Gato Amp-150, BAT VK-3000SE. I own both, have given up deciding which to keep :)
Best used integrated for under $5000
All
I am in the process of building a new dedicated stereo system and looking for both speakers and an integrated. For speakers as of right now I am leannng towards either used Rockport Atria (if I can find one) or Focal Sopra 2 (if no Atria comes around in 6 months).
I am am moving to NY in 6 weeks and therefore don’t really know what the room dimensions will be.
Sound I like :
1. A tad bit warm while still having a lot of punch (nothing muddled about it)
2. Vocals (Diana Krall, John Mayer etc) have a level of cleanliness to it
3. Guitar (Gipsy kings, Jesse cook) sound airy without being lean
4. It may be related to my first point above; forgiving of average source (eg high quality Spotify streaming, which isn’t that high quality after all )
Most of my source will be Tidal and strong preference for integrated amps with a built in DAC. Even better if the unit has a streamer as well. Otherwise I am planning to use Google chrome cast (is that a bad idea).
As of right now my list has Hegel h360, Lyngdorf and Moonaudio 340i.
I am planning to buy used. That means new prices probably could be as high as $10000.
It would be great to get some recommendations.
I am in the process of building a new dedicated stereo system and looking for both speakers and an integrated. For speakers as of right now I am leannng towards either used Rockport Atria (if I can find one) or Focal Sopra 2 (if no Atria comes around in 6 months).
I am am moving to NY in 6 weeks and therefore don’t really know what the room dimensions will be.
Sound I like :
1. A tad bit warm while still having a lot of punch (nothing muddled about it)
2. Vocals (Diana Krall, John Mayer etc) have a level of cleanliness to it
3. Guitar (Gipsy kings, Jesse cook) sound airy without being lean
4. It may be related to my first point above; forgiving of average source (eg high quality Spotify streaming, which isn’t that high quality after all )
Most of my source will be Tidal and strong preference for integrated amps with a built in DAC. Even better if the unit has a streamer as well. Otherwise I am planning to use Google chrome cast (is that a bad idea).
As of right now my list has Hegel h360, Lyngdorf and Moonaudio 340i.
I am planning to buy used. That means new prices probably could be as high as $10000.
It would be great to get some recommendations.
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- 60 posts total
@DEP14 - if you look at my last post on Rick’s forum you would see that I have listed three options I am still evaluating and will make a decision post finalizing all of the auditions - used speakers - off the shelf designs by Salk or selah (two designs shortlisted from Salk and one from Selah) - going custom with Selah challenge with 2 and 3 is not being able to audition. In the past 2 weeks I have auditioned so many well regarded speakers that I didn’t love (Paradigm 3F, Dynaudio Contour 60, KEF Ref 5, B&W 802 D3, PMC Twenty5.26, Focal Sopra 2) that it is very clear taste in music is highly personal. |
In my upgrade stroll down the Yellow Brick Road to Audio OZ and stay within my budget for a new unit, the REGA OSIRIS integrated amp bested all contenders and pretenders for me. in second place, was the very fine LFD NCSE MkII integrated amp. https://parttimeaudiophile.com/2017/06/10/la-audio-show-2017-gene-rubin-audio-impresses-with-lfd-har... http://www.tonepublications.com/review/lfds-latest-amplifier/ http://www.lfd-audio.com/integrated_amplifiers.html#ncse |
The Krell Vanguard Digital is superb and glitch free! Expansive soundstage, crystal clear and dynamic as heck!! Just enough warmth without masking leading edge transients. Bass is killer and low level detail is NSA. The DAC takes my BlueSound playback to a whole other level...very organic sounding for pure digital playback. |
- 60 posts total