New Amp advice

[davejarvis14]

Hi,

Looking for some advice please.

My current system comprises of CA Azur 540A, CA Azur 640C, CA iDock 10, Pro-ject Elemental III, NAD 4225 tuner, QED speaker wire, Mordaunt Short Avant 902i speakers and CA Atlantic connectors. I also have a Google Chromecast connected for Wi-Fi listening of files from my iPhone 7, iPod touch 4 or laptop.

Im looking to change my amp and get rid of some of the equipment/cabling to appease my partner...

im considering the Yamaha R-N602, Yamaha R-N402D or Onkyo TX8225.

Could anyone give me a steer on two considerations 1) would my speakers and CD player be shown up by any of these amps? 2) are these multi-purpose amps actually any good compared to similarly priced separates?

i listen to a wide style of music but mainly Indie Rock or Synth based music (ie Depeche Mode) and like a deep, solid bass.

I have around £500 to spend.

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Andrewjvt]

You could look at Adam a7x active speakers.

This way you'd have potent sound quality and can ditch loads of boxes - sell them and still upgrade in sq

 

[muljao]

Any of those amps have built in DACs matched to overall performance of the rest of the amp. If you connect your cd player via digital cable it should be a balanced match.

 

[insider9]

I'll be honest I would swap 540A for any of these amps. There may be different but doubt they be much better. The 540A is actually a very musical amp that is evenly balanced. Sure the bass performance might not be best and it doesn't dig up the most detail but it's not bad at all.

For the budget I'd look to buy second hand with many amps available that will outperform every single amp you've listed. Sadly don't know your speakers to suggest a suitable pairing.

 

[Frank Harvey]

The RN-602 is very good for its price and has lots of features. I would also consider the Marantz PM6006 UK Edition as well as this unit. It doesn't have the Network connectivity built in however but this wouldn't be an issue if you were using the Chromecast going direct into its DAC.

 

[davejarvis14]

Thanks very much for all your advice. I quite like the idea of the Marantz PM6006 or the CA CXA60, but that doesn't solve my problem of reducing my equipment/cabling to appease the missus *wink*.

I know that I am probably sacrificing some musicality of a 'pure music' amp for the convenience of networking, airplay, bluetooth and Wi-Fi, but as long as the Yamaha isn't too laid back about it's presentation (I know this is something aimed at Yamaha amps generally) I will probably plump for that one.

 

[Frank Harvey]

Definitely test it out that amplifier to make sure you are happy first. You could always suggest to her that you're looking into going full wireless and considering a streamer but want to ensure you have the right amplifier first

.

Esentially if you went down that route you could potentially move away from the CD's and the Ipod dock and also chromecast as everything will be able to be played back using the same device. Then you have a solution that makes her extremely happy!

 

[muljao]

Richer sounds are selling the Onkyo tx8150 at the moment for 399 pounds. Its a well liked all in one. If you use a dvd player or bluray player you could run a digital cable from thar to the onkyo (or whatever digital enabled amp) you have and use that as a cd player, reducing your box count even further

 

[Andrewjvt]

Definitely test it out that amplifier to make sure you are happy first. You could always suggest to her that you're looking into going full wireless and considering a streamer but want to ensure you have the right amplifier first .

Esentially if you went down that route you could potentially move away from the CD's and the Ipod dock and also chromecast as everything will be able to be played back using the same device. Then you have a solution that makes her extremely happy!

Who is the name of the person behind Frank Harvey account.

It used to be David before all his posts were taken away from him.

 

[davejarvis14]

So, been re-evaluating since reading these replies and with my budget, if I were to go second-hand, I quite fancy the Roksan Kandy K1 or K2. Now... would these show my other equipment up as I know this amp is quite a step up in quality over my CA 540A V2?

 

[insider9]

If you're speakers are on a warm side then Roksan KA-1 Mk3 would be a super amp. If they're more neutral or bright even go for Roksan L3, it's the last edition of KA-1 line before K2 was released. I prefer the L3 but like I said it may sound too warm with warm pair of speakers.

I've used your Cambridge Audio as a relief amp after selling Roksan L3. You'll get more of a sound you know with Roksan. And it's a very musical beast too and with a punch. But the biggest difference will be how ferocious it sounds in comparison in no small feat thanks to excellent bass.

For me both these were more enjoyable than new K3... make of that what you will 🙂 at around £250 they're one of the best amp to can get for the money.

Did I mention phono stages in Roksan amps are excellent too? 🙂

 

[Al ears]

If you're speakers are on a warm side then Roksan KA-1 Mk3 would be a super amp. If they're more neutral or bright even go for Roksan L3, it's the last edition of KA-1 line before K2 was released. I prefer the L3 but like I said it may sound too warm with warm pair of speakers.

I've used your Cambridge Audio as a relief amp after selling Roksan L3. You'll get more of a sound you know with Roksan. And it's a very musical beast too and with a punch. But the biggest difference will be how ferocious it sounds in comparison in no small feat thanks to excellent bass.

For me both these were more enjoyable than new K3... make of that what you will 🙂 at around £250 they're one of the best amp to can get for the money.

Did I mention phono stages in Roksan amps are excellent too? 🙂

+1

Cracking amp for the right money.

 

[davejarvis14]

Thanks everyone for your help and opinions. I have now brought myself a second-hand Roksan Kandy KA-1 Mk3. Delivery on Wednesday so feel like a kid waiting for Xmas!

 

[insider9]

Hope you enjoy and keep us posted.