Hi all,
I have listened to Kandy K2 & Caspian with my SCM11's. As mentioned everywhere, Caspian was more detailed and precise. But for my music taste (rock / metal), it was lacking the warmth. Kandy 2 was giving the warmth and punch that I was looking for, but it was lacking the details of Caspian. I felt like there was a block at the higher notes. But for the price, it is a great amp.
Then after a week, I auditioned ATC Pre / power combo and integaretd SIA 2-150. For my music taste, the integrated gave me both the detail and the warmth that I was looking for. Pre/Power was a tiny bit more direct, but I like the sound of integrated better. Also given the price offer differences from the dealer, SIA 2-150 ended up to be a better option. (Apparently, the Swiss prefer the pre/power and the dealer was not selling the integrated very often 🙂 )
If I had lower budget, I would go for Kandy 2 (or even stick to my good old Arcam A85). However, ATC SIA 2-150 really gave what I was looking for. I also couldn't stop myself from upgrading the speakers to SCM40. Now I have less money, but the sound that I was looking for :doh: