Best of the old budget amps

[Michaelholder1]

So I've been needing to get a new amp and have posted a few other topics on here to get an idea of what I want and just thought I'd post one more to consolidate everything.

Its to go with a pair of B&W Dm602 S3s and with regards to source, I think I am buying a Cambridge Audio DACmagic (which I am getting for £105 2nd hand, I thought that was pretty good right?), and then probably get a CD player to match my amp or just buy a cheap one and put it through the DAC.

So the amps I am currently looking for, and waiting for one at a good price are:

Nad C370

Rotel Ra-1060 or 1062

Marantz Pm-6010KI (can have for ~£155, is that good?)

Marantz Pm-7200 or maybe 7001?

Arcam alpha 9 or 10

Maybe an Arcam A85

But some amps which I know very little about which I have found some deals on I was wondering if people could give me advice on. A Creek Evolution 1 for £180? Was also looking at a Rotel RB-850 and RTC-850 pre and power pair for £100 but didnt know anything about them?

Also saw a twin Rotel RB-970BX Mk2 with a RC-970BX Mk2 Pre set for £300 inc postage, but again dont know anything about them or if that is good. Or what to offer him instead.

I am mostly interested in an idea of the quality of the amps, age, a good idea of their value if people know it, or what the retailed for, and a small amount on what people think of opinions as I know peoples opinions vary a lot so perhaps the rrp and age, a long with people's opinions might give a better judge. I am also very interested in the Creek Evolution deal as it seems like a very good amp.

 

[Michaelholder1]

Perticularly interested in the Creek Evolution I if anyone could tell me about that at least?

 

[rainsoothe]

hi

I haven't heard the Creek Evolution 50A, but i listened to Creek Evo2 with the BW 602 S2s I used to have and it sounded pretty good (way better then that highly praised Rega Brio R ppl are raving about for some reason I don't understand) - maybe the low end was a wee bit muddled, at least for my taste, but the 50A might be different.

Out of the vintage ones, the first time i ever auditioned the 602 S2's before buying them, many years ago, they were fed by a RA 1062. They sounded awesome together, and i think 1062 was half the reason i bought the BW's in the first place (i didn't realise it back then, I was too young).

If it's not 2nd hand e-bay stuff, try to audition - I mean you can try audition the Creek with your speakers to make your mind up. And if you love how it sounds, then go for it.

Trust YOUR ears 🙂

 

[Michaelholder1]

Well if i could audition I most definitely would but unfortunately when buying second hand stuff, unless its close by, you cant.

Is the evolution one the same as the 50a? As I wasn't sure it was? Was struggling to find information on it. From reading reviews I can tell that RA-1062 definitely sounds amazing with the B&W 600 series as I haven't heard a bad review yet. But there doesn't seem to be any available at the moment which is unfortunate.

 

[Michaelholder1]

Well if i could audition I most definitely would but unfortunately when buying second hand stuff, unless its close by, you cant.

Is the evolution one the same as the 50a? As I wasn't sure it was? Was struggling to find information on it. From reading reviews I can tell that RA-1062 definitely sounds amazing with the B&W 600 series as I haven't heard a bad review yet. But there doesn't seem to be any available at the moment which is unfortunate.

 

[John Duncan]

Here's a review of the original EVO if it helps:

http://www.techradar.com/reviews/audio-visual/hi-fi-and-audio/cd-players-and-recorders/creek-evo-78554/review

It's not the same as the 50A, which I think was more an update of the 5350.

 

[Michaelholder1]

Ah thanks, do you have any idea of value for it? Would it work well with my speakers? Or do you reckon there is better amps available for them?

 

[rainsoothe]

Well I, for one, think the 50A would go well with your speakers, perhaps better then it did with the evo2 which, as i said, was a wee bit muddled in the low frequency department (at least I found it so). But this one (the Creek Evolution 50A) you can actually audition - even if you do decide to buy used, u can always take your speakers to a dealer and audition one that's in the store - if you have a store nearby.

Too bad about the rarity of 1062s though - there was one for sale like a week ago for like 400 euro, i was investigating for a friend. Maybe look around for a 2nd hand hi-fi store or some websites? You might have some luck with that.

 

[Michaelholder1]

Might have a look in town at the weekend, but pretty busy at the moment. Do you know of any 2nd hand stores online?

 

[rainsoothe]

Well i think there's several online hi-fi communities with forums that have like "for sale" sections. I don't think I'm allowed to link it. Also, I don't think you get the safety of using dedicated websites, but they seem to be having a rating system of their own, and should be usually safe to use, especially if you can meet with the seller in person. Google is your friend. I think you can find one of them by searching for teddy pardo teddycap reviews, then look for the "classifieds" section. If you're unsure after checking them out, then I guess you could always go for the creek evo50a or whatever the friendly ppl here might recommend for your speakers.

goodluck 😉

 

[Michaelholder1]

Reccommendations would be really appreciated as that is how I have obtained the current list of amps which I am looking at. I am looking at casting my net as wide as possible as being relatively new to hifi I am open to a bit of trial and error as I cant afford to buy what I new.

Regards

Michael