All-in-one integrated, 10-15K range, class A/B only

Hegel H590

The Boulder is exceptional. Before I demoed the 866 I was predisposed to not like it as I was never impressed with the 865 (no offense to anyone who liked the 865, it just was too dry for me at the time I demoed it). I compared with Pass Int250, Lux 509x and my brief demo of a Gryphon was good but not enough to make me pull the trigger but that was over a year ago. I have also owned the Nagra Classic Integrated late last year, it is also superb. All these are superb integrateds but the Boulder was clearly superior to my ears. Maybe its my ears coming around to Boulder rather than Boulder evolving, I don’t know, but it is an exceptional integrated amp and that’s from a highly biased tube lover. I ended up buying it. It replaced an ARC Ref5SE/Ref75se in a second system driving Wilson Sasha 2. All transparent Gen 5 ultra cabling.

The Dac section I ordered as an "oh I might want it someday when I’m between dacs" kind of decision. I was biased that it would be so-so and a convenient bridge as we roll through dacs from time to time. I was dead wrong. It is really, really a nice dac! You would need to spend $3-5k or more to achieve the level of performance and even then, it would likely just be different and not necessarily better. Some of the finer points though on the dac section: The streamer is killer, there is no USB b port so you arent able to stream from a server via usb. It is not yet a roon endpoint (upnp presently is the only option), they are presently in the certification stage. The aes-ebu input is very nice, I havent tried the other inputs or direct attachment of external usb media. I use Mconnect hd to stream qobuz and its very, very nice. I have an Innuos Zenith MkIII running roon core but it is presently only utilized to stream to my external Aqua dac.

The remote control is via an iPad app or an optional remote via a usb dongle. Both work well.

Overall, I am thrilled with the purchase. There is so much great gear out there and you would likely be happy with any of a handful. If I didn’t already own some really good dacs, I wouldn’t necessarily feel the need to buy one. Dacs on hand: Lampi Amber 3, Aqua La Scala Optologic MkII. Former dacs: Chord Dave, Nagra Classic Dac, Lampi Golden Atlantic, Totaldac D1Tube, etc.

The dac in the 866 is terrific. The amp is terrific. It is like an ingot of aluminum. Build quality is very high. All the burbling of the look of the heatsinks is BS. The amp is to0 beautiful to tuck away unless you live in a lavender Victorian....then, the amp deserves to be shielded from the Victorian aesthetic to perform it best (LOL).

In summary, this is the first integrated amplifier that I’ve heard that is reasonably priced that will seriously leave you wondering why you feel the need for separates. The Boulder may not be for you but I assure you, it will be a major hit for Boulder. And thats coming from someone who was Boulder agnostic before experiencing the 866 for myself. Demo a number of different amps and buy the one you like.

No offense intended but the McIntosh and the Hegel, while fine pieces, are not in the same zip code as the Boulder. The Boulder 866 could have been priced at $20,000 for the analog version and $25,000 for the dac version and the reviewers would still crow about it. Its that good. Its a good thing Boulder doesn't change models very often, it will probably take them several years to work through the order backlog once people get a chance to hear it.

Been reading reviews on the ones people have been posting about here and that Hegel seems to really be getting the best reviews, sounds like they feel the dac in it alone justifies the price. Not a brand I’ve heard about until more recently, may need to check that out myself

@speedbump6


Indeed the Hegel has been getting some good reviews from the Hegel owners. The 390 is supposed to be a really fine amp/dac, especially at the prices you see them discounted at both new and preowned. The 590 had better be good at $11k. The strongest reviews seem to be from the reviewers who already own Hegel, which can be a strong statement or a channel, depending on perspective. There is some great gear being made and designed throughout the world and I'm certain the Hegel falls into that camp.

Until you hear the Vitus, the Nagra, the Gryphon and then the Boulder...the refinement is just there. The elegance is just there. It does come at a price but to many its worth it. I don't know if Hegel really knows how to play in the 5 figure game yet, we will see. Go hear all of the aforementioned amps, no matter what you buy, its really amazing what is available today in high quality gear.