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To have one amplifier or several

I have two systems and three amps i.e. one backup. I think there's room for another one in my life if something interesting and affordable cropped up.

Tbh though I find speakers have more of an ongoing appeal to me, there are three pairs in the classifieds at the mo' that I can't stop lusting after :D
 
I have my Naim stereo setup in a listening room, and a Denon 5.1 AV setup in the main living room.

For other rooms, I use a HomePod (bedroom and office/guest room) or HomePod Mini (kitchen).

Had a Sansui Eight with ESL 57s in the office, but moved them to storage when the room became an office/guest room after retirement.
 
I've been using one amp that I'm perfectly happy with for the last twenty years. I'd say that if you feel the need to swap amps all the time you've got the wrong amps?
 
Do many people have seasonal swaps eg Tube/Class A in winter and class AB or class D in the summer ?

I have a Sugden A21a (Class A) on my rack at the moment and will swap it for one of my other amps soon - couldn't bear to have it on in the summer due to it's heat. Luckily I have some other quality options. I do need to sell one or two amps (and speakers, and DACS) but can't decide !

I do have some spare cash, and have tended to buy used thinking I can sell on if I want to. But I appear to have become a collector !
 
I've never had problems with class A in summer tbh. Also never understood why people with thousands of pounds of kit are worried about their electricity bill. Having separate amps to make that bill lower - doesn't make any sense at all.
 
Colin L said:
Multiple amps.... I suppose it depends on whether you view Hifi as a means to and end, or an end in itself.
Personally I don't get the "collector" thing.
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On the rare occasions when I've had multiple options (at one stage three turntables connected and available, several times a choice of pre or power amp because I find selling stuff a hassle) I' ve always found myself using just the one.

That being said I've had three box amps (phono, pre and power) for some time and may even go to four boxes some day.

When it comes to room-heater amps, I've decided to avoid them and the electricity bills that go with them. Same goes for tubes/valves - I used to have 16 of the beasts across my Phono 10 / pre 4 / power 2 - down to the 4 in the pre. If I could find a reasonably priced solid state pre that sounded as good as (not necessarily the same as) my Aesthetix Calypso Eclipse I'd probably go for it (especially if it had a trigger function for single switch turn on of all the boxes).
 
My collection of loudspeakers have different needs.

Yamaha NS-1000M - sounds best with vintage Pioneer C-21/M-22 30W class A, and surprisingly good with Naim NAIT2 because I can.

Ergo E-IIIR - needs a bit more welly, and so driven by Densen B-350 125W mono blocks fronted by either Copland CTA-301 valve or Pioneer C-21 solid state preamps.

Ergo E-IX - definitely needs more welly, so ditto as for E-IIIR

Ergo E-X - needs four channels of amplification so M-22 for the mid/tweet section and B-350s for the bass.

I also have a spare Densen B-250 preamp.
 
When i goy into this hobby i decided that I'd pick one format (digital) and do it as well as i can, so I've opted to get the 'best' that i can for every component; the thought of having more items that i can swap but at lower quality doesn't work for me.

I find i obsess about details; having the niggling thought of 'perhaps this song would be better with x' would drive me mad!

Each to their own though, i can see the appeal if the above doesn't irk you.

Set, forget (your chosen compromises) and enjoy!
 
kernow said:
Yeah, bills are getting ridiculous but people with class A amps probably shouldn't have them if they are worried about a £10 energy cost increase per month
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There was a guy on the telly a while back who's claim to fame was having the most ridiculous amount of Christmas lights in the country. Can't remember how many, a million or something. He put them on for two hours each day and even at that the bill for running them was £500 a month! :0.
 
James said:
My collection of loudspeakers have different needs.

Yamaha NS-1000M - sounds best with vintage Pioneer C-21/M-22 30W class A, and surprisingly good with Naim NAIT2 because I can.

Ergo E-IIIR - needs a bit more welly, and so driven by Densen B-350 125W mono blocks fronted by either Copland CTA-301 valve or Pioneer C-21 solid state preamps.

Ergo E-IX - definitely needs more welly, so ditto as for E-IIIR

Ergo E-X - needs four channels of amplification so M-22 for the mid/tweet section and B-350s for the bass.

I also have a spare Densen B-250 preamp.
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If you could just concentrate on one better system that'd be great
 
Mr Pig said:
I've been using one amp that I'm perfectly happy with for the last twenty years. I'd say that if you feel the need to swap amps all the time you've got the wrong amps?
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Twenty years. damn, that's a long time. :p

I'd say you somewhat got that right. The keyword is "all the time" or perhaps frequently swapping the amps. Occasionally is still acceptable to me. I used to occasionally or frequently swap the amps and that might suggest I'm still looking and not entirely happy with the sound. I have not swapped the amps for more than a year now and that might suggest something. ;) The last time I swapped the amps, I can't wait to get the reference amp back to the system after one day (although I waited for 2 to 3 days before returning to the preferred amp).

However, I understand that some people may occasionally swap the amps although they are happy. Perhaps once a month or several times a year. In these cases I wouldn't say they have got the wrong amps. I would say it's just a passion of wanting to experience a different sound. Some people may enjoy swapping the amps just for leisure. Nevertheless, if it's constant swapping say several times as week, then that's taking it too far. But hey, you would never know if there's someone out there who is really passionate..
 
Mr Pig said:
I've been using one amp that I'm perfectly happy with for the last twenty years. I'd say that if you feel the need to swap amps all the time you've got the wrong amps?
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paulbysea said:
Whilst I have two systems in different rooms. Excepting when I upgrade they are kept as is. In your position, I would sell the surplus amps and buy the best, you can afford for your main system.
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But what is 'the best'? I had more expensive components and yet still found the need to change whilst now I like every one and enjoy listening to them in turns.

Without wanting to read too philosophical, isn't it better sometimes to just accept imperfections and enjoy what something does well? A bit like life in general.

I have lost quite a bit of money in the upgrade process over the last 3 years, especially with my ventures into active systems. I don't have that issue now nor do I feel to upgrade per se (but I am looking to add another one). - You are right though, I am sure I could find one amplifier that is better in some, perhaps even all areas but it will still be imperfect and I will notice that.

Did you watch the YT video on page 1?
 
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