Best Amp over the last 10 years for about a grand

[njprrogers]

I am playing with the idea of upgrading my trusty old Roksan K2 to power my Wharfedale Lintons 85th speakers. They are in a 45sq metre room. I always keep an eye on the used market.

So I thought I would ask, if you had about a grand to spend on an amp from the last ten years, which one would you go for?


* Not so interested in streaming or DAC's as I have that covered.
** Why am I upgrading? No reason that could be justified other than curiosity at what is out there.

 

[manicm]

Personally I don't think you'll do better than your K2 for 1k.

 

[Al ears]

Personally I don't think you'll do better than your K2 for 1k.

I think you may be right.
The K2 was around £800 when it first came out and that was 2008' ish so I doubt that you will better it by spending a grand.
That said there is a Rotel RA1572 mk2 on eBay for about £1300

 

[plastic penguin]

Personally I don't think you'll do better than your K2 for 1k.

You can, and it'll better it by some margin: Leema Pulse MK1 or the MK1 Tucana.

I actually compared my Pulse with a K2 and the Leema just brought the whole soundstage alive, the only advantage the K2 has over the Pulse is the extra wattage (80 watts compared to 130).

If you can find one though, they don't very often come on the second hand market.

 

[aversaurus]

I have owed the leema tucana and pulse and the K2 and the wharfdale Linton heritage.so what sound are you looking to achieve maybe I can help

 

[njprrogers]

So I may not even sell the K2 if I get something else at a reasonable price... I think it is an excellent piece of kit considering. Anybody compared it to the K3?

@aversaurus So, the Lintons are pretty laid back so I don't want to pair it with anything with a similar character. Listening mostly to a diverse range of music, Nina Simone through to Jungle with everything in between. Tell me more about the Leema... not a brand I have actually heard in a system before.

 

[aversaurus]

The leema,s are very good plenty of power lots of detail a more refined sound than the K2,s very smooth some what neutral sound with lots of scale .how do you find the K2 lacking with the Linton,s I found them a good match

 

[njprrogers]

I don't find them lacking to be honest, it's more just curiosity about the impact that other amps could have on them.
I like the sound I get at the moment to be honest. It's really just in the interest of experimenting a little to see if I can maximise what I am getting from the Lintons.

I will definitely keep an eye out for the Pulse mk1. The mk2 & mk3 seem to come up for about 4-500 euros. Do they not cut it compared to the mk1?

These things interest me as well... never owned class D, seems a decent amount of bang for your buck.

 

[plastic penguin]

I don't find them lacking to be honest, it's more just curiosity about the impact that other amps could have on them.
I like the sound I get at the moment to be honest. It's really just in the interest of experimenting a little to see if I can maximise what I am getting from the Lintons.

I will definitely keep an eye out for the Pulse mk1. The mk2 & mk3 seem to come up for about 4-500 euros. Do they not cut it compared to the mk1?

These things interest me as well... never owned class D, seems a decent amount of bang for your buck.

I like the K2 a lot, however they can sound a little smooth. The Leemas have that little extra *spark* or neutrality to the soundstage, although it never over-egged.

 

[njprrogers]

One last question on this @plastic penguin and @aversaurus , I see a few Leema Pulse II and III coming up around the place. Should I avoid these and just focus on trying to find a mk 1?

 

[plastic penguin]

One last question on this @plastic penguin and @aversaurus , I see a few Leema Pulse II and III coming up around the place. Should I avoid these and just focus on trying to find a mk 1?

There's no such thing as a Pulse MK2. For some strange reason they went from my MK1 to MK3 & now MK4. I believe, although not sure, they went straight to MK3 because it had a Dac built-in, but don't quote me on that.

The MK3 is sonically as good as mine, only let down by the Dac quality.

As part of mine is a MK3. I had to send it back under warranty because of a faulty headphone socket. They replaced all the headphone loom and circuit with the MK3, and it sounds, overall, richer than before I sent it back.

The only issue with the MK3 is the fugly design. The latest incarnation looks like mine.

 

[nopiano]

There's no such thing as a Pulse MK2. For some strange reason they went from my MK1 to MK3 & now MK4. I believe, although not sure, they went straight to MK3 because it had a Dac built-in, but don't quote me on that.

The MK3 is sonically as good as mine, only let down by the Dac quality.

As part of mine is a MK3. I had to send it back under warranty because of a faulty headphone socket. They replaced all the headphone loom and circuit with the MK3, and it sounds, overall, richer than before I sent it back.

The only issue with the MK3 is the fugly design. The latest incarnation looks like mine.

Yes, they certainly dropped one with the Pulse III, didn’t they? It looks more like a Sky box to me!

 

[plastic penguin]

Yes, they certainly dropped one with the Pulse III, didn’t they? It looks more like a Sky box to me!

Yeah, not sure what happened with the design of the MK3. I can only guess they were trying to appeal to a younger audience by making it look like TV set top box. Either that or it was dreamed up after a heavy lunch at the 'Dog and Whistle'.

 

[njprrogers]

My vote is for the "Dog and Whistle". Awful looking thing

Wouldn't stop me as my hifi isn't really on full display (it is obscured by it's cabinet).

 

[bigfish786]

I think the pulse II got its name as they released a new cd player around the same time called the stream II. So people just paired them together and gave the amp the same name.

 

[bigfish786]

Btw, I’ve had the pulse as well. Cracking amp with a great phono stage built in. Making this amp an utter bargain.

 

[plastic penguin]

My vote is for the "Dog and Whistle". Awful looking thing

Wouldn't stop me as my hifi isn't really on full display (it is obscured by it's cabinet).

I've had my Leema since 2010 and still sounds great. The switchable phono stage is very impressive (as mentioned by @bigfish786 ).

Also owned the Tucana MK2 and the outboard Elements stage is also a cracker.

The Pulse MK1 usually sells on the secondhand market for about £500. Bargain.

 

[matthewpianist]

It's very hard to argue with a Naim Nait 5si or Rega Elex-R...

 

[Vincent Kars]

Have a look here

 

[plastic penguin]

It's very hard to argue with a Naim Nait 5si or Rega Elex-R...

It is if you don't like them.😋

 

[njprrogers]

It is if you don't like them.😋

I started this thread wondering when someone would mention either the Elex-R or the Elicit-R. I am surprised it has taken this long. Are they generally (in retrospect) not appreciated? Or just maybe not that much better than the Roksan?

 

[njprrogers]

Have a look here

I mentioned earlier how intrigued I was by this guy. Hypex Ncore on a budget.

 

[skinnypuppy71]

Naim nait xs2 can be had for the budget....I loved the original xs..

 

[Al ears]

I started this thread wondering when someone would mention either the Elex-R or the Elicit-R. I am surprised it has taken this long. Are they generally (in retrospect) not appreciated? Or just maybe not that much better than the Roksan?

Probably not in my opinion

 

[matthewpianist]

I started this thread wondering when someone would mention either the Elex-R or the Elicit-R. I am surprised it has taken this long. Are they generally (in retrospect) not appreciated? Or just maybe not that much better than the Roksan?

'Better' is subjective. I've owned a K3, Nait 5i and Elex-R and all 3 are extremely capable amplifiers. The K3 was the one I liked the least as it leaned towards being overly smooth compared to the other two, and if I had to pick out of the three I would go Naim. I've heard different iterations of the Nait 5 with a wide range of partnering sources and speakers, and it has huge capacity to grow with the rest of a system.