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One box do it all

Enough of separates. Too many boxes, too many cables, don't care for those anymore.

I am willing to get a simple box that will do for me:
- AMP driving Dynaudio special forty, at least 100W
- Pre Amp for digital and analog
- Needs to have phono input as I still do some 20% listening on those, possibly MC but can live with MM
- Streaming, has to be Roon Ready as most of the time I do Roon or Roon on top of Qobuz
- Budget 2500, can't really stretch it much more than that

Seems like Cambridge EVO 150 and Arcam SA30 fit the bill but I will not get a chance to listen to those comparatively and the reviews (the "honest" ones that I could find) are kind of OKish but several complaints on Arcam stability and not so convincing on Cambridge SQ. NAD C388 also come to mind but doesn't seem to have much of a reputation

Anyone here has had personal experience with those ?

Any alternative that I should consider ?

Thanks a lot for reading so far,

Mark.
marklings
mofojo
2,312 posts
 
@OP

“only rate power over 4 Ohms (why on earth ???) at 170W. to compare apples with apples what would that rate on 8 Ohms ? 85 ? 100 ? In any case being high current it should be able to drive my Special Forty, shouldn’t it ? Any advice here ?”

I had the 2170 and it was GREAT with several speakers. Ran out of gas on some Dynaudio Contour 20s. Ymmv.
mofojo
2,312 posts
 
The 2170 made a pair of Cerwin Vega DX9 sound high end with the room correction engaged. They are awesome anyway BTW if you like you rock loud and punchy and clean “ish” Even then needed more power.  I think the amplification section is ok but nothing special. It’s was all about the Room Perfect for me. 
headphonedreams
529 posts
 
I recommend the Schiit Ragnarok, even though it doesn't fulfill all your requirements. It costs about $1800 fully loaded which includes mm input and a dac. Just add a streamer and you're done. For example the Node 2i or a Raspberry Pi (I use one with my Ragnarok). You can hide it behind the amp and leave it on.

It is only 60w but I think it can drive the Dynaudio without any problems. 

bob540
425 posts
 
I have never heard this, but before I decided to spend more on separates, I considered this receiver by Outlaw:

https://www.cnet.com/tech/home-entertainment/outlaw-audio-rr-2160-the-audiophile-choice-for-stereo-r...

It puts out 110W per channel and reviews well.  Low price allows leeway in selecting a streamer and cables and so on.  The Parasound 200 would be a more powerful option for a bit more money.  Just my two cents.
ei001h
290 posts
 
You have nice speakers, you need to decide whether you enjoy class AB vs class D. 



The best overall option for you given budget is Hegel h120 or h190. These have everything except phono. They’re class AB and will certainly drive your difficult to drive dynaudio.  The only drawback is minimalist boring design.  



Another option is NAD M10. Excellent piece. This also has everything except phono. It drives anything you throw at it. In fact, I listen to this amp more than my main rig costing 10x more, simply because of ease of use. It sounds superb. Aesthetically it will match your speakers much better than Hegel.  My M10 is always on standby and turns on s soon I stream something via tidal connect or AirPlay. It just makes it so easy to enjoy music. You’ll never regret buying an M10.  NAIM atom is a similar idea, but it’s class AB with only 40W. May not be enough to drive dynaudio. Special 40 is definitely a special speaker. 



M33 is obviously better but it’s in a different class and price range. At that price range I’d be looking for a nice class AB integrated, luxman comes to mind. But this is a different level. 
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