Your amp history...
- Thread starter Michael L
- Start date
What a lot of naimies!!
JVC (?) Jazz 11G (C1980)
I tried a nad 3020 but didn't like (1983)
I had ait on approval from AE in Cardiff and it got returned
Instead I had a little QED amp (sorry these details are a lttle sketchy now)
Cyrus 1 (about '92)
I returned to hifi about 5/6 years ago and went throiugh a naim stage (I had a few funds then)
72/140 +flat cap ok but it wasn't soundstaging
Now Dynavox valves. (well modded)
Funds permitting I'd play with valves /valve amps far more. Going back to the Cyrus you certainly notice the difference.
(Funds do not permit.)
JVC (?) Jazz 11G (C1980)
I tried a nad 3020 but didn't like (1983)
I had ait on approval from AE in Cardiff and it got returned
Instead I had a little QED amp (sorry these details are a lttle sketchy now)
Cyrus 1 (about '92)
I returned to hifi about 5/6 years ago and went throiugh a naim stage (I had a few funds then)
72/140 +flat cap ok but it wasn't soundstaging
Now Dynavox valves. (well modded)
Funds permitting I'd play with valves /valve amps far more. Going back to the Cyrus you certainly notice the difference.
(Funds do not permit.)
Paul Gravett
Good Bot Gone Bad
1978: (Oct) Quad 33/405
1981: (May) Nytech CTA252 + Nytech power amp for active speakers
1994: (Nov) Naim 32.5/110
2001: (May) Naim 102/Hicap/180
(Sep) Naim 82/Hicap/180
(Dec) Naim 82/Hicap/250
2002: (Mar) Naim 82/Supercap/250 + 2nd 250 for active system
(Jun) Naim 52/Supercap/250x2
2003: (Sep) Naim 52/Supercap/135x2
2005: (Jan) Tom Evans The Vibe/Pulse + Avondale M130 x2
2006: (Mar) Dynavector L100/Avondale M130 x2
2006: (Aug) Dynavector L100/Dynavector HX 1.2
2008: (May) Dynavector L300/Dynavector HX 1.2
So it has been quite a journey, beginning in 1978 at the tender age of 16 with my first real hifi. I'm really pleased with my Dynavector amps and my system as a whole, not least because the box count is way lower than it used to be when I was a Naimee!
1981: (May) Nytech CTA252 + Nytech power amp for active speakers
1994: (Nov) Naim 32.5/110
2001: (May) Naim 102/Hicap/180
(Sep) Naim 82/Hicap/180
(Dec) Naim 82/Hicap/250
2002: (Mar) Naim 82/Supercap/250 + 2nd 250 for active system
(Jun) Naim 52/Supercap/250x2
2003: (Sep) Naim 52/Supercap/135x2
2005: (Jan) Tom Evans The Vibe/Pulse + Avondale M130 x2
2006: (Mar) Dynavector L100/Avondale M130 x2
2006: (Aug) Dynavector L100/Dynavector HX 1.2
2008: (May) Dynavector L300/Dynavector HX 1.2
So it has been quite a journey, beginning in 1978 at the tender age of 16 with my first real hifi. I'm really pleased with my Dynavector amps and my system as a whole, not least because the box count is way lower than it used to be when I was a Naimee!
1979- SAE MK30 (used with original Polk audio 7 speakers, proved unreliable).
1983- Yamaha B6 (shaped like a pyramid, seriuos power, able to attain concert level volumes with the Polk speakers- perfect for my college years).
1993- B&K ST1400 (a sweet sounding solid state amp)
1996- Conrad Johnson MV55 (a beautiful EL34 amp, sweet, midrange timbre eerily convincing. Excelled on jazz, classical, rock less so)
2003- Sugden A21a (the grand daddy of British Integrateds, very musical, as close to tubes as possible for SS amp, but also hottest running amp I have owned)
2001- Pass Labs Aleph 30 (famous Nelson pass class A solid state sound, proved to be a little under powered for my needs)
2005- Rega Mira Integrated (My first Rega amp after using a Rega turn table and cdp for years. A pretty good amp. Got due to pratical considerations- less energy consumption, no tube purchases, and simplicity plus freedom from heat and hassle of 3 above amps which for me were desirable in winter and undesirable most of the time. I sought an amp for all seasons)
2008- Rega Elicit second incarnation (My amp for all seasons. Got when first released in US. Has the bit of extra refinement and musicality one expects from a top class British integrated. Alot of my feeling about it is in agreemnet with an online review at six moons audio http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/rega/elicit.html. Loving it with the RS3 speakers and Jupiter 2000 cdp- the combination continues to captivate)
1983- Yamaha B6 (shaped like a pyramid, seriuos power, able to attain concert level volumes with the Polk speakers- perfect for my college years).
1993- B&K ST1400 (a sweet sounding solid state amp)
1996- Conrad Johnson MV55 (a beautiful EL34 amp, sweet, midrange timbre eerily convincing. Excelled on jazz, classical, rock less so)
2003- Sugden A21a (the grand daddy of British Integrateds, very musical, as close to tubes as possible for SS amp, but also hottest running amp I have owned)
2001- Pass Labs Aleph 30 (famous Nelson pass class A solid state sound, proved to be a little under powered for my needs)
2005- Rega Mira Integrated (My first Rega amp after using a Rega turn table and cdp for years. A pretty good amp. Got due to pratical considerations- less energy consumption, no tube purchases, and simplicity plus freedom from heat and hassle of 3 above amps which for me were desirable in winter and undesirable most of the time. I sought an amp for all seasons)
2008- Rega Elicit second incarnation (My amp for all seasons. Got when first released in US. Has the bit of extra refinement and musicality one expects from a top class British integrated. Alot of my feeling about it is in agreemnet with an online review at six moons audio http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/rega/elicit.html. Loving it with the RS3 speakers and Jupiter 2000 cdp- the combination continues to captivate)
NAIM NAIT
INCA TECH CLAYMORE
QUAD 2/22'S
NVA AP30
ROTEL RA930
CYRUS SL
NAIM NAIT 3
NAIM 92/FLATCAP/2X 90.3
CROFT VITALE/SERIES V
AUDIONOTE OTO
MUSICAL FIDELITY 3A/2X P140
NAIM NAIT5i
NAIM 112/150
NAIM 102/napsc/180
Roksan Kandy
phew all done that is a lot of amp,i think there are too many there.
INCA TECH CLAYMORE
QUAD 2/22'S
NVA AP30
ROTEL RA930
CYRUS SL
NAIM NAIT 3
NAIM 92/FLATCAP/2X 90.3
CROFT VITALE/SERIES V
AUDIONOTE OTO
MUSICAL FIDELITY 3A/2X P140
NAIM NAIT5i
NAIM 112/150
NAIM 102/napsc/180
Roksan Kandy
phew all done that is a lot of amp,i think there are too many there.
1992: NAD 3020
1993: Rotel RB80/90 Not sure
1995: Cambridge Audio A1
1999: Exposure VII/VI/Super VIII
2001: Exposure VII/XII/Super VIII
2003: Exposure VII/XII/Dual IV
2004: Exposure XI/XII/Dual IV
2005: Exposure XI/IX/Dual IV
2006: Exposure XI/IX/Dual IV and loaned XVIs
2007: Exposure XI/IX/Dual IV Reg & Un-Reg
2008: Exposure XIV/IX/Dual IV Un-Reg & Reg/loaned XVIIIs
2009: Exposure XIV/IX/XVIs/Mono VIIIs
Although these were my preferred set ups. I also owned, again by Exposure Stereo IV, Single VII, VI PSUs, X/XV integrated amps.
Other amps include, naim nait 1 (blinder of an amp), arcam Alpha 8 & 9
I think thats it, but then again some things are still in boxes from as far back as 8 years ago, will have to open them up to see what is in there.
1993: Rotel RB80/90 Not sure
1995: Cambridge Audio A1
1999: Exposure VII/VI/Super VIII
2001: Exposure VII/XII/Super VIII
2003: Exposure VII/XII/Dual IV
2004: Exposure XI/XII/Dual IV
2005: Exposure XI/IX/Dual IV
2006: Exposure XI/IX/Dual IV and loaned XVIs
2007: Exposure XI/IX/Dual IV Reg & Un-Reg
2008: Exposure XIV/IX/Dual IV Un-Reg & Reg/loaned XVIIIs
2009: Exposure XIV/IX/XVIs/Mono VIIIs
Although these were my preferred set ups. I also owned, again by Exposure Stereo IV, Single VII, VI PSUs, X/XV integrated amps.
Other amps include, naim nait 1 (blinder of an amp), arcam Alpha 8 & 9
I think thats it, but then again some things are still in boxes from as far back as 8 years ago, will have to open them up to see what is in there.
Nick Dartmoor
pfm Member
Some big old Pioneer thing long ago that I remember as sounding nice.
Audiolab 8000a
Sugden A21a in main system now and can't imagine changing it anytime soon
Sansui AU101 was in the bedroom.
John Linsley-Hood Stereo 30 in bedroom system now.
Audiolab 8000a
Sugden A21a in main system now and can't imagine changing it anytime soon
Sansui AU101 was in the bedroom.
John Linsley-Hood Stereo 30 in bedroom system now.
Joe Hutch
Mate of the bloke
Goodmans Module 90 tuner/amp 1977-80
Nytech 252 integrated 1980-89
Exposure X integrated 1989-98
Exposure XX1/XVIII 1998-now
Tom Evans Vibe/Border Patrol power amp 2005-now
I have toyed with the idea of getting a Linear A to complement the Vibe (and the Groove phono amp) but have decided against for various reasons. Possibly.
Nytech 252 integrated 1980-89
Exposure X integrated 1989-98
Exposure XX1/XVIII 1998-now
Tom Evans Vibe/Border Patrol power amp 2005-now
I have toyed with the idea of getting a Linear A to complement the Vibe (and the Groove phono amp) but have decided against for various reasons. Possibly.
Seeker_UK
Feelin' nearly faded as my jeans
Oh I forgot. I also had a Pioneer SA-9900.
http://www.thevintageknob.org/PIONEER/SA9900/SA9900.html
Monster jap valve amp.
Terrible. Even my cloth ears noticed a really flat, 2D sound. I do hope they're not rated as a classic piece of 70s high end.
http://www.thevintageknob.org/PIONEER/SA9900/SA9900.html
Monster jap valve amp.
Terrible. Even my cloth ears noticed a really flat, 2D sound. I do hope they're not rated as a classic piece of 70s high end.
bob atherton
pfm Member
Just found this thread.
I too owned a Harrison Chapman integrated , I beleive it was an S100, back in 1973. It was a fantastic amp IMHO. I used it with my LP12, Grace 707, Sure cart and Studiocraft speakers.
The amp was one of the first toroidal's AFAIK, had touch sensitive input changing 'buttons' and had a great deal of drive. The Harrison then went on to make H&H guitar amps (not so good IMHO)
Yank
Bulbous Also Tapered
I can think of at least three people who got near-iconic noises out of H&H guitar amps - Marc Bolan, Gary Green (of Gentle Giant) and Wilko Johnson.
rocky raccoon
pfm Member
Rotel RA 820 (you gotta start somewhere)
Lindsley Hood 40 watt Hart Kit passive input with alps pot - Now we're getting somewhere!
Rotel Pre amp with Lindsley Hood 40 watt
Rotel pre amp with 2 Lindsley Hood stereo 40 watt amps - bi amping ! Yeah !
Home made passive with Lindsley Hood 80 watt monos (this is it !)
From then on it was a pre amp thing -
Hafler pre
AVI pre
Linsdley hood 1400 series pre amp - almost as transparent as the passive but without the cable hassle (i.e almost no cables at all).
I am in the process of building another pair of Lindsley Hood monos to bi amp the current system.
All of the Lindsley Hood amps are still in service. I have no idea what it would cost to find a better commercially available alternative.
Lindsley Hood 40 watt Hart Kit passive input with alps pot - Now we're getting somewhere!
Rotel Pre amp with Lindsley Hood 40 watt
Rotel pre amp with 2 Lindsley Hood stereo 40 watt amps - bi amping ! Yeah !
Home made passive with Lindsley Hood 80 watt monos (this is it !)
From then on it was a pre amp thing -
Hafler pre
AVI pre
Linsdley hood 1400 series pre amp - almost as transparent as the passive but without the cable hassle (i.e almost no cables at all).
I am in the process of building another pair of Lindsley Hood monos to bi amp the current system.
All of the Lindsley Hood amps are still in service. I have no idea what it would cost to find a better commercially available alternative.
zarniwoop
hoopy frood
Sony TA70
JVC JAS11
A&R A60
MF The Preamp/Quad 303
MF Preamp 2A/P170
Naim 112x/150x
The first two were bought and sold over 30 years ago and I just realised how sad I am to have remembered the model numbers for that length of time. I didn't know I had until I tried. I need to reassess what's left of my life.
JVC JAS11
A&R A60
MF The Preamp/Quad 303
MF Preamp 2A/P170
Naim 112x/150x
The first two were bought and sold over 30 years ago and I just realised how sad I am to have remembered the model numbers for that length of time. I didn't know I had until I tried. I need to reassess what's left of my life.
PigletsDad
My intelligence test came back negative.
I've just realised that I have never bought an amplifier in my life.
I had home made DIY amps of one sort or another for years, then when I did the design consultancy for Maclaren (the NZ one, not TAG Maclaren) in the 1980s, I got a set of early production kit as part of my payment, and have used those ever since, with some small modifications, and minor refurbishment a couple of years ago - I replaced some caps in the power amps.
I had a little Naim set for a couple of months on loan, and had a Sugden class A for a bit to look at.
I had home made DIY amps of one sort or another for years, then when I did the design consultancy for Maclaren (the NZ one, not TAG Maclaren) in the 1980s, I got a set of early production kit as part of my payment, and have used those ever since, with some small modifications, and minor refurbishment a couple of years ago - I replaced some caps in the power amps.
I had a little Naim set for a couple of months on loan, and had a Sugden class A for a bit to look at.
chris@panteg
pfm Member
Nad 3020
Cyrus 2
Cyrus 2 /PSX
Concordant Excelsior pre/ Concordant Quad 2 's
Concordant Excelsior pre / Concordant Exemplar 100w SS built by L/ Wolstenholm
Concordant Excelsior pre (heavily tweaked) / Audio Innovavation's 2nd Audio Mono's with 2 Border Patrol PSU's
Musical Fidelity X80
Cambridge Audio 740A (present)
Cyrus 2
Cyrus 2 /PSX
Concordant Excelsior pre/ Concordant Quad 2 's
Concordant Excelsior pre / Concordant Exemplar 100w SS built by L/ Wolstenholm
Concordant Excelsior pre (heavily tweaked) / Audio Innovavation's 2nd Audio Mono's with 2 Border Patrol PSU's
Musical Fidelity X80
Cambridge Audio 740A (present)
Martyn Miles
pfm Member
Pro-ject amp. My all time favourite. MM & MC input. No tone controls. Exceptionally good with records, as the phono input was pre-eminent in its design. Any company that makes turntables should concentrate on the phono input. Pro-ject did just that. Its line inputs are very good, too. I drive it with a Tascam CD160 player, but it performs brilliantly with my AR XA. The Shure M75ED is superb through it. It's fitted with an Expert Pickups stylus which adds to the fidelity. I have an Audiolab 8000A on my main system, but the Pro-ject is listened to much more on the 2nd system, as my wife watches television a lot... If anyone sees a Pro-ject for saleb buy it ! Martyn Miles
Martyn Miles
pfm Member
Yes, it's a Pro-ject 7...
bob atherton
pfm Member
I can only speak as I find. I play bass guitar and back in 1975 my rig for my Rickenbacker 4001 was a Hiwatt 100 valve head into a Hiwatt 2x15" cab for the bass part of the signal and an HH 100 head and 2 x 4x12 cabs for the treble part of the signal. All this sounded great but the Hiwatt was the much better amp IMHO. the HH always sounded a bit cold.
One of the guitarists had an Orange 100 head with an Orange 4x12 cab, that really sang.