Hidden Gems in Pre-Owned Solid State Power Amplifiers?

Bought a McCormack DNA-2 Deluxe one year ago, absolutely beautiful sound and a Threshold S500 mkII is on the way this week to add to my collection. Totally happy with these old gems.

I have probably owned 20 amps over the 40 years as an enthusiast and a Dealer. Closed the Dealer doors some 10 years ago.

Probably the best overall SS amp was a Kinergetics KBA 75, a class A amp. I tried a number of amps to power my then Genesis Vs, the KBA was the only amp that made them stand up and boogie. I saw an upgraded one for sale recently at a very good price, if you can afford the electricity and need a room heater.

There are a couple reasons why you see so many vg amps being sold. Among them; people in the biz selling their older model, impedance mismatch between amp and preamp (more common than you think), a move from SS to tube, OR, a move from conventional SS to class D, and now to GaN. I have owned 6 different class Ds, including W4S, Audio Alchemy and PS Audio Stellar M700s (both bargains), but I have a large room and need more power

Recently I purchased a EVS 1200 direct from Ric Schultz. He starts with the current OEM dual 600w IcePower class D modules (which some people simply put in a box and sell). Not Ric. His are highly tweaked and rival the sound of my beloved KBA 75. He sells direct for a mere ~$2400 + options http://tweakaudio.com/EVS-2/EVS_1200_amplifier.html

Of late,Underwood HiFI has introduced a possible game changer: the Voyager GaN amp, for people who only need ~ 200-400 wpc. Comparing to other GaN amps, it is priced at about 1/10th their price. Underwood is shooting for late December release. I expect to have one soon, If interested, I have a very popular EVS 1200 thread, and will start one once I get the GaN

hth

The KBA75 that tweak1 mentioned for sale was probably mine.  I rebuilt one myself and sold it just a couple of weeks ago.  This is truly a gem of an amplifier.  It has a warm delicate nature, yet still very good detail. The buyer gave feedback that the amp is outstanding.  
Another old amp if properly rebuilt that is Equally good is a Sumo Nine.  Beware without the boards having several parts replaced,  it will not be in the league of the KBA75,  but when updated with quality parts,  this old amp is Excellent.  A few last amps that you don't see mentioned often is a Muse One Hundred Sixty,  Followed by a Muse One Hundred. I Also rebuilt an old Heathkit AA-1600 from top to bottom. Never hear anything about this old amp, but also Excellent.  As with old amps,  at a minimum power supply caps should be updated and most likely much more.  

@roberjerman I have a Bedini 150/150 and a BEL 1001, among others in my collection. Both still working fine! 


No Buzzzzing?    
Sweet!!

Reference Line Audio Silver Signature. Owned one for 20 years and it's still the best solid state amp I've heard.