New amp needed - Recommendations?

[audi321]

Hi all, I need a new amp (full size separate).

Budget from £100 to £1000 (I know it's a wide range but I recon there's some bargains out there!)

I would like a punchy bass sound, especially at low volume.

I would also want Bass/Treble controls (I'm not into these fixed amps as I like to have a play).

For playing mainly rock music from my Apple Airport Express.

I'm demo'ing a Marantz Ipearl in Richer Sounds tomorrow, but I'm open to recommendations from the PH experts! Or should I look at 2nd hand for something high end from yesteryear?

Thanks in advance.

[audi321]

Ok, so I demo'd the Marantz and a Roksan at Richer Sounds today. I preferred the Marantz because of the Bass/Mid/Treble controls. If I'm honest, there was nothing between them in sound quality.

[Globs]

Yaqin MC-10L

You will not regret it, it looks and sounds so much better than other stuff.
No tone controls though - not very common on tube amps.

[telecat]

Closer you get to £1000 the fewer tone controls you get. They are considered "gimmicks at this price level. I'd suggest the Audiolab 8000 or 8200. The chinese 8200's ones don't have the reputation of the 8000 but are still pretty good.

[audi321]

Cheers guys, I realise these tone controls get binned over about £500. I can't understand why as there's always the 'direct' button which cuts them out if needed. I just like to have a play around every now and again!

[telecat]

Basically it's a "switch" in the signal path. Many makers spend a lot of money on the circuit design and the components in it. The "Switch" itself may be high quality but they have no control on quality and it also still needs connecting and those connectors corrode or break more easily than a direct solder.

[Frances The Mute]

Heathen.

If you must 'fiddle' with the mix, get yourself a separate EQ unit. That way, you can invest in a decent amp to start with which you can fall back on when you realise post-eq belongs in the mixing studio.

[audi321]

I've decided on the Marantz PM-KI Pearl. £649 from Richer Sounds (close to £900 in other stores!)

I'm going with the Network Player also, so I'll post my review in a few days!

[Globs]

audi321 said:

I've decided on the Marantz PM-KI Pearl. £649 from Richer Sounds (close to £900 in other stores!)

I'm going with the Network Player also, so I'll post my review in a few days!

That costs more than an MC-10L plus a Behringer DEQ2496 - Doh doh doh! Doh!

[matt3001]

Forget the controls, get a naim5i, best amp under 1k. End of.

[Globs]

matt3001 said:

Forget the controls, get a naim5i, best amp under 1k. End of.

Never heard a Naim sounding better than a tube amp sorry. Too many compromises in them (feeble PSUs, class B, transistor with global feedback loops). Tubes are better - less unpleasant haromonics, less feedback needed, better designs.

At least Naim are british though, which is more than I can say for tube amps at reasonable prices, maybe Naim should make a tube amp? I could design them a world beater.

[Roadster25]

Globs said:

Never heard a Naim sounding better than a tube amp sorry. Too many compromises in them (feeble PSUs, class B, transistor with global feedback loops). Tubes are better - less unpleasant haromonics, less feedback needed, better designs.

At least Naim are british though, which is more than I can say for tube amps at reasonable prices, maybe Naim should make a tube amp? I could design them a world beater.

Croft Integrated might be the answer to that dilemma. Not heard one yet though.

[Driller]

Globs said:

Never heard a Naim sounding better than a tube amp sorry. Too many compromises in them (feeble PSUs, class B, transistor with global feedback loops). Tubes are better - less unpleasant haromonics, less feedback needed, better designs.

At least Naim are british though, which is more than I can say for tube amps at reasonable prices, maybe Naim should make a tube amp? I could design them a world beater.

Hence the reason why a number of manufacturers make rubbish amps, stick a token tube in it behind a window or on top in full view and then sell said very mediocre amp at an extortionate price whilst laughing all the way to the bank...

[audi321]

Well guys. I've had the marantz 24 hours now and I've got to say its WELL above anything I've had before in terms of clarity and quality of sound.

I've had a valve amp in the past, and unless you're paying over £3,000 for one, I feel they are rubbish (these Chinese ones for a few hundred quid).

The Marantz has tone controls and has the direct button to cut them out if needed. There's a network streamer to add on at a later date too (when budgets allow!)

All in all, I'm extremely happy!!

[TonyRPH]

It's widely acknowledged that many of the tube amps coming out of China need modification to sound at their best (and also to be safe),

This chap has experimented with a few.

Audi321, I seem to recall you had a blown capacitor in yours a few months back?

[telecat]

For anybody looking at Valves Audio Innovations S500 or S700 are the ones to look at under £1K. EAR and Audio Note integrated's can be Under £1k and are gorgeous but do require a few compromises as they tend to be 7 to 15W which means you have to be careful with your speakers. I like the "look" of Many chinese Valve Amp's. The build quality and component choice do leave something to be desired.

[audi321]

TonyRPH said:

It's widely acknowledged that many of the tube amps coming out of China need modification to sound at their best (and also to be safe),

This chap has experimented with a few.

Audi321, I seem to recall you had a blown capacitor in yours a few months back?

You're right I did. Only a cheap fix but the guy who did the fix then balance it and it's nothing like as good as it once was. The guy who I'd bought it from had 'modified' it and said to me not to play around with the balancing but the guy who fixed it did it before I could tell him!

[Globs]

Driller: a lot of the new 'valve in the window' variants use the tube to add a bit of warmth back to a transistor design - some can be good if the main VAS uses the tube but there are many ways to wreck an amp and in general designers employ a variety of them.

audi321 said:

I've had a valve amp in the past, and unless you're paying over £3,000 for one, I feel they are rubbish (these Chinese ones for a few hundred quid).

The ones for over £3,000 all cost a few hundred quid to make . Plus there are several thousand different topologies so they all sound different!

Most chinese stuff is still in 'DIY kit' territory but the Yaqin MC-10L is good out of the box.
Funnily enough good design is free but very few people seem to use it, I've rewired chinese stuff and sometimes ended up with loads of spare parts! The sound quite unlike chinese amps afterwards too. Currently working on one that has under-specced capacitors (over voltage) and no earth connection - I wouldn't recommend that for someone to buy and switch on.

[AlexS]

Any reason why you didn't demo the CA840A v2? Bargain at £500, excellent bass control and depth and has the tone controls that you desire (I think on the v2 they can actually be selected for each input).

[Driller]

Globs said:

Driller: a lot of the new 'valve in the window' variants use the tube to add a bit of warmth back to a transistor design

Well that is what they say it is there for, in actual fact this single valve is adding next to nothing if not nothing to the sound. It is just there to be seen.

There is no reason at all why the valve should be visible in an amp. If it is then you have to ask how much of an effect are they trying to get from it being visible rather than what it is actually contributing to the sound.

If you put a 12ax7 on a turd, it is still a turd or at least a turd with a faint glow.