Accuphase E-560 versus VAC Sigma 160i

One more post in praise of Kevin, VAC and the 160i. I took a client to the RMAF last year and into 1 of the 2 rooms where VAC was present. He was so impressed with the the 160i that with a bit of my help, HE BOUGHT THE ENTIRE ROOM!! VAC's 160i demo room from the RMAF last year now resides in his basement. He is ridiculously pleased.

I have owned VAC products for over 10 years now and don't anticipate ever changing. Their support is unmatched, IMO and their midranges are as good as it gets. Bulletproof construction, amazing sound, incredible support - what more could anyone realistically expect? You can do a lot worse than a VAC 160i, and at its price-point, it is very doubtful you can exceed, or even match it, no matter how hard you look. Kevin is also one of the truly "good guys" in high-end audio and I am proud to call him a friend.

Guys - great thread. I'm wondering if the 160i could drive my Magico S5's in a big room (45 x 15 with 12 foot ceilings). I love VAC gear. My friend brought his VAC 100/100 over (he paid $1500 for it) and I was beyond impressed. I'm sorry to say, it bettered my Classe CAM600's by a country mile.

I have also heard the Accuphase e-560 and it was excellent. Love the look. The build quality is amazing too.

But once I heard VAC, I can't get that sound out of my head. Sooooooo musical.

Mike

Hello All. Although it was a VERY tough choice, I finally went with the Accuphase E-560 because it is more
feature-laden and better suited to my system configuration.
Having said that, I feel that the VAC Sigma 160i is one of top two or three best sounding integrated amplifiers, along with the E-560.
IMHO, one really cannot go wrong with either choice.

Happy Listening!

Mbovaird - I would shoot Kevin an e-mail with your question.
TM - what's the rest of your system?

All,

Great comments and insight from everyone. The Accuphase E-560 certainly looks interesting as well.I'm also wondering about the Gamut DI150 that looks great and is supposed to sound excellent. Powerful,detailed, transparent and ultra-fast is what I'm reading about the Gamut integrated.

So for now it's the following integrateds up for serious consideration:

VAC Sigma 160i
Accuphase E-560
Gamut DI 150
Ayre AX-5