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Yamaha A-S2000, Azur 840A V2, or Parasound 2100

I am in the process of updating my modest home office 2 channel system and am looking for input. I have narrowed my choices down to these integrateds: Yamaha A-S2000, Cambridge Audio 840A V2 (along with the 640P phono stage) or the Parasound 2100 preamp paired with the 2125 amp. I will run the system with my pair of Polk Lsi9's. Each of the above have their pros and cons and all seem to get rave reviews. I am trying to stay within a $1500 budget. Unfortunately, I am in an area where I can't audition anything without driving for several hours. Which of the above would you suggest and why? Thanks.
lotsabs
hifisoundguy
630 posts
 
Junglern, I disagree, the Yamaha A-s2000 is a very HI END amp...you would have to spend 3 or 4 times the money to get something "A LITTLE BIT BETTER" !..
junglern's avatar
junglern
50 posts
 
Good cosmetics, well built, no hi end sound, hi fi yes!
hifisoundguy
630 posts
 
Junglern, these Yamaha a-s2000's sound their best when you leave them on all the time 24/7. If you only leave them on for for a few hours and then turn it off then YES I will agree they sound more Hi Fi when using this amp that way ONLY.
sebrof's avatar
sebrof
835 posts
 
HFSG - Don't you need to put them on super cloud pillows or something too? :)
soniqmike
140 posts
 
I have owned the Cambridge amp and did not like it at all just sounded too dry and transistor like for my taste.The Parasound I cannot comment on, but in all fairness I was never drawn to those products in the first place. In full disclosure I would like to state that I currently own THREE Yamaha units, one being the AS2000 integrated, another being the AS1000 integrated, and finally a CD1000 player. So please consider my bias accordingly as I feel those electronics are just incredible values at their price points, sounding like much more expensive gear with looks to match.

I used the 2000 in our living room with some beautiful Sonus Faber speaker and the 1000 in my office with a pair of small PSB Alpha 1B speakers. Please do not laugh ! (absolute's budget speaker of the year). When I received my AS2000 amp, I had some Polk Audio LSi-15 and
LSi-9 speakers in our home theater kit downstairs. This LSi 15 has to be
the absolute greatest bargain in all of audio, with that refined ring radiator speakers for such cheap money. I of course could not resist trying them out with the Yamaha amp. All I can say is that the match was incredible. The yamaha is rich and smooth, while the polks (both the 15 and 9 with the same type of sound with that great tweeter) have that extra bit of mid and treble energy up top. I would certainly go with the AS2000 knowing that down the like it could be partnered with speakers many times the cost of the amp itself, something I ended up doing myself.

Good luck in your search!
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