Audiophilepure

Switching to a fairly new pair of PMC twenty5.26i loudspeakers which have a lower sensitivity than the 802s but offer an easier load the sound initially seemed a little dry from a tonal perspective. After a few tunes this characteristic took a back seat to the spectacular combination of timing and muscle on offer from the M8xi, with track after track offering up oodles of detail in a very coherent and engaging manner. Even an orchestral Schubert piece was delivered with the tempo in full effect, this didn’t take precedence over the dynamics however which were delivered with gusto yet without any discomfort in crescendos. All that power really counts when you are trying to reproduce a ‘big band’ with real world loudspeakers, and it matters with smaller stuff too. Somewhat controversially I put on Nils Lofgren’s rather overplayed dem favourite ‘Keith Don’t Go’, just for old times sake you understand, and heard a fabulous acoustic guitar, a croaky voice and the energy of a live event in surprisingly convincing virtual reality.

https://www.hifinews.com/content/mcintosh-ma9500-integrated-amplifier

The MA9500 is a memorable all-round package, one that’s distinctively and originally styled, highly versatile and hugely powerful too. Most importantly, it is engaging across a wide range of musical genres while its three output taps invite subtle sound tuning. Best partnered with smooth, warmish-sounding speakers, this mammoth Mac should make many prospective purchasers very happy indeed.

https://www.the-ear.net/review-hardware/peachtree-audio-predac-and-gan400-preamplifierdac-power-amplifier

Regular Class D amplifiers generally offer a lot of power for the money. The GaN400 does too, but adds to it a level of sonic sophistication that left this Class D sceptic thoughtful and marginally disorientated. Driven by the accompanying Peachtree pre-amp the GaN400 gave a better, more rounded and believable musical performance than I associate with even the best of MOSFET Class D amplification. 

When the Icon4 Pro passive line stage was used in place of the preDAC the GaN400 revealed itself to be capable of better still performance, with generous servings of the immediacy, dynamic expression, timing acuity and spatial detail that we expect as audiophiles. I have no hesitation in observing that thus paired, the GaN400 is truly competitive with Class AB stereo power amplifiers at a similar price point or higher and is therefore well-deserving of consideration. Audiophile Class D may be truly coming of age.