Amp Choice

hi sub boss....

I would personally loose the cambridge but that my opinion only.

The nad pre-162 I did not find too hot....would rather go in for something better, If I were you I would give Viren's tube preamp a shot though I have not heard it. The nad pre and power combo did not differ much from the 372 sound so I guess I there is not much of an advantage. Nad was never known for its pre-amps...so.....

The nad silverline series is quite different though..that pre-map is good but then rumour has it that the silverline series amps of nad are designed by gryphon.

The 372, 272 have good power sections. Arcam A65 is also a delight.

Manek........so i will look at 372 ..but is the price justified that 320bee can always stand neck to neck with 372 except for output, or 372 has some additional features.....and any comments abt marantz and do they really mean when they claim that upto 25w it's class A and Class AB later.

Hi Sub,

I would second Manek on the Cambridge.

Generally speaking, Nads are fast and punchy, and very good value for money. Arcams, IMHO, are a classier act, giving more refined sound, but then they are priced accordingly. Marantz is normally smooth and laid back, which in fact might not be such a bad thing considering your Klipschs. The PM 7200 is quite a good amp, and is Class A to 25 watts, which again would be good for your Klipschs. I can also suggest the AudioAnalogue Puccini Se, which is quite musical.

However, I would strongly suggest you hear them personally, to decide what suits your taste.

Guys i would definetely listen , but I just needed to know if there are more to audition or have i hit the right button so I can go listen and order em from Dubai.......heheh get em couriered..hehehehe.I guess who's gonna help me...... :D.heheh.if NAD's r fast n punchy thats what I want.but I will listen to marantz at Profx and NAD+Klipsch combo when Sachi gets his amp home....75% battle won

If it is for the klipsch..remember you will never ever need more than 20 W. anything else is a huge overkill

to me the Marantz in Class A mode makes the most sense
and if it is from the US get a Rega Brio

If you audition the marantz, i heard it does not convert to Class A by the switch of the button., you need to switch off the amp and switch it on again for the same...

else the NAD and the Cambridge audio as equally good as per me. the NAD I have personally used with this (And still feel the Rega Brio would be better)

How about Jolida Hybrids? 50W or 100W MOSFET output with Tubes in the preamp section,and I saw lot's of good reviews on the net..And good value for money,if getting it from US.

Arj...I also personally somehow zeroed in on NAd or Marantz........any idea bt Maranyz KI series.cost????are they class A upto 25W........??hifinovice.whats the $$$ of Jolida........

Jolida JD-1501A Tube Hybrid Integrated Amplifier - Jolida JD-1501A(100W)
625.00 USD

Jolida JD-1501RC Tube Hybrid Integrated Amplifier with Remote Control - Jolida 1501RC(100W)
725.00 USD

Jolida JD-1701A Tube Hybrid Integrated Amplifier - Jolida JD-1701A(50W)
475.00 USD

Take a look at www.gcaudio.com
Hope this helps.

I would go for either the marantz 7200 or the nad 320bee. I auditioned the 320bee and the 372 and chose the 320bee for its overall presentation. I did compromise on power but have never looked back since.

Arcam would be the best of the lot but odnt know if you would like the arcam sound. Some say they do have a typical house sound. I would suggest you buy amps which you have heard instead of buying them blind.

manek.

Hi manek,

I would definetely listen to em all before I buy .the whole idea is to shorten my list to audition and thus makes life simple to choose between A or B

Sir,

we cant shorten the list for you. what i dont like , you may end up liking and remember non of us here use klipsch speakers here so one does not know how they will gel with the amps in question hence, listen to all of them.

manek,.

manek

Then why don't you please help me with more amps in the price range I was looking at .i'm sure you can give a shot my budget when I listed the amps and you would have a fair idea how much I'm ready to spend. I remenber Arj telling me NAD works good with them.so will check it out.....

Hi Sub,

Would suggest that you first have an extensive audition with Benks' Nad. That will give you an idea. I have heard some of the bigger Klipschs and therefore feel their high sensitivity would need some careful amp matching. Although you say that you prefer 'in the face sound' you might just find that over longer periods, too much of it isn't fun. But then, that is my opinion. You may feel differently.

The Nad, Arcam and Marantz produce slightly differing types of sound. Only you will be able to tell which one you are more comfortable with.

Try Cayin valve or Puccini. Due to its high sensitivity it needs some good resolution amp. With NAD, it would sound just Loud.

Klipsch's are bright with high sensitivity. IMO Klipsch's with Nad 370 will be suicidal.

I heard Klipsch RF-7 with Denon 2000IVR and Denon DVD 2200...didn't like the sound. Maybe the room problem or a source. The resolution and depth were not there and the highs were grainy.

I think Marantz , Rega or Audio Analogue will gel nicely with Klipsch and if possible go for tubes.

Myriad wrote :

think Marantz , Rega or Audio Analogue will gel nicely with Klipsch and if possible go for tubes.

Got a Audio Ananlogue Puccini yesterday...hooked em up yesterday night at 12...so listened for 15 mins...morning had to rush to office.... .will listen for a couple of days and let you guys know...

Thanks for all big man Prithvi.....

Cheers......... chburppppppp

Not to forget to use good ICs & Speaker cables, it matters alot esp with your high sens klipsch. Try to experiment with diff cables (ofcourse you may 've to borrow from your friends) They are very revealing speakers & I've listened to them.

My suggestion, if you value input from freshers to this audio business. Try the Pulz RS-250 dual mono power amp available in Mumbai. It provides 60W per channel and has a very balanced sound. This balance will reduce the brightness of the Klipsch (I have never heard horn speakers so you must audition the combo yourself.)

Neutral schrieb:

My suggestion, if you value input from freshers to this audio business. Try the Pulz RS-250 dual mono power amp available in Mumbai. It provides 60W per channel and has a very balanced sound. This balance will reduce the brightness of the Klipsch (I have never heard horn speakers so you must audition the combo yourself.)

whats a balanced sound ? and how does it reduce harshness

Alraj schrieb:

Not to forget to use good ICs & Speaker cables, it matters alot esp with your high sens klipsch. Try to experiment with diff cables (ofcourse you may 've to borrow from your friends) They are very revealing speakers & I've listened to them. :)

ICs and speakers make up only 5% of the sound. he needs to get a good amp and cdp first !

he had mentioned he got Audio Analogue (might be puccini) amp, it's a very good amp & I don't know about his CDP. My opinion, when you use that type of good prods, you shouldn't use some cheap ICs & cables.

Alraj wrote :

he had mentioned he got Audio Analogue (might be puccini) amp, it's a very good amp & I don't know about his CDP. My opinion, when you use that type of good prods, you shouldn't use some cheap ICs & cables.

Yup it's puccini.cables are monsters 12 gauges

Arj wrote :

he needs to get a good amp and cdp first !

but which should come first is the question as I'm planning to buy them over a period of time....??

any suggestions

Arj,

What I mean by a balanced sound is the equal representation of all frequencies across the sprectrum. The amp won't overemphasize bass or treble. The advantage is the complete absence of boominess and shrillness as far as the amp's output is concerned. If the speaker has an overly sensitive tweeter,this is the only type of amp I would consider using.

OK. i guess what you mean is neutral. But since the speakers are on the bright side, you need a warm amp to reduce the brightness..
Balanced Input/output is a kind of connection like an RCA/Coax and a balanced output does improve on sound smoothness..but it ususally pumps up the cost hence my curiosity. also not all cdps have a balanced output

Neutral wrote :

My suggestion, if you value input from freshers to this audio business. Try the Pulz RS-250 dual mono power amp available in Mumbai. It provides 60W per channel and has a very balanced sound. This balance will reduce the brightness of the Klipsch (I have never heard horn speakers so you must audition the combo yourself.)

I value inputs from anyone as long as it works for me...can you tell me how does it compare to Sonodyne and I'll tell you why I nedd a new amp...

balanced Out/In conncetion is useful only if the cable run is long, otherwise it's waste of money. Good RCAs 'll do the job.

As in all things cable there are enough controversies on that one ! but yes from what i have heard mentioned benefits do appear obvious during long runs.

I also agree that ICs and Cables are important, but it is more important to get the basic components right first.
and i t makes sense to start with good ICs (not expensive) rather than compromise from the beginning

Your klipsch might perform best with a valve amp. I know somebody who tried lot of amps including some high end seperates with his RF3's and he got the best performance with the cayin valve amp.

Hi Sub Boss,
The Pulz amp is high current and each channel has a totally separate transformer power supply. So no cross talk. It's certainly better than a Sonodyne which I have also heard at the Kandivali showroom. It's sound quality is comparable to NAD C320 BEE. But it costs half as much.

The disadvantage is that it's only a power amp. So no pre-amp tone controls and no remote with volume controls.

Neutral if thats the case i would like to look at it...nay dealers in bangalore??

Hi Sub,

I've sent a query to Pulz on the Bangalore dealers. Will post their addressess when I get the reply.

neutral, the RS-250 power amp I saw and heard at lithos had separate volume controls for each channel...but I think you can only play one source...thats the limitation.

manek.

hey chaps,
i won't be able to make any posts for at least a week as i am having major problems with my comp. i need to completely change my hard disk.
so Mohan, let me know when we can set up for my Nad to be auditoned at ur place.
BTW , how is the AA puccini working out for u? call me and let me know.u know my number, 9886574770.
Cheers,
Ben

Hi Manek,
The Pulz amp has 2 gain controls. Are they the same as volume controls? But no remote operation. A terrible problem if you don't have a pre-amp or source with volume controls on remote.

Hi Sub Boss,
I got the Bangalore dealer details from Pulz. They were remarkably prompt in replying.
PULZ Dealer in Bangalore:-

- m/s MUSIC RANCH ; contact person:Mr.Mukesh Hemdev ;
email: musicranch89@yahoo.com ; Mob# 9844035773.

Hi ,
Music Ranch is in Jayanagar. He also has the NAD320BEE and the NAD 521CDP. Hez a dealer for Tanoy and Space Audio.

-- Viv

I know that the Music Ranch guy can get NAD on order but does he have it on display ??

got tel no of Music ranch

abhi ,
I had been to Music Ranch about a month back and auditioned the Tanoy Fusion 4 with the NAD amp/CD combi. And at that point of time he had mentioned that he will be keeping the NAD combi for demo. Not too sure what is the scene today.
I was a bit lucky at that time since the NAD had just arrived.
Probably you can give him a call.
his no is : 26532145
Its somewhere in the 3rd/4th block. Not too sure of the exact address.

-- viv

I have been to his place 2 months back, then he was just having a Sherwood amp for demo. I will visit him again..

Sub,

How much is the Puccini going for?

sub boss....

From what I have heard the puccini, its plays well at normal volumes but when played a bit loud(11oclock position and above)and on complex classical music crecendo's it gets a bit muddy.....do check if the same is happening with the klipsch....it may not show these signs due to its higher sensitivity as the speakers would play loud enough at 9 o'clock,10 o'clock positions.

manek.

Manek,
Actually all my customers who bought the PUCCINI and me too personally having used it never had a problem with any muddiness.

Actually this was the only amp that did not distort with the volume being FULL, the only thing that increased was the gain and nothing else, no muddiness, distortion or congestions.

Many of them use it with the Cadence Diva, Arita, Anina Tablette 2000, Studio 125 & 22Ls.

None of the above clients have ever had this problem. System matching is very important.

Rgds

PRithvi

you bet prithvi, system matching is ever so important. Was just stating my experience with it a year ago, wanted to know if sub boss heard what I heard. If he doesn't, and you didn't too, its obviously a system matching issue, maybe cables even.

Heard the AA Primo, not too extensively but with a couple jazz cd's and sounded promising too.

One thing for sure, these italians sure know how to make their products look good !

Manek.

bruuuuuuuuuupppppppppp.
go for rotel, or if your budget is low then go for marantz 7200.
too many questions and too many answers will make you confused.
beleive me

Arcam units are very good as well. The company is very responsive to support requests and from what I hear does not ditch you on the pretext of official dealrship network like D****n.

dear hsm raj,



sorry to reply back after soooooooo long ...most probably will get an amp from US as I had too little choices and what about the price diffrence...it's incredible....Ya that led many members here to believe that i discussed a lot and did nothing...and I would even be labelled as a time waster..but ultimately I pay for what i buy ..it's my money and I want worth for it...if ever i get a deal like Klipsch which i closed in 15 mins..arrghhh not even one amp for my price and taste since 3 months...ooh yeah many ask me what about warranty for goods from US..what does it mean here either...better to deal with unknown angel than a known devil..coz devil is devil...the better you know it ....the harder it bites your ass...

Sub boss, do not feel compelled to buying under pressure. We are just trying to help based on the little experience that we have. When you do go in for your purchase, hopefully you will have a broader insight can be a better position to judge VFM. Hopefully, others in the forum will not get into the mode of auditioning in India and buying elsewhere. You could very well audition in the stores in the US like Magnolia or online at audiogon.

Ya my bro finds some time to audition and sometimes you have to go by valid reviews upto some extent to decide and host of other info..and from members here who have been of great help..you see this audio stuff is crazy..will never ever keep you happy...just like girl friends...many flavours...or like the theory will always make your neighbours wife's ass look juicier..

see boss if you don't care about brand names and position.
sonodyne's SA-8000 is a very good amplifier beats all that you have mentioned, if only you hear it without any psychological advantage to other brands. you won't go wrong,
and they have also come out with a new model i need to check out called SiA 102R. you will find both of them here.
SA-8000 http://www.sonodyne.com/SA-8000.htm
SiA 102R http://www.sonodyne.com/Sia102R.htm