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Suggestions for a budget amp

Well, im thinking about upgrading my system (just started out and am still in high school so my budget is a major constraint). Basically im trying to build a sterio system that will last me until im out of college and have a "real" job. My current system includes NHT-SB3 speakers, Onkyo TX-8211 sterio reciever a sony CDP-CE275 cd changer, Furmann Q-2312 EQ, and blue-jeans cabling. Its my opinion that the Onkyo is what holds the system back the most at this point so im looking to replace it and fight the upgrade bug until i can afford it. I've looked at the Rotell RA-02 and the Nad C320Bee (the Nad is my favorite so far) but need more ideas (there HAVE to be more budget amps out there, right?). I also shopped around Yamaha's and Onkyo's sites, but their higher end stuff just adds more features, not much by the way of sound quality (from what i could tell by specs... may be wrong). Im looking for something that i can upgrade in stages down the line (i.e. unplugging the power amp section of a preamp and using a beefier seperate, or bi-amping... something like that). I dont need much power since ill be in dorm rooms or crowded appartments for the near future and even in my fair sized room now i rarely turn my 40 wpc Onkyo above 9:00 and its never been over 12:00. I listen to everything from Mozart to Metallica, except rap and pop. Even put in some country every now and then (I think its a law here in Texas ;-)
Thanks for your help,
-Dan-
dk89
bignerd100
515 posts
 
The C352 is not a very large improvement over the C320BEE.
A very little bit more power.

All NAD since teh begining of time (asside from the silver series and a couple of odd silver products) has been mate black.

THere is an Arcam Delta 90.2 up for sale right now that is at a good price.

Good luck!
mdhoover
695 posts
 
There are a LOT of options for pretty good bang for the buck amplification in that price range. A good amplifier will make a huge difference, you can bank on it. You may want to consider a used Odyssey Statos or Khartago. There should be plenty of listings on this web site that would fit the bill, especially if you're willing to purchase a unit second hand. Some manufacturers have transferable warranties.
-Bill
phasecorrect's avatar
phasecorrect
2,013 posts
 
C'mon man...for $350 you cant complain about the NAD cosmetics! It aint Classe...but very close...I used to own the 352...great amp...not much out there...
hdm
1,062 posts
 
If one does not require a phono stage, I would strongly recommend the Jungson JA 88C. This integrated was selling last year around $400 and if it can be sourced at that price currently, it would certainly be worth looking into. At this stage it appears that North American distributors and dealers of Jungson have substantially raised retail prices-there is currently a "luxury edition" of the 88C advertised on Audiogon with a suggested retail price of $1000-$1200, a far cry from $400 which they were selling for a year ago (I picked mine up used for $325), and it appears that the retail on the 88D has been bumped up to the $2500 range.

I replaced an Audiolab 8000A with the Jungson 88C and it is in a TOTALLY different league. The Audiolab typically had a stellar reputation, and I don't think it would be unfair to say that its reputation put it in a much higher quality range than the NAD products, regardless of the praise they have garnered.

One thing I can tell you with absolute certainty is that the build quality and technical innovation built into the 88C (especially if you can still find one at $400) will put the NAD or pretty much any other similarly priced product to absolute shame. The sound quality is outstanding as well.
mdhoover
695 posts
 
If you really want to get exotic, but still on the cheap, you may also want to look into Nohr amps.
-Bill
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