My first Stereo setup - Int. Amp help needed

Hi,

Before the experts arrive, my 2 cents...

Four integrated stereo amps in the 30k neighbourhood that spring to mind are:

1) Marantz PM-7001
2) NAD C352
3) Rotel RA-05
4) Cambridge Audio Azur 640A V2

The choice of CD player will of course depend on this selection. I have heard only the old S3 series of B&W so not familiar with the new 685, sorry.

I suggest go for a pre-owned amp so with that 30K budget you can have a much better amp (that otherwise can't be had in this small budget) than a brand new but a mediocre amp.

well although only way of finding out is listening to a lot of amps and partlicleman has suggested some really good brands. although have heard that,traditionally, Rotel and BW go very well.

ideally as suggested by GS Madhav you would be very well placed if you find a Rotel Pre/Power combination in the used market.

there is a Marantz PM7001 for sale here
http://www.hifivisio...audio-cd-player.html


there also seems to be a Rotel power Amp (1070 is the 2 channel one)for sale here..you will need a preamp if you want to use that though
http://www.hifivisio...ower-amplifiers.html

and a Roksan Int amp here..

http://www.hifivisio...y-iii-cd-player.html

Oh.. so many replies, you folks are quite active here.

Yes Particleman, In fact I have done bit of research and found rotel and NAD compatible with my needs and in my budget but their India prices are lil on higher side. so was thinking how can I get best bang with in my budget ( well buying B&W at Indian retails prices is worth every penny).

As suggested by Madhav and Arj I am open for pre-owned as long as I am getting superior amp from reliable source.

Arj I will try to connect with users for the Roksan (but will it be in my budget?)

What abt other amps which are produced locally, has any one tried pairing them with B&W in past?

I am willing to audition them as I have to travel a lot in India.

Regards
Meher

meher schrieb:

As suggested by Madhav and Arj I am open for pre-owned as long as I am getting superior amp from reliable source.

dunno if the guy selling these is genuine. The same person is selling way too many pieces of equipment to seem like the original user.

Like you, even I am on the lookout for a used amp in a similar budget.

I do agree with you Shahrukh, I tried to reach him many times but there was no response.
We do surely miss Pre-owned Market place like Audiogon here, probs there is not enough market

Yeah, when I questioned him about one of the items he was selling all he wrote back was "send me your number, I'll clear all doubts". It's been 2 weeks since I sent him my number.

Hi Meher,
Yes, going pre-owned would be the best in this case. Even if it requires increasing your amp budget by another 5k or so it makes tremendous sense.
I can help you with some pre-owned audio dealers that I know.

If you have to go with a new amp then my choice would be a Marantz or a Rotel.
NAD and Cambridge have never impressed me. Cambridge though is a British product has always sounded kind of dry and un-involving to my ears. But do take a listen and then decide.

Some candidates which are normally missed out may be because they are of Indian make are:
Pulz RS-250 Power amp
http://www.pulz.co.in/home/products.php#

Sonodyne SPA-202 power amp
http://www.sonodyne.com/SPA202.htm

Just get a nice tube pre-amp from Lyrita Audio
http://www.lyrita-audio.in/audiosys.htm

These combos would easily out perform the integrateds we are discussing.

Since you are at Mumbai, you can listen to most of these equipments in their respective listening rooms.

Thanks Abhi for pitching in your inputs.
I will be more than happy to get leads from you on pre-owned dealers in Mumbai. I leave in Eastern Suburbs (Mumbai).

Abt the Pre-power combo, I am not sure how do I match them in different combinations which will suit my speakers. I believe same brands pre-pro should work out better correct me if I am wrong.

Would appreciate your inputs on comparisons between Sonodine, Pulz - Cat 1
Arita - Cat 2
Imported Amps - Cat 3
(Rotel, Marantz - models
Considered in this thread)

on pricing performance and pricing fonts.

rgds
meher

meher schrieb:

Would appreciate your inputs on comparisons between Sonodine, Pulz - Cat 1 Arita - Cat 2 Imported Amps - Cat 3 (Rotel, Marantz - models Considered in this thread) on pricing performance and pricing fonts. rgds meher

What is Arita ??????? Are you talking about the Cadence VA-1 by any chance ?

Abt the Pre-power combo, I am not sure how do I match them in different combinations which will suit my speakers. I believe same brands pre-pro should work out better correct me if I am wrong.

There is nothing like same brand pre-power has to be better. Mostly its about impedance and sensitivity matching between the pre-powers which is taken care of when you buy pre-power from the same brand but thats not all.
I have heard several pre-powers from NAD, Rotel and couple of other brands and in most cases the performance is easily beatable when you mix and match pre-powers. Especially this is true when you are considering entry level pre-powers, the preamps are highly compromised and mostly stand as the bottleneck.

I have suggested Lyrita Audio Preamp because I have seen a couple of them in action mated to solid state power amps and the end result being a sweet and wonderful combo for the price. Moreover Lyrita do customize the preamps to match the impedances of the power amp to be mated with it. Please speak to Mr.Viren of Lyrita audio about the same.

Regarding which would be the best solution, I can only ask you to listen to as many amps as possible and then get into discussions. It is very much possible that you like a particular amp so much that you dont want to buy anything else, in that case things would be just so simple .

Just to satisfy your curiosity, if I was at your place I would go ahead with a Pulz-Lyrita combo....but thats just me .