I prefer the IA-4 to the Z10 when used with the Devore 93s - a much more dynamic, clear, and spacious presentation. The Z10 has a mild sweetness to the sound but is a little too delicate and undramatic for me; I do like the microzotl preamps and love the Ultralinear amp and integrated. The IA-4 is more directly comparable to those, yet having a broader soundstage and better resolution of space and detail, but isn’t as hard hitting or quite as palpable. I think I just very barely prefer the Ultralinear overall but I’m sure many others would go for the Sugden instead. Both are killer integrateds.
I’m not using any of these amps right now, as I’m moving to an SA Lab Thunderbird on the basis of a suggestion by a dealer I trust. I flipped too much gear and am happy to defer to someone else!
I’m not using any of these amps right now, as I’m moving to an SA Lab Thunderbird on the basis of a suggestion by a dealer I trust. I flipped too much gear and am happy to defer to someone else!