High power integrated suggestions please.

The Krell 400xi is a must audition even for those considering seperates. I haven't heard better under $3K or seen better for that matter, the piece in Black is gorgeous! Stereophile measured its output @ 290watts into 8-ohms, so obviously this Amp. has plenty of juice for any reasonably sized Speakers & room. Don't let the cheap-price fool you, if Krell doubled the price tomorrow, then all of the sudden it would be viewed as the new "state of the art". Remember, for an additional $10K you could always upgrade later into Krell's new FBI...now your talking about a "High Power Integrated.

Thanks again for all the great suggestions.

Would love to hear some things like the Krell, Rowland, Blue Circle, Musical Fidelity etc.. but home audition is next to impossible.

I was not able to demo the Mac MA6900 but I was able to bring home the smaller 6500 and the MCD201 SACD player. It was very pleasant but could not drive my speakers properly. I would love to bring home the C2200/MC501s but my budget fall just short by about $10k.:-(

I've been very pleased with my NAD 320BEE and c541i cdp so I thought I'd give their new Master Series a try. Brought home the M3 integrated and the M55 universal player. I'm glad I did. This gear sounds fantastic! Briefly, it has power and dynamics with deep bass and great highs. The brass really comes through. The resolution is outstanding and the mids are full and very pleasant.

I have a few other things I'd like to check out but unless it betters the NADs significantly I could be very happy with the M3/M55 combo. The only thing I worry about is reliabilty and service.

http://www.nadelectronics.com/

Cheers

If you like the NAD stuff, don't worry about its longevity. I've got a NAD3020 integrated amp that I bought in 1980 that I'm still using! NAD's were always denigrated for cheap build quality, but 25+ years of service is hard to complain about.

Yes, Lush, I heard the actual 400xi.

Phil

Northwoods,

I did in fact listen to the Krell 400xi discussed here, in my own systems and a friend's which I know well. Is it improved over the unfortunate house sound of Krell electronics? Yes, marginally. Is it absent the lack of musicality emblematic of Krell gear? No, unfortunately. I'm not being inflammatory, I'm being honest. Krell amplification and its sound, IMO, has been a primary contributor to the decline of audiophile credibilty to non-audiophiles for many years. When I saw the 400 and related components go into mass distribution, I was hoping for a better outcome, truly. I just cannot agree that it earns any sonic preference whatsoever over several other alternatives in the market.

Phil