Stereophile Class A

Class A amplifiers and Stereophile class A rated components are not the same thing.A class A amp runs hot and inefficient but sounds as loud as a class AB with double the rated watts.A Stereophile class A rated component is just a rating system for a very popular magazine which can be taken with a grain of salt.They are heavily influenced by advertising dollars. Listen for yourself or talk to some audiophiles that have been around for awhile.But all that aside you can get a very nice class A amp on the used market which is also rated as class A by Stereophile for around a grand.The very popular Pass Labs Aleph 3 solid state.

I couldn't believe I actually got so many responses. For those who wanted the sensitivity of my speakers...i dont know...i'll check the measurements ...but they are home-made (by me) 3-way with a JM Labs Utopia 33WX woofer with a PHL 1220 Mid-Range and a Philips R8TP tweeter. I might add a Raven r3.1

So i Think I have decided on integrated for now.
How are Cambridge audio or Audiosource??
I think i have zeroed in on either a creek 5350 or a musical fidelity a3 (integrated

For Cambridge Audio look for the discontinued A3i. It is superior to their current A500 and other offerings. The A3i was designed top to bottom by Michael Creek, so it's like getting a Creek at a big discount ($250 used). The A3i also comes with a decent moving magnet phono stage.

I use an A3i in a small system in my den/home office along with a pair of the original B&W CDM-1 speakers with MIT-T2 biwire cables; and a Stan Warren modified DVD player. Plus an Onkyo Integra Tuner and vintage Dual turntable.

You can have too much power. Most SET amps lower power versions are better

I used to have an Arcam Alpha 9 integrated that was about 70 watts. Won't win any beauty contests, but was warm, fairly clean and would drive your speakers with ease. Used I think these go for about $450(new 900). When you get some more moolah, you can add a tube pre at a later date, and take a giant step towards the big leagues. I've had some problems with creek stuff, as my cousin has also with an integrated (the 4240?. I you want to go seperate pre/power now, I would look for a used Rotel 980 BX $300 -350 and probably and older CJ tube pre for 450-550.This, IMO, will sound much better than any solid state integrated in that price range.