Audiophilepure

https://www.hifichoice.com/content/copland-csa150

I really rate Copland’s CSA150 integrated amplifier. It’s not just a fine all-rounder, it excels sonically with a big, strong, engaging and musical performance that’s also surprisingly subtle and detailed for such a muscular thing. Well worth an audition, it’s a bargain at its price considering all that it does.

https://www.enjoythemusic.com/superioraudio/equipment/1224/AGD_Productions_SOLO_Limited_Edition_GaN_Power_Monoblock_Amplifier_Andante_MkII_Preamplifier_DAC_Phonostage_Music_Streamer_Review.htm

We subsequently chose to pursue a double rectification stage with a smart-rectifier topology that effectively eliminates all unwanted noise generated by standard silicon-based rectifiers, and with much lower power losses. A power supply design based on a transformer with very stringent magnetic and electrical characteristics necessitates sourcing from a highly capable manufacturer. – A challenge we have struggled with for an extended period. We found a world-class specialized manufacturer in Macerata, Marche, Italy, who also serves many well-known brands in the High-End market.

There’s a reason that so many have such high regard for Pass Labs products, and despite the X150.8 having the status as the entry-level class A/B stereo power .8 amplifier, it’s a stellar performer and continues to power my two-channel listening and reviewing experience to new levels of elation and satisfaction.  For its timeless design and ability to consistently drive loudspeakers like the ATC SCM40s (which, ironically, is the largest loudspeaker in ATC’s Entry Series), as well as others like my Usher ML-802 loudspeakers, to reference levels, I’m both flabbergasted and elated. To have such a balanced and powerful reference tool at my fingertips is extremely gratifying. Like a prime Scottie Pippen, teamed up with other world-class players, it can drive your game to championship status! And as such, I not only heartily recommend it, but I have purchased my review sample. 

https://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/1224/Wells_Audio_Innamorata_III_Stereo_Power_Amplifier_Review.htm

Jeff Wells has a never-satisfied mindset that strives for the ultimate reality. Last year in a conversation at the Capital Audiofest 2023 he mentioned that he has been voicing his amplifiers for 14 years. I can identify on a personal level with his hunt for the very best. Years ago I bought a wreck of an old Dynaco Pas 2 preamplifier and stripped it down to its bare bones. I replaced the old phenolic circuit board with a fiberglass board and searched for the best audiophile Teflon wiring, metal-film resistors, and plastic-film capacitors that I could find. I installed a new Zener-regulated power supply. After every part substitution, I placed the preamplifier into my system to listen for the results. I learned firsthand that nothing is unimportant, everything matters. And that in an electronic chain nothing can sound better than the poorest performing part.\

https://www.enjoythemusic.com/superioraudio/equipment/1024/Jadis_DA88S_MkII_Vacuum_Tube_Integrated_Stereo_Amplifier_Review.htm

In terms of what they expect from their components, the design team at Jadis has adopted a culture that strikes me as very much of a piece with the design approach that Fredrik Lejonklou has adopted for his line of electronics. Though Lejonklous and Jadis components sound very little like one another, they are very much alike in terms of their design briefs than Jadis and their ability to execute on it. Neither is satisfied to produce a particular sound, pleasant or otherwise. Neither seeks to be forgiving of poor source material. Each however is committed to creating a musical experience for the listener that brings them closer to some fundamental feature of all music – whatever its type or whatever the source.

In the case of Lejonklou, the intended function of his creations is explicitly to bring the listener in touch with music’s emotional content. As I hear it, the intended function of Jadis equipment is to bring the human elements of music, from its creation to its performance to the listener. Each excels at what it seeks to do in ways that no mere technical accomplishment can.

I had a chance to try briefly the Pre5 headphone feature and found it to be a decent performer, which should delight the headphone users out there. Therefore, without reservation, I could say that the Pre5 and REF501S were competent performers all around. Towards the end of the review, I swapped out the REF501S with its predecessor, the REF500S. The comparison revealed slightly different sonic characteristics between the two amplifiers. It seemed that the REF501S traded a slightly warm and laid-back presentation of the REF500S for better transparency and a slightly more intimate soundstage. To be clear, this comparison did not reveal that one was better than the other. In my opinion, the two amplifiers exhibited about equal level of performance; they are just slightly different in their musical presentations.