Hegel h590 or Accuphase e460 with Harbeth 40.3

A little while back I got to demo the 40.2 driven by the H590.IMO it sounded dry & lacked the glorious midrange I know the Harbeth to have(I have the 30.1)..A SimAudio 340i was a step ahead through the midband but the Pure Class A Sugden A21 just sang sweetly,with a beautifully voiced midrange & wonderful bass punch & tone.If it were my $ I would go with something Class A Single Ended...JMOYMMV..Good luck..

I would say Accuphase between those two choices. I've heard the 40.2 and heard the e460 not paired but it seems like a great potential pairing. I know nothing of Hegel nor have I heard any of their amps.

I’d probably go for accuphase between the two. The best match Ive heard with harbeth is Vinnie Rossi. 

Hello, having only briefly listened to a Hegel amp, I was impressed. This was at a dealer, paired with some big PMC's. But these two units must be compared by their versatility and appearance too. Any piece of stereo gear that's this expensive should be considered on all its merits; and the Accuphase just does so much more than the Hegel. My E-470 has an option board for digital inputs as well as a phono board, and in all respects it is a lovely yet powerful integrated. The Hegel is handsome, and I'm sure some would prefer it. I, however, find the Accuphase to be a gorgeous stereo component.
~Regards
Oran

I own the Harbeth 40.2 and would caution against the use of an integrated amp with it unless you don’t listen to rock and modern music. Most integrated amps lack a beefy power supply and not till I got 260.8 mono blocks did the 40.2 harbeth provide tight and full bass. I tried an EAR then a VAC integrated then a Pass Int250 and they all were great at moderate volume or for well produced music but not so much for modern music or rock.

Not surprisingly pass labs advised me to get the higher current models and against the xa160.8 that i was more inclined to get.

If you don’t want monoblocks get a high powered stereo amp at least.....