer is no guarantee of better, though it might.
Are you looking to buy a used one? |
Ianderson, I agree with you about "newer" is not necessarily better" It could actually sound worse than previous model. I got some information from designer Mike Creek, who claims that the Destiny I bit the dust because the transistors in the output stage were obsolete to achieve its published specs. Newer transitors were used which increased power output to 120RMS from 100RMS. This also allowed "a wider choice of MOSFET transistors". Therefore, one can hope that the changes produced better sound. or at least a more stable amp. The downside is that the Destiny 2 is assembled in China with parts sourced from there, Korea, Japan, and the UK. As you said, manufacturers's look for cheaper parts and labor.The Destiny 2 was tagged at $2795.00 which is not inexpensive. If the unit was assembled in Japan, I would feel better, in China...no. I have seen too many half-assed pieces of junk come out of those factories that require repeat servicing |
