Yamaha AS2100/Cambridge CXN vs Hegel H160

[georgescookie]

Hi there, im having a tough time deciding between a Hegel H160 vs Yamaha AS2100/CXN combo...

The system would be used primarily for playing flacs off a NAS; the Hegel connects straight to the network via DLNA, wheres as the Yam/CXN also seems to be a good combo. I like vinyl also but don't mind buying a phono stage if needs be.

I am unable to audition either as thier respective sellers are a bit too far from me...I have Focal Aria 906 speakers and would like a dynamic, fast sound with plenty of detail... opinions and suggestions would be greatly appeciated, cheers in advance *drinks*

 

[MUSICRAFT]

Hi georgescookie

I've not heard the A-S2100 or the CXN but i can tell you that the H160/Aria 906 combination has a detailed but smooth, deep, punchy, grippy, fast and dynamic presentation

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

 

[georgescookie]

Thanks for that Rick, sound like a perfect match...maybe I'll be giving Musiccraft a call soon

 

[Andrewjvt]

Hi

I brought a h160 about 5 weeks ago and the detail is still amazing me every day. I brought it from rick at musicraft also. Good service and advice. The hegel will really give you high end sound. Go and audition one.
The speed of the amp is great but even better for me is the emotion you get from your music and sounds in the track you never heard before

Ps will sound even better in your house

 

[Thompsonuxb]

Try and get a listen with the Yamaha or find out more about it.

Very underrated amp maker. If you like a 'stereo image' you may enjoy their sound.

Heard the Hegel at the Bristol show, paired with LS50's - the presentation was 'flat' a 'wall of sound' - the demonstrator blamed the speakers for the not so impressive demo. But he compared it with the smaller amp in the range the 80 which had a similar signature.

Suppose it boils down to your preference - a 'airey' floating image v a more direct in your face sound.

I'm sure your speakers will accommodate both.

The Focal 906 were the second best sounding speaker at the show paired with Naim kit (after some Harberth mini monitors) to my ears very impressive.

 

[Andrewjvt]

Try and get a listen with the Yamaha or find out more about it.

Very underrated amp maker. If you like a 'stereo image' you may enjoy their sound.

Heard the Hegel at the Bristol show, paired with LS50's - the presentation was 'flat' a 'wall of sound' - the demonstrator blamed the speakers for the not so impressive demo. But he compared it with the smaller amp in the range the 80 which had a similar signature.

Suppose it boils down to your preference - a 'airey' floating image v a more direct in your face sound.

I'm sure your speakers will accommodate both.

The Focal 906 were the second best sounding speaker at the show paired with Naim kit (after some Harberth mini monitors) to my ears very impressive.

Well i say. If it sounds that terrible why bother as theres loads of different amps. But dont let comments like this worry you. Go listen for yourself. Others at the bristol show said they have never heard the ls50s sound so good. I will say though that themy hegel sounded flat when it was vrand new for a while and also when not warmed up. After about 10 mins it comes alive. Not only will you have a very dynamic grippy bass you will hear the texture and can even feel how tight or loose the bass strings are. I used to be in my own band in south africa owned my own sound rig and used to set up aound for other bands. I know how music should sound and the hegel makes me feel like im live better than all the other amps ive owned or demod.

But thats why we all are different nd have different ears and tastes otherwise we would all have the same set up.

Btw read some reviews on the h160 and they all say the same. Ita like your music gets a dry clean from all the distortion. So much mor time around the different instruments in the track due to lack of distortion. This may at first be misleading on a short demo as you wont be used to it. On the other hand say a naim will jump at you in a demo but after the long run can be tiresome.

Demo

 

[Thompsonuxb]

?

Try and get a listen with the Yamaha or find out more about it.

Very underrated amp maker. If you like a 'stereo image' you may enjoy their sound.

Heard the Hegel at the Bristol show, paired with LS50's - the presentation was 'flat' a 'wall of sound' - the demonstrator blamed the speakers for the not so impressive demo. But he compared it with the smaller amp in the range the 80 which had a similar signature.

Suppose it boils down to your preference - a 'airey' floating image v a more direct in your face sound.

I'm sure your speakers will accommodate both.

The Focal 906 were the second best sounding speaker at the show paired with Naim kit (after some Harberth mini monitors) to my ears very impressive.

Well i say. If it sounds that terrible why bother as theres loads of different amps. But dont let comments like this worry you. Go listen for yourself. Others at the bristol show said they have never heard the ls50s sound so good. I will say though that themy hegel sounded flat when it was vrand new for a while and also when not warmed up. After about 10 mins it comes alive. Not only will you have a very dynamic grippy bass you will hear the texture and can even feel how tight or loose the bass strings are. I used to be in my own band in south africa owned my own sound rig and used to set up aound for other bands. I know how music should sound and the hegel makes me feel like im live better than all the other amps ive owned or demod.

But thats why we all are different nd have different ears and tastes otherwise we would all have the same set up.

Btw read some reviews on the h160 and they all say the same. Ita like your music gets a dry clean from all the distortion. So much mor time around the different instruments in the track due to lack of distortion. This may at first be misleading on a short demo as you wont be used to it. On the other hand say a naim will jump at you in a demo but after the long run can be tiresome.

Demo

Andrew honestly I'm not knocking the Hegel amp. I speak in general terms.

I know WHF reviewers seem to prefer the more assertive sound

But at this price bracket it's worth checking the options.

 

[ID.]

There certainly seems to be a mini hype train going for Hegel on the forum at the moment. It's a pretty big call to be spending that much money without auditioning them unless one has features that you need that the other doesn't.

If it's any help, the Japanese reviews I've read describe the AS-2100 as having a different sound signature to the AS-3000. More up front, more body, more slam and grunt. Personally without having even heard the Hegel (I've only heard the Yamaha briefly in a noisy store) I'd be leaning towards the Hegel, but at those prices I'd be willing to make a journey of a few hours to have a listen. You might even find a completely different amp that you prefer to either of these.

 

[Laurens_B]

Andrew honestly I'm not knocking the Hegel amp. I speak in general terms.

I know WHF reviewers seem to prefer the more assertive sound

But at this price bracket it's worth checking the options.

"Assertive sound" *lol*

 

[Andrewjvt]

Andrew honestly I'm not knocking the Hegel amp. I speak in general terms.

I know WHF reviewers seem to prefer the more assertive sound

But at this price bracket it's worth checking the options.
[/quote]

Totally agree and the 2100 is a good amp. I thought you said it sounded flat. I never understood

 

[Andrewjvt]

Your welcome to come over to mine and have a listen if your in my area

 

[Jota180]

Try and get a listen with the Yamaha or find out more about it.

Very underrated amp maker. If you like a 'stereo image' you may enjoy their sound.

Heard the Hegel at the Bristol show, paired with LS50's - the presentation was 'flat' a 'wall of sound' - the demonstrator blamed the speakers for the not so impressive demo. But he compared it with the smaller amp in the range the 80 which had a similar signature.

Suppose it boils down to your preference - a 'airey' floating image v a more direct in your face sound.

I'm sure your speakers will accommodate both.

The Focal 906 were the second best sounding speaker at the show paired with Naim kit (after some Harberth mini monitors) to my ears very impressive.

Did they win some kind of award?

 

[Thompsonuxb]

?

Andrew honestly I'm not knocking the Hegel amp. I speak in general terms.

I know WHF reviewers seem to prefer the more assertive sound

But at this price bracket it's worth checking the options.

"Assertive sound" *lol*

Laurens, refer to id's post if you don't understand what the term 'assertive' means in this context.....

 

[Thompsonuxb]

Your welcome to come over to mine and have a listen if your in my area

Naaah, you're alright..... *nea*

 

[Thompsonuxb]

Try and get a listen with the Yamaha or find out more about it.

Very underrated amp maker. If you like a 'stereo image' you may enjoy their sound.

Heard the Hegel at the Bristol show, paired with LS50's - the presentation was 'flat' a 'wall of sound' - the demonstrator blamed the speakers for the not so impressive demo. But he compared it with the smaller amp in the range the 80 which had a similar signature.

Suppose it boils down to your preference - a 'airey' floating image v a more direct in your face sound.

I'm sure your speakers will accommodate both.

The Focal 906 were the second best sounding speaker at the show paired with Naim kit (after some Harberth mini monitors) to my ears very impressive.

Did they win some kind of award?

They may have done, but this was in my opinion only.

 

[georgescookie]

Big thanks to all of you...

I.D - you are right it is a big sum of money and auditioning is essential but unfortunately I find sellers for both amps are a bit far, apart from the CXN as I have a Richer Sounds nearby but they don't do the Yam AS2100 so could not try both at the same time *aggressive* I like you grunt, slam & body comments as the Focals love abit of that *music2*

Andrewjvt - thanks alot for your input, i do like the dry sound as it reminds me of a Cyrus I used to have, you sound like you love it! And thanks for your offer for dropping by for a listen but I would not want to put you out. Im in East London by the way. I am leaning towards the Hegel if im honest

Thompsonuxb - thanks for your feedback also, great to get a different take on the H160, especially when used with different speakers like those KEFs

Im gonna maul over it for the rest of the week and might bite the bullet over the weekend , thanks again

 

[Andrewjvt]

Your welcome to come over to mine and have a listen if your in my area

Naaah, you're alright..... *nea*

was asking the op lol

 

[MUSICRAFT]

Thanks for that Rick

Hi georgescookie

Your welcome

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

 

[Romulus]

Hi

I brought a h160 about 5 weeks ago and the detail is still amazing me every day. I brought it from rick at musicraft also. Good service and advice. The hegel will really give you high end sound. Go and audition one. The speed of the amp is great but even better for me is the emotion you get from your music and sounds in the track you never heard before

Ps will sound even better in your house

I am interested in auditioning the Hegel H160 and I can't help noticing every one saying that it has a clean sound. I listen to a wide range of music, my concern is how will the clean sound of Hegel treat heavy rock ( eg. live recording of Deep Purple's Perfect Strangers, Rainbow, Jimi Hendrix, UFO, Blue Oyster Cult, Muse, Boston, Gary Moore, Dire Straits + etc..) Will the full thrust of a rock band come through for me to say 'wow' or will it be a dispassionate forensic inspection as to how the song was recorded? Do you listen to rock orientated music and if so what was it about the Hegel H160 sound that attracted you to the amplifier?

 

[Andrewjvt]

  I listen to a wide range of music, my concern is how will the clean sound of Hegel treat heavy rock ( eg. live recording of Deep Purple's Perfect Strangers, Rainbow, Jimi Hendrix, UFO, Blue Oyster Cult, Muse, Boston, Gary Moore, Dire Straits + etc..)  Will the full thrust of a rock band come through for me to say 'wow' or will it be a dispassionate forensic inspection as to how the song was recorded?    Do you listen to rock orientated music and if so what was it about the Hegel H160 sound that attracted you

Bands i listen to: korn (never sounded better on anything) muse, rhcp, ratm, linkin park, qotsa, limpbizkit, cold play, black sabeth, skunkanansie, smashing pumpkins, coldplay, foo fight, evanenscence, rammstein, radio head, yeah yeah yeahs, florence and the machine, neil young, katie meleu, lana del rey, placebo, smiths, alanis morriset, nirvana, cure

All sounds great and 10 tines better than my old roksan k2

But some songs or cds are just badly recorded and the hegel will not cover up a bad recording as its revealing amp but go demo one and see for yourself

 

[Romulus]

I listen to a wide range of music, my concern is how will the clean sound of Hegel treat heavy rock ( eg. live recording of Deep Purple's Perfect Strangers, Rainbow, Jimi Hendrix, UFO, Blue Oyster Cult, Muse, Boston, Gary Moore, Dire Straits + etc..) Will the full thrust of a rock band come through for me to say 'wow' or will it be a dispassionate forensic inspection as to how the song was recorded? Do you listen to rock orientated music and if so what was it about the Hegel H160 sound that attracted you

Bands i listen to: korn (never sounded better on anything) muse, rhcp, ratm, linkin park, qotsa, limpbizkit, cold play, black sabeth, skunkanansie, smashing pumpkins, coldplay, foo fight, evanenscence, rammstein, radio head, yeah yeah yeahs, florence and the machine, neil young, katie meleu, lana del rey, placebo, smiths, alanis morriset, nirvana, cure

All sounds great and 10 tines better than my old roksan k2

But some songs or cds are just badly recorded and the hegel will not cover up a bad recording as its revealing amp but go demo one and see for yourself

Sounds all positive, will have to audition. I have heard Naim Supernait2, Naim Cd5 Si via PCM 23, from a rock prospective the sound was awesome but I found other types of music such as Classical the sound was a bit limiting (still musical but something was missing). I hope the Hegel H160 would be more universal with all types of music..

 

[Andrewjvt]

With everything ive tested. Ive played opera, hiphop and pop. Acoustic music sounds very good also but tour speakers will play a large part in the reproduction also.

 

[georgescookie]

Hi all, just wanted to give an update on what I bought in the end, and that was the Hegel H160 which ive head for about a month now.

Last month on one of the TFL strikes (oh the joys), I decided I didnt want throw myself on a packed bus & overground train to go work, I decided to take the day off & drove up to Derby for a visit to Musicraft.

Assisted by Rick, who was a lovely guy, friendly and honest with a strong fondness for my Honda Civic Sport *biggrin* , he had the the H160 connected to a pair of Focal 906s (the speakers I have).
I liked what I heard, it reminded me of the dry musical sound of a Cyrus with detail & power to boot but I knew these speakers needed more space than Ricks shop could offer to produce their best (although it was a lovely cosy place to be!). So with this optimism, I bought the Hegs and trekked back to London with the big lump in my boot.

On connecting the amp, and for a few weeks subsequently, the amp was flat with no musiciallity or soundtage at all, & oh dear the treble was just harsh...all I had was bass and I was feeling a little deflated .

I perserved and continued to run it in (I dont think ive hit 100 hous yet) but wowsers...
It sounds brilliant now. its got it all; clarity, speed, a 3d holographic soundstage, brillaint level of detail, transparency, smoothness, power & grip to the sound with clean strong bass, absolute joy to listen to *music2*

My amp searching days are now over thank gawd, piece out...

 

[Andrewjvt]

Glad your happy. When i first read your post i thought oh no you hated it. But now tou enjoy the sound thats good. Must say i also when through that at first but only for about 20min then it came alive.
Now just buy cds and enjoy

 

[SteveR750]

FWIW neither my amp or speakers have changed audibly from the day I got them (both boxed, brand new unused) so I know not of this burn in of which you speak