Amp question... Forte 4a or B&K ST140

Interesting question of amps.. I have a Forte 1a I used with several different speakers over a 12 yr period, I have heard the B&K st140 and personally I much prefer the sound of the Forte 1a over the B&K. The B&K is really warm/glowing and "loose" whereas the Forte is to me more authoritative and forceful in the bass, also more tightened down. I'm guessing the Forte 4a is a little better than the 1a (??). Rarely you see a Forte 4a for sale. There are two 1a's for sale now on audiogon I see.. great price for a good amp. My 1a is broken (1 channel gone bad). My current amp is an Eagle 4 which is better overall but much more money.

Regarding the ST 140 and 4 ohm speakers. The early models with the gold lettering and silver handles used one pair of mosfets per side and do not handle 4 ohm loads very well. The later version with red & blue lettering is a completely different amp. The only similarity is the model number and power rating. It uses 2 pair of mosfets per side and will handle 4 ohm speakers just fine. It is also a better sounding amp. It has tighter bass, smoother highs, is more detailed and retains about 90% of the midrange magic of the earlier version. I have both versions and have compared them extensively. It is a major bargain at the normal selling price of $175-250. In fact it beats the pants off many more expensive amps. Here are a few I have compared it to with the ST 140 coming out ahead: Aragon 2004, Hafler 9300, Meitner STR 50, Nakamichi PA 5 & PA 7, Adcom GFA 555,
and several inexpensive tube amps. I have not heard the Forte 4A, but doesn't it use IGBT outputs which are no longer available?

I have owned both and the Forte 1a is better in every way. If it does not have replacement parts available then the equation changes. I would consider more powerful B&k amps and the Bryston amps like the 4BNRB or 3BST. Jallen

Elizabeth, I could be wrong about this, but, I thought that the 4A unlike the 4 were truly balanced and more than a 4 with balanced inputs.