I've been back and forth about the Krell. There's no debating the build quality, which is pretty great (they've made better, but also worse!). I listened to it against (both in different sessions and also in A/B/C) an Audionet Art, Plinius 9200, Pathos Inpol2 (3 times the price) and Pathos Logos (twice as much). The Audionet is nothing special IMO (although like their transport) and the Pathos units are out of your budget. The Plinius 9200, represents a good challenger to the Krell. The Krell has great low-end control (not over-emphasized as some, including myself, have thought) and is overall very enjoyable. It's a very dynamic and fast little amp that casts a fairly enveloping soundstage with good width and acceptable depth. Ultimately I felt the Krell, for as accurate and fast as it was, was a little fatigueing, especially in respect to the highs, which sometimes felt too gritty. The Plinius conceded certain things to the Krell (a little less grip around the low-end, and a slightly shallower sound stage) but it was overall a more enjoyable amp, which I felt I could enjoy listening to for longer sessions. It's bass, while perhaps not as punchy as the Krell, was still nothing to sniff at. It's midrange is killer! I thought there was great accuracy and width to the soundstage, and that it had a nice, pace. Some point out that it has a tube-like sound, which I can see, depending on what it's paired with. Both are great amps, I just preferred the Plinius (although it took me about 3 sessions to realize this) plus, you get a phono stage. I'm not experience with the Magnepan's, nor your Naim, so I can't say. Jeez, this is getting too long.
Don't like the A5, and MuFi will just replace it in a year.
I think the McCormack stuff is great...any reason you're thinking of changing? I don't know how much better sound you'll get considering your budget. There are about a million threads on integrateds (i've been posting on many of them recently) so you've got your work cut out for you. Email offline if you want.
Good luck!
Don't like the A5, and MuFi will just replace it in a year.
I think the McCormack stuff is great...any reason you're thinking of changing? I don't know how much better sound you'll get considering your budget. There are about a million threads on integrateds (i've been posting on many of them recently) so you've got your work cut out for you. Email offline if you want.
Good luck!