New Amplifier, between £200 - £300 ish...?

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Hi all,

need a little help if i may be so bold, I've seen a few amplifiers that kind of look ok, but any opinions you have are very much welcome...

I've whittled them down to: Onkyo TX8222 ( it has a tuner, and i currently don't)

Marantz PM6002 ( i've got marantz cd6000ose ltd ed, maybe perfect partner?)

Denon PMA700 ( don't know about Denon, are they really that good?)

Nad c315BEE ( or possibly the c320/c325)

Rotel RA-04 ( heard great things about Rotel amps)

The amp doesn't have to be remote control, but i want one which will enable me to bi-wire my Monitor Audio BR5's and preferably have a tone defeat on.

Any feedback is more than appreciated
Neil.
 

d_a_n1979

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Hello

It'd be a good idea to know what music you listen too etc...

I think for your budget you could go for the Rotel RA-04 or definitly the NAD's you mentioned.

You could also take a look @ Ebay and possibly go for an Arcam Alpha 8 or 9 integrated amp which you can always upgrade with the Alpha 8P or 9P power amps at a later stage allowing you to bi-amp!

The Arcam amps are great with M/A speakers.

If you go for an amp with just one set of speaker outputs you can still bi-wire, just go 2 - 4 (2 out of the amp and split into 4 at the speaker)
 
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Anonymous

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Ah...

The all important musical genre, sorry i forgot to mention that...

I'm definately on the rock side of the spectrum, Metallica, Nirvana, Iron Maiden, the Offspring, Green Day, AC/DC, Arctic Monkeys etc etc etc...

However, recently been listening to other softer stuff, amy macdonald, counting crows, dire straits - and my mrs listens to r 'n' b stuff, like whitney houston and miriah carey etc, though thankfully generally when i've gone out
emotion-1.gif


Thanks for mentioning the Arcam amps, I'll keep my eyes peeled on Ebay...

Neil.
 

d_a_n1979

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Music doesnt sound too bad :)

I'd deffo consider the Arcam Alpha 9 or 10 integrated amp then especially with Monitor Audio RS6 speakers.

My system (listed below) sounds fantastic (to me obviously) but i definitly think that Arcam and M/A speakers go together very well. I also listen to a fair bit of Iron Maiden, Metallica, SOAD, Offspring, Tool, Linkin Park etc and my system really kicks out some fantastic sound!

Ebay is a very good place for 2nd hand amps, as long as theyve been taken care of, you cant go wrong!
 

John Duncan

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Creek Evo, they go for 300 s/h - I think creekaudio.co.uk sometimes does ex-demo ones as well. Also Rega Mira or Brio s/h (the 2nd gen, pretty ones). None of these have tone controls and are better rock amps than Arcam, from my experience.
 
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Anonymous

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The NAD is probably best for you - I still think it would be the best for Rock because of its sheer power and rather dynamic sound. There is a new NAD amp coming out: The NAD C355bee. It promises to be even better than its predecessor the C352 and looks alot better aswell. The Rotel is a bit of a marmite amp - you either love it or hate it. I'm not the greatest fan of it, but for rock it is excellent and when I heard one on some B&W 685/6 standmounters the bass was utterly incredible!

I'm not to sure Arcam stuff is the best for rock - their sound is quite relaxed and the 9 i've heard tends to be great on more delicate stuff but can't quite time right when doing metallica and the like. I listened to Linkin Park Numb and although the detail it provided was excellent and the sound tonally great, it was a little slow when the guitars come in, in the chorus. But do not get me wrong - it is an absolutly fantastic second hand buy and you SHOULD give one a try (the Ruark Prelude speakers may have been a little slow perhaps).

Please expand on my comments and all the best! Hughes.
 

d_a_n1979

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I agree with Hughes re the Arcam being a little slow when it comes to Rock music but once you find the right speakers for the Arcam amps, you cant go wrong

I've always been a massive fan of Arcam & B&W and thought id never better B&W speakers for my tatse in music but after listening to the MA RS6 speakers, i was proved very wrong!

Theyre fast, punchy and hell of a fantastic bass line. Great with vocals as they have a nice smooth yet well timed midrange and crisp/clear treble. The Arcam amps, in my opinion, soften the ever so slightly forward treble on the M/A speakers.
 
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Anonymous

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[quote user="nedtom"]
Ah...

The all important musical genre, sorry i forgot to mention that...

I'm definately on the rock side of the spectrum, Metallica, Nirvana, Iron Maiden, the Offspring, Green Day, AC/DC, Arctic Monkeys etc etc etc...

However, recently been listening to other softer stuff, amy macdonald, counting crows, dire straits - and my mrs listens to r 'n' b stuff, like whitney houston and miriah carey etc, though thankfully generally when i've gone out
emotion-1.gif


Thanks for mentioning the Arcam amps, I'll keep my eyes peeled on Ebay...

Neil.
[/quote]

I would try for a nad c352.they can be had online new for about £300,and that price will only come down, as it is being replaced by the c355be. Nad amps are very good indeed with rock and r n b. I am thinking about getting one as they also flatter rough scratchy cd production, which in my experience can be the case with a lot of metal cd's. i also think the rotel would be good.Both amps would be a nice match for your speakers i think with the nad perhaps a slightly better match than the rotel for your cd plyer.you would really have to demo though. What cables you got?
 
A

Anonymous

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Oh, the dreaded cables...

Currently on Monster XP speaker cable ( i know, i know, but it's going soon, honest guv'nor) soon to be replaced by either Qed silver anniversary XT or maybe dnm reson mk2???

the interconnects are Cambridge Audio Pacific (in my defence, it was a what hifi winner!!!) and will probably be replaced after the amp and speaker cable, can only do one thing at once though...

So, it's looking like it's a demo on the rotel ra-04 and on a Nad... Or a 2nd hand Arcam but i won't be able to test that, and a mate of mine has said Arcam gear only tends to shine when it's being used with other Arcam gear? Any truth to this rumour??

Thanks for the help guys,

Neil.
 

d_a_n1979

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In regards to speaker wire you wont go wrong with either the QED Silver Anniversary biwire or the DNM. Both very good

As for the interconnects, [possibly look at QED Quenex 2 or 3, Van Den Hul 'The Name' or Chord Chrimson.

With regards to Arcam amps/CD player combo's 'shining', i'd say thats fairly rare as theyre known for their smoothness but still with bags of power. The right speakers will make Arcam gear sound superb but obviously the wrong speakers will show the faults on any amp/CDP combo.

The NAD C352 and Rotel RA-04 are deffo worth demoing. As for the Arcam, if you can demo then do so.
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
[quote user="nedtom"]
Hi all,

need a little help if i may be so bold, I've seen a few amplifiers that kind of look ok, but any opinions you have are very much welcome...

I've whittled them down to: Onkyo TX8222 ( it has a tuner, and i currently don't)

Marantz PM6002 ( i've got marantz cd6000ose ltd ed, maybe perfect partner?)

Denon PMA700 ( don't know about Denon, are they really that good?)

Nad c315BEE ( or possibly the c320/c325)

Rotel RA-04 ( heard great things about Rotel amps)

The amp doesn't have to be remote control, but i want one which will enable me to bi-wire my Monitor Audio BR5's and preferably have a tone defeat on.

Any feedback is more than appreciated
Neil.
[/quote]

If you are looking for Arcam, i will be putting my A80 on Ebay very shortly, and have it advertised elsewhere. It's just over a year old, still under warranty and immaculate with box, remote, instructions etc. Priced at £300. Selling due to upgrade.
 

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