Yamaha A-S500 Amp upgrade

[dx052]

At the moment I have B&W 685 speakers which I am quiet happy with if the truth be known. I am looking to get a subwoofer to match at some point soon which will sort out my bottom end but wouldn't mind upgrading my amplifier to a Yamaha A-S500 (with remote) or at least listen to it! Do they match with my speakers? At the moment I have a Rotel RA04 SE (no remote) Nice amp but could with with a bit more power. As the amplifier is not that old & is in great condition will I get anything back if I sold on used? or will I have to write it of?

http://www.whathifi.com/Review/Rotel-RA-04SE/

http://whathifi.com/Review/Yamaha-A-S500/Specs/

http://www.whathifi.com/Review/BandW-685/

 

[matthewpiano]

Sideways move at best IMO. I would wait until you can afford to move up to something better like a NAD C356BEE.

 

[Blackdawn]

Agree the NAD would be a good bet as it has plenty of power. Not sure on the difference in sound quality between the Yamaha and the NAD. Would the price increase of the NAD be worth the extra when you can get the Yamaha for under £300. Can you demo both?

Matthewpiano, are you still getting on well with the Lektor 2's; any upgrades planned?

 

[dx052]

I think I heard the Yamaha before & i quiet liked it, not really crazy about NAD!. what about something at a higher price point?

 

[matthewpiano]

Blackdawn:
Agree the NAD would be a good bet as it has plenty of power. Not sure on the difference in sound quality between the Yamaha and the NAD. Would the price increase of the NAD be worth the extra when you can get the Yamaha for under £300. Can you demo both?

Matthewpiano, are you still getting on well with the Lektor 2's; any upgrades planned?

Blackdawn, I love the Lektor 2s. They are fabulous for the price and quite difficult to improve on substantially (I wouldn't swap them for Dynaudio DM2/6s or MA RX1s with my amp), but they are on the way out to make way for some PMC DB1i which really do get the best out of the A18.

Back to topic I have recently heard the Yamaha and the NAD. The Yamaha is a superb £300 amp, but IMO that is all it is and I would just as happily have a Rotel RA04SE. The NAD has more depth and is overall more engaging to listen to.

My suggestion to the OP would be to look in the £500-£700 price range to get a decent upgrade on the Rotel. Take it from somebody who made lots of sideways moves to no real avail, before settling on the Arcam.

 

[dx052]

I think I am going to demo this one: http://www.whathifi.com/Review/Rotel-RA-1520/

I really like the Rotel sound & I am going to assume that it will match my current speakers.