Can you recommend an amplifier for under $500 / £500?

[wgscott]

The second of those two NAD amps is direct-digital, which is kind of cool.  Basically, the class-D-like amp IS the DAC, and the conversion to analogue happens as the signal is output to your speakers. NAD is one of the few to offer this technology, and they do this in some of their best products.

[kirkmc]

Just now, wgscott said:

The second of those two NAD amps is direct-digital, which is kind of cool.  Basically, the class-D-like amp IS the DAC, and the conversion to analogue happens as the signal is output to your speakers. NAD is one of the few to offer this technology, and they do this in some of their best products.

 

I don't really understand that. I was reading their description, and It's a bit above my head technically. 

 

This looks very similar in spec, but in a different form factor. No AirPlay, dual zone, or sub-woofer, alas.

 

https://nadelectronics.com/en_GB/product/c-338-classic-digital-dac-amplifier/

 

The form factor of the D 7050 is a bit weird, but that's not a big deal. It's just too expensive.

[kirkmc]

This looks interesting:

 

https://www.sevenoakssoundandvision.co.uk/p-28042-yamaha-wxa-50-streamer-amplifier.aspx

 

Other than the dual speaker zones, it does everything I need. But I'm not sure it's that much of an upgrade over what I have already. It's compact, which is useful, but that's not essential for me. 

[wgscott]

I'll let someone more technically competent than me try to explain it, but the basic idea is that it is much harder to degrade a digital signal than an analogue signal, so if you can keep everything in the digital domain as long as possible, and keep the analogue signal path as short as possible, it theoretically is an improvement over conventional DAC/pre/amp setups.  Class D-like amps can be used to do the conversion directly.  The C338 looks great. 

[synn]

What price does the Cambridge Audio CXA60 go for over there?

 

i have one and I love it to bits. It’s a fantastic sounding amp. Nothing else I tried in that price range came any close to it. Proper hifi sound and solid build. I demoed the Yamaha you have before buying it and the difference is not even close.

 

it has no airplay, but a sub out and two sets of speaker posts, (so you could use the High Level inputs of a sub too).

 

its rather picky with speaker choice. Initially I paired it with Wharfedale Diamond 220s and that absolutely did not work. I connected it then to the Jamo S628 towers from my home theater and that combo kicked ass, so I returned the wharfies and got a set of Jamo C93s. They sound perfect together.

 

i believe Richer sounds sell Cambridge stuff in the U.K.

[wgscott]

4 minutes ago, kirkmc said:

This looks interesting:

 

https://www.sevenoakssoundandvision.co.uk/p-28042-yamaha-wxa-50-streamer-amplifier.aspx

 

Other than the dual speaker zones, it does everything I need. But I'm not sure it's that much of an upgrade over what I have already. It's compact, which is useful, but that's not essential for me. 

 

Looks good.  Also it must have something functionally equivalent to mule-zone:

 

Quote

Stream the Same or Different Music to Each Room
Play the same song in multiple rooms, or play different songs in each room. With MusicCast, freely enjoy the music you love anywhere in your home.

 

[synn]

4 minutes ago, kirkmc said:

This looks interesting:

 

https://www.sevenoakssoundandvision.co.uk/p-28042-yamaha-wxa-50-streamer-amplifier.aspx

 

Other than the dual speaker zones, it does everything I need. But I'm not sure it's that much of an upgrade over what I have already. It's compact, which is useful, but that's not essential for me. 

 

I connect a Yamaha WXC50 (the version without the power amp) to my Cambridge. 

 

At first I connected its analog outs to the Cambridge. That sounded hollow and lifeless. Then I took the coaxial out and used the built in Wolfson DAC of the Cambridge. The sound instantly became meatier.

 

judging by that, I would presume the WXA50 will be similarly thin sounding. 

[kirkmc]

1 minute ago, synn said:

What price does the Cambridge Audio CXA60 go for over there?

 

i have one and I love it to bits. It’s a fantastic sounding amp. Nothing else I tried in that price range came any close to it. Proper hifi sound and solid build. I demoed the Yamaha you have before buying it and the difference is not even close.

 

it has no airplay, but a sub out and two sets of speaker posts, (so you could use the High Level inputs of a sub too).

 

its rather picky with speaker choice. Initially I paired it with Wharfedale Diamond 220s and that absolutely did not work. I connected it then to the Jamo S628 towers from my home theater and that combo kicked ass, so I returned the wharfies and got a set of Jamo C93s. They sound perfect together.

 

i believe Richer sounds sell Cambridge stuff in the U.K.

 

It's £579, which is above my limit, but I could go that high. I've been thinking about that; I've had CA stuff in the past - I still have their DVD/Blu-Ray player, which is essentially a rebranded Oppo - and it's great. 

 

Richer Sounds owns CA now, so you can't get any of their stuff discounted, unless they're doing a specific sale. 

 

The CXA60 doesn't do AirPlay, but it meets my other specs. As I said, I could always use an Apple TV for AirPlay (and I have the older model that does Toslink out). 

[kirkmc]

1 minute ago, synn said:

 

I connect a Yamaha WXC50 (the version without the power amp) to my Cambridge. 

 

At first I connected its analog outs to the Cambridge. That sounded hollow and lifeless. Then I took the coaxial out and used the built in Wolfson DAC of the Cambridge. The sound instantly became meatier.

 

judging by that, I would presume the WXA50 will be similarly thin sounding. 

 

Yes, I would expect the CA to have a much better DAC. 

[synn]

It cost me EUR 670 on the mainland!

 

If you could stretch to 579, give it a go. It’s absolutely the most VFM amp at that price.

 

i also wanted to try the Onkyo A9150 and the Pioneer A50, which are both in the same ballpark, but once I heard the Cambridge, my mind was made up.

[GUTB]

Class D sucks -- absolutely at this price level -- but direct digital schemes maximize fidelity by skipping the digital-to-analog step and goes straight into the class D modulator which is essentially digital itself.

 

Why does class D suck? It switches at 400-500 kHz, which means that it needs a very aggressive output filter, and this filter kills musicality and soundstage. When does class D not suck? When musicality and soundstage is already dead because of speakers and poor room acoustics, so you might as well benefit from the greater resolution and dynamic power.

 

But, if you have or plan to have a proper listening room in which to enjoy all the best aspects of speaker listening, than you'll need a quality class A or A/B amp.

[synn]

I only tried one class D amp (NAD 338) while I was demoing and it did not sound anywhere as good as the CXA60 to my ears.

 

but I hear the older NADs (BEE series) sound amazing. They are deeply discounted now. 

[GUTB]

Here is a visual aid:

 

 

[synn]

I will admit, I do get a kick out of looking at that giant Toroidal transformer in the CXA60 through the top vents while it gets illuminated by the gentle blue light of the LEDs!

 

Oh, the Marantz PM6006 is another one in that price range. I have no experience with it, but a friend of mine has an older model and he loves it.

[zackthedog]

6 hours ago, synn said:

What price does the Cambridge Audio CXA60 go for over there?

 

i have one and I love it to bits. It’s a fantastic sounding amp. Nothing else I tried in that price range came any close to it. Proper hifi sound and solid build. I demoed the Yamaha you have before buying it and the difference is not even close.

 

it has no airplay, but a sub out and two sets of speaker posts, (so you could use the High Level inputs of a sub too).

 

its rather picky with speaker choice. Initially I paired it with Wharfedale Diamond 220s and that absolutely did not work. I connected it then to the Jamo S628 towers from my home theater and that combo kicked ass, so I returned the wharfies and got a set of Jamo C93s. They sound perfect together.

 

i believe Richer sounds sell Cambridge stuff in the U.K.

 

That's  what I was going to suggest.  I think it would mate very nicely with the OP's Focals.  Add the Bluetooth dongle and you're wireless.  It  would be a nice upgrade, IMO.

 

I have to add, at the risk of stepping on toes, that a lot of the answers here have been remarkably unhelpful.  This is an office system, folks.

[zackthedog]

6 hours ago, kirkmc said:

 

It's £579, which is above my limit, but I could go that high. I've been thinking about that; I've had CA stuff in the past - I still have their DVD/Blu-Ray player, which is essentially a rebranded Oppo - and it's great. 

 

Richer Sounds owns CA now, so you can't get any of their stuff discounted, unless they're doing a specific sale. 

 

The CXA60 doesn't do AirPlay, but it meets my other specs. As I said, I could always use an Apple TV for AirPlay (and I have the older model that does Toslink out). 

 

It will do Bluetooth if you add a dongle.

[opus101]

7 hours ago, GUTB said:

Why does class D suck? It switches at 400-500 kHz, which means that it needs a very aggressive output filter, and this filter kills musicality and soundstage.

 

 

Utter nonsense - all digital recordings have a more aggressive filter prior to the ADC, called an 'anti-aliasing filter'.

 

On reflection that's not quite right - the filter is normally nowadays a digital one, after the modulator which does the ADC function at a much higher sample rate. Doesn't alter my point though - if aggressive filters (and let's fact it, a classD output filter isn't very aggressive in the scheme of things, normally just 2nd order) are the problem, we can't avoid them on any digital recordings - we need to go back to analog if we want them out of the way.

[beerandmusic]

I would suggest used in that price point, but if new requirement, i could second the nad, but still would opt for a marantz amp over nad myself for new.  On the used end, anything nelson pass, or the NAD 218THX is a beast with a punch.  I have about 30 amps here now, and just picked up another one...the nakamichi Ta-4 stasis designed by nelson pass.  I have heard good things about it, so anxious to try it, but i have several other toys here in front of it...my reference amp is a mcintosh ma6500.

 

marantz mm7025

or

rega brio

 

 

[kirkmc]

11 minutes ago, beerandmusic said:

I would suggest used in that price point, but if new requirement, i could second the nad, but still would opt for a marantz amp over nad myself for new.  On the used end, anything nelson pass, or the NAD 218THX is a beast with a punch.  I have about 30 amps here now, and just picked up another one...the nakamichi Ta-4 stasis designed by nelson pass.  I have heard good things about it, so anxious to try it, but i have several other toys here in front of it...my reference amp is a mcintosh ma6500.

 

marantz mm7025

or

rega brio

 

 

 

You have 30 amps... I don't even know what to ask about that. :-)

[kirkmc]

4 hours ago, zackthedog said:

I have to add, at the risk of stepping on toes, that a lot of the answers here have been remarkably unhelpful.  This is an office system, folks.

 

Well, "office system" doesn't mean that it isn't important to me. I work at home, and it's a quiet environment. I also do some "real" music listening in that room. :-) 

[beerandmusic]

6 minutes ago, kirkmc said:

 

You have 30 amps... I don't even know what to ask about that. :-)

most are junk avr's...my wife and I do garage and estate sales as hobby and a little extra income...I told my wife to pick up avr's (or really any stereo equipment) whenever she can get them for $10...every now and then, she actually gets one with hdmi that has any resale value (grin).  ...time to have her put on the breaks though...that or have her text me model numbers before buying, but that makes it more difficult to get things cheap when they know someone is researching and still interested.  She has made some remarkable scores over time....got a pair of ls3/5a once for $25 (grin).

[kirkmc]

Just now, beerandmusic said:

most are junk avr's...my wife and I do garage and estate sales as hobby and a little extra income...I told my wife to pick up avr's (or really any stereo equipment) whenever she can get them for $10...every now and then, she actually gets one with hdmi that has any resale value (grin).  ...time to have her put on the breaks though...that or have her text me model numbers before buying, but that makes it more difficult to get things cheap when they know someone is researching and still interested.  She has made some remarkable scores over time....got a pair of ls3/5a once for $25 (grin).

 

Ah, that makes senes. 

[beerandmusic]

12 minutes ago, kirkmc said:

 

Well, "office system" doesn't mean that it isn't important to me. I work at home, and it's a quiet environment. I also do some "real" music listening in that room. :-) 

I just read you are in europe..probably the naim is best name there in that price range?  That is one i have never tried, but i don't think you could go wrong with one from what i have heard.

[kirkmc]

1 minute ago, beerandmusic said:

I just read you are in europe..probably the naim is best name there in that price range?  That is one i have never tried, but i don't think you could go wrong with one from what i have heard.

 

None of them are under £1000. 

[synn]

The Naim Mu-So QB is about EUR 800 here before negotiations, but it’s more of a lifestyle product than something more on the lines of what you’re looking for IMO.