Integrated amp recommendations for harbeth 30.2 XD

the hegel h160 while a ’last gen’ piece at this point, would, imo, set a very high bar to beat in driving harbeths (it is last gen primarily in the dac section only, the amp section is still absolutely top notch) - this is why i am so curious to hear @whipsaw’s findings with his new gato... it would be really something of note if the gato can outperform the h160

another amp i have found to work very very well with the harbeths are the devialets (they also have a useful ’sam’ feature that enhances the bass response of the speaker while also protecting the bass driver) - truly excellent sound

finally, harbeths are a speaker that readily exposes the sq difference between really fine amps like hegel or ayre or pass vs something like a nad... this comment is borne from personal experience, not reviews, nor conjecture

the hegel h160 while a ’last gen’ piece at this point, would, imo, set a very high bar to beat in driving harbeths (it is last gen primarily in the dac section only, the amp section is still absolutely top notch)

Thanks for that, and I do agree that the h160 is excellent. I could have easily lived with it and been happy, but had an itch to try out the GATO.

It’s still very early, but I am tempted to say that the GATO is fleshing out some subtle details that I wasn’t hearing with the Hegel. It could well be bias at play, as I am not set up to A/B the two amps under controlled conditions, but I do seem to be hearing some differences.

I was listening last night to an excellent (live) Mary Stallings CD that I know well, and, among other things, Ron Blake’s tenor saxophone playing sounded more vivid in that I was picking up details from around his mouth.

I also want to say that I am picking up on what might be thought of as a more ’organic’ timbre from acoustic instruments, and that GATO has a better 'grip' on the bass.

I need more time, though, to arrive at any kind of confident conclusions.

whip -- be sure to clarify if you used the h160 through its onboard dac, or if you listened to the amp section only with other source feeding the 160 through analog inputs - important distinction

h160 dac based on an older gen akm chip now 5-6 years old, can sound a little dull and obscure some subtle details compared to the better dacs out there today (and the refreshed hegel dac sections)

gato is straight integrated, no onboard dac, yes?

cheers

Sorry! No, I have used both through my relatively new Denafrips Pontus II DAC. So in that sense, the comparison is fair, as I was bypassing the Hegel DAC.

This is my first stand-alone DAC, and it has spurred the temptation to upgrade other components, at least to some extent. I am not a serial flipper, though, and when I am happy with a system, I usually stick with it for years.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nxdsq451hP0

Gato vs Hegel.  I presume they're played in the order listed in the title.