which - adcom, cambridge audio, outlaw, rotel


Hi. So, I'm in the odd position of having only speakers, having just sold my Marantz SR7000 A/V receiver two weeks after buying it off of CL because it didn't sound very good for rock and hip hop, but was great for jazz, pop, and classical. The plain vanilla JVC DVD player also went. The speakers are Paradigm Studio 20s on stands also from CL.

This is a two-channel music only system in my medium sized living room. Only sources will be CD and flac player (maybe through outboard DAC). i don't listen to radio.

I like clarity but not cold sound, and occasionally rock the house with hip hop or rock, mostly it is lighter stuff at low to moderate volumes.

Now, I've ordered a Cambridge Audio Azur 340A (only $200 from audio advisor), and am involved in auctions/trades for the following:

ADCOM GTP-400 preamp & ADCOM GFA-535 amp for $200 (both)
Pioneer Elite PD-M53 CD player (trade)
Rotel RCC-955 CD player (auction)
Cambridge Audio Azur 640C v2 (auction)
Outlaw Audio 1050 receiver (auction)

Based on the speakers and my listening habits, which should I pursue? Is there any new equipment that would put all of this in the shade at a total price of say $600 for integrated amp or amp/pre-amp and CD player.

I can afford considerably more, but cannot at this point justify small fortunes to listen to music. I am terminally cheap! :) See if you can convince me to spend more if there's a good price/quality balance involved.

Thanks.
vivaslb
I have been raiding the pawn shops, Audio Advisor blowouts, and used gear at my local hi-fi stores for decades now. I have helped friends and neighbors get into good systems for good prices. I have direct experience with integrated amps from Creek and Cambridge Audio (put them into friends' and neighbors' systems), and Musical Fidelity. I currently use or have recently used the Parasound ZAmp, Adcom GFA 535 II, the Adcom 50channel GFA 7500, and a Carver 175 wpc pro audio amp. I have extensively used the highly touted '80s power amps, the Amber Series 70 and VSP Labs TransMOS 150, plus I bought and auditioned an Outlaw RR2150 receiver at home for a month before sending it back.

After all that, I have found that one very affordable integrated amp trumps them all--the Onkyo A-9555. Although it lists at $799 and is competitive at that price point, it can still be found online for under $500. It absolutely walks away from all the above named amps (except, perhaps, the wide bandwidth Adcom multichannel) in every way--speed, bandwidth, current delivery, frequency extension, low level detail, microdynamics, smoothness--everything you want an amp to do. It sounds more powerful than it is; rated at 85/170 wpc into 8/4 ohms, it also delivers up to 80 amp peaks of current. The noise floor is subterranean.

Furthermore, it's a particularly good match with ported Canadian speakers such as your Paradigms. I play mine into a pair of mirage OMD-15s and it's a superb match.

Make no mistake, I can say from direct experience that this Onkyo destroys the Outlaw and betters all but the most expensive Cambridge in smoothness and musicality. I haven't heard the NADs from the BEE series, but I'll venture that the Onkyo matches their overall gestalt and one-ups them in power and current delivery.

The line stage of this unit is nothing to sniff at, either. Although I primarily got it for my turntable (the built-in MM phono stage is also excellent), I found that its lower noise floor and speed delivered more ambience and detail from digital sources than I'd ever heard at home before.

Onkyo also makes a compatible iPod base that comes with its own remote, but which also works with the one that comes with the A-9555.

For a disc player to stay in budget with this amp, it's the Oppo DV-980H at $169. Smooth and organic on its own, it also plays DVD-A and SACD, and is well-regarded as a transport. You can upgrade later with an outboard V-DAC or DacMagic, but the Oppo sounds pretty good as-is.
Thanks for the extensive and detailed response Johnnyb53. I will check out the Onkyo. Funnily enough, I have an Integra DTR 4.5 in my HT system, but haven't really considered neither Integra nor Onkyo, partially for aesthetic reasons. I would prefer something low-profile and understated, even though my wife favors the big, bold, shiny black receivers, like the Marantz SR 7000 that I had in this system.

Any other ideas for receivers or integrated amps that look like the NADs or Cambridge Audio or Rotel? I like clean design but sound trumps.

Thanks,
Keith

Johnnyb53 - Just saw a deal for a McIntosh 4100. How would you compare it with the Onkyo?

Keith
I have very little experience with McIntosh, but I've always liked the way they sound.

Given that the McIntosh 4100 is from about 25 years ago I'd venture that the Onkyo is faster and more articulate. It also has more power (at least on paper) into a 4-ohm load. That doesn't say which one you'd enjoy more. If you pay fair market value or less for a Mac, you'll usually get your money back (or more) when you sell it later.