Audiophilepure

https://www.soundandvision.com/content/marantz-model-40n-streaming-integrated-amplifier-review

Alexis Cole’s “Something So Right,” from The World’s Greatest Audiophile Vocal Recordings, Volume 2 (16/44.1 FLAC), sounded sophisticated and gorgeous. Cole’s voice, backed by the warm sound of Marvin Sewell’s guitar strings, came across as relaxed and liquid with beautiful midrange bloom. All of the sonic images were large and solidly planted against a quiet background. At the same time, the high-frequency glissando of Sewell’s fingers sliding between notes was cleanly reproduced without being grating, a common failing of components that don’t cost an arm and a leg.

If pushed to identify a minor quibble I had with the Model 40n’s sound, it would be that it produced a smidgeon less detail than some of its competitors. NAD’s C 399 integrated streaming amp, which I reviewed for the June/July 2022 issue and still have in-house, reproduced Sewell’s guitar strings on “Something So Right” with slightly more vibrational spring, though the difference was subtle and would likely go unnoticed without a contemporaneous comparison. Indeed, absent such a comparison, the long and metallic low-level dynamics of cymbal decays seemed fully resolved on the title track from Billy Cobham’s Total Eclipse album

To summarise the Karan Acoustics Master Collection POWERa Mono in musical terms, I need ‘Spitfire’ from Public Service Broadcasting’s Inform Educate Entertain album [Test Card]. It’s not a demonstration quality track; just a pounding rhythm coupled to some noisy samples from the 1942 British movie, The First of The Few. It’s easy to get it wholly wrong on a big system, but get it right, and I’m back building Airfix kits; and this got it so right, I could smell Humbrol enamel!

The only downside to these amplifiers is that they spell the end for Karan’s existing KA M line of power amps. While these big power amps are not in the same sonic league as the Master Collection models, they are (somewhat) more affordable. I doubt something like the KA M 2000 would be a steppingstone to the POWERa Mono (and there will likely be a POWERb line that would make such jumps even harder to justify). Nevertheless, it would be nice to have something more attainably priced in the Karan portfolio just to make the Master Collection even more of a goal for some.

I was expecting (and hoping for) a lot of power, and the Cambridge amplifier did not disappoint. The Cambridge Audio CXA61 delivers 60 watts/channel into 8 ohms and was designed to play with very low levels of distortion at any volume. 

I found this to be overwhelmingly true as I experimented with all types of music at many volume levels. The amp is incredibly responsive, sounding equally fantastic at low and high volumes. Some high-end equipment sounds rather “mid-fi” at lower volume levels but I found the CXA61 to be quite engaging in this manner. 

I listen to a lot of classical recordings and the HINT 6 really surprised me with how well it dealt with complicated orchestral pieces; instruments had excellent separation and I found myself often lost in how vivid the combination was. Voices were never lost in the mix and very easy to place.

The midrange resolution was also rather superb; Maggies excel with the human voice and the HINT 6 did not disappoint; texture, timbre, and so much presence with most recordings.

I also own a pair of vintage Klipsch Heresy II’s and I wanted to see if the HINT 6 had the headroom to drive them with rock, heavy metal, and other complex electronic pieces that can really load the room.

https://www.hifinews.com/content/hifi-rose-ra180-integrated-amplifier

The high-pass crossover function allows you to filter the output of one of each amplifier pair – there are two amplifier modules per channel in the RA180 – above 600Hz-6kHz. You might choose to use this function to limit the bandwidth of the amplifier feeding the treble arm of a bi-amped speaker, for example, or set it to the top 6kHz filter before driving a supertweeter.

A typical stereo amplifier features four loudspeaker terminals. The RA180? Sixteen, which is astonishing even if you consider the A/B speaker option (note that’s an ‘either’, not an ‘and’, option, as you cannot enable the A and B pair at the same time). As previously mentioned, there are not two but four identical amplifier modules in the RA180 for a claimed total of 4x200W. But you’ll only use the four together when utilising one of its specialised speaker modes, either to bi-amp a pair of speakers (two amplifiers per channel) or bridging each pair into a higher-powered stereo configuration, where the claimed output becomes a whopping 2x400W.

https://www.whathifi.com/us/reviews/primaluna-evo-300

There are a number of areas that we feel are open to criticism. The most obvious of these is its inability to portray dynamic contrasts convincingly. There isn’t the requisite level of dynamic expression we would expect from a product of this price. The result is that this amplifier sounds restrained, almost as if it is gently compressing the music signal, losing excitement in the process. Want to listen to Beethoven’s Fifth or Help! by the Beatles with some of the energy taken out? No, neither do we.

A side effect of this is that regardless of the partnering speakers, we find ourselves constantly playing with the volume level. It’s a struggle to find the point where the music displays the required sense of life without pushing the volume level too high for comfortable listening. This is an amplifier with clearly defined upper limits. Push it hard and things become harsh and edgy very quickly.

Combine these shortcomings with relatively poor rhythmic drive and the inability to communicate changes in musical momentum well, and it’s no surprise to find that our musical enjoyment is diluted.

My ears were trained years ago, late at night, in dark recording studios. I listened to thousands of hours of music, through the iconic Yamaha NS-10 studio monitors. The NS-10s were legendary in their transparency. No musical sin could hide from these speakers. None. If there was a problem, the NS-10 would reveal it. The Pass Labs X260.8 monoblock amplifiers remind me of these speakers.

If you love power, grace, transparency, and (if you move your equipment around a lot) occasional back pain; I highly recommend you demo a pair of the Pass Labs X260.8 monoblock amplifiers or any of the Pass Labs .8 series amplifiers. You will not be disappointed. Highly recommended!

Compared to many other silver disc players, CDs on the SACD 30n had a nice depth and weight that made them sound more like SACDs. SACDs sounded better still – solid, weighty, and clean, with bite and clarity, plus a nice unexaggerated naturalness.

Playing Copland Orchestral works Vol 1 SACD [Chandos CHSA 5164] the bass drum on ‘Fanfare for the Common Man’ had truly awesome heft and depth – real floor-shaking bass, but only if your speakers are capable of reproducing low frequencies below 25Hz.