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Amp upgrade for Wharfedale Diamond 220 speakers

RobGordon

RobGordon

Well-Known Member
Hi,

I've been using this 1988 Kenwood midi system amp, an A62, for the last year, in conjunction with Wharfedale Diamond 220 speakers. It's OK, just OK. So I'm looking for an upgrade, probably a used amp to get more value.

Ideally I would not spend more than £200. The absolute most important thing for me is the phono stage, and ideally its input capacitance should be on the lower side (100-150pF) because sometimes I like to use Audio Technica carts.

Some options I've found:
Marantz PM5005 - same owner from new who says it does not have the build faults that plague these, still I wonder why he is selling since he has been buying/selling a lot of audio gear
Roksan Kandy Liii - over budget but has the power to drive my not so sensitive speakers. Forum reviews suggest it could be fatiguing to listen to, a bit too "in yer face"?
Arcam - various models - might not be suitable for the insensitive speakers? but the prices are great
Yamaha AX550 - maybe too dull sounding, and overpriced at £200. Few reviews out there. A youtube video appears to have inflated the price

Edit: Oh yeah, forgot, I absolutely need a remote to control volume when listening at night with headphones, the above all have remotes

The rest of my system is: Fiio D03K Taisham DAC from TV, Kenwood midi CD player, Hitachi PS48 turntable with various cartridges (yes this TT makes everything else look crap)

All input appreciated
 
£200 should easily get you something to improve on a midi system amp, but with remote, you are limiting the choice a bit. I would be looking at something like an Arcam Alpha 8R, which looks (just) in budget looking on eBay. Might also be worth looking at Cambridge Audio or NAD if remote is essential.
Stretching the budget a bit may give you some Rega options.
 
Jamie said:
£200 should easily get you something to improve on a midi system amp, but with remote, you are limiting the choice a bit. I would be looking at something like an Arcam Alpha 8R, which looks (just) in budget looking on eBay. Might also be worth looking at Cambridge Audio or NAD if remote is essential.
Stretching the budget a bit may give you some Rega options.
Click to expand...

Almost pulled the trigger on exactly that Arcam earlier, at a very good price, but went down a vinylengine.com rabbit hole with people repeatedly saying that speakers need to be highly senstive for Arcams. Maybe that's Americans blasting music at top volume? I live in a flat with long-suffering neighbours so never play at top volume. The real bargain Arcam I've found with one owner and "light use" (I believe them) is a 7R.

Had a bad experience last year with a new £500 Cambridge Audio demoed from Richer Sounds. Sounded dead. Then an Audiolab 6000A that I really hated. To give two experiences for reference. The midi amp sounds better to me than those.

Had not really considered NAD but will investigate. Sadly I passed on a NAD last year when a friend was clearing his late dad's stuff. Ended up with this Kenwood instead. A year on knowing a bit more with a lockdown audio hobby and I can't stop kicking myself. Sold a very nice Sony turntable he also gave me for peanuts.
 
RobGordon said:
Almost pulled the trigger on exactly that Arcam earlier, at a very good price, but went down a vinylengine.com rabbit hole with people repeatedly saying that speakers need to be highly senstive for Arcams. Maybe that's Americans blasting music at top volume? I live in a flat with long-suffering neighbours so never play at top volume. The real bargain Arcam I've found with one owner and "light use" (I believe them) is a 7R.

Had a bad experience last year with a new £500 Cambridge Audio demoed from Richer Sounds. Sounded dead. Then an Audiolab 6000A that I really hated. To give two experiences for reference. The midi amp sounds better to me than those.

Had not really considered NAD but will investigate. Sadly I passed on a NAD last year when a friend was clearing his late dad's stuff. Ended up with this Kenwood instead. A year on knowing a bit more with a lockdown audio hobby and I can't stop kicking myself. Sold a very nice Sony turntable he also gave me for peanuts.
Click to expand...
Or Onkyo or Yamaha perhaps.
 
Rotel RA-05, should be in budget, the lower end Rotel amps are superb for the money. Would also 2nd Arcam. Had a Marantz PM-600something or other a few years ago I found it fatiguing, also broke down twice.
TS
 
For some reason I like the name Rotel and from memory also like the look of the gear, so that's something else to investigate. Yes the Marantz's have quite the reputation for breaking down. Into the G&Ts now so will come back to this tomorrow. Thanks all.
 
I was gonna suggest a used Rega Brio but I think the MM stage in it is 220pF, still a great amp though.

Put a Wanted Ad in the Classifieds here, see what pops up.
 
Safe bet and easy to find, get a Rotel.

Whafdale speakers, typically, have a thick, slow sound and need a bit of power to wake them up. If they can be woken up. Rotel is bright and dynamic so will be a good match. Also easy to find, cheap and reliable.

Avoid Arcam, Yamaha, Marantz as they all have a laid back sound which isn't what you want.

There are other good options but Rotel is a simple and safe choice.
 

I recently picked this up locally via Gumtree for under £100. Its a Sony STR-DB930 AV receiver from around Y2K and it has a phono input so I thought why not. From what I’ve read since, Sony’s from this era are quite capable performers.

Anyway its massive, it weighs 13Kg and is very well built. In keeping with its build its powerful too at 110w into 8ohms. So far I’ve only tried it with streaming but it sounds very good. Good enough that I’m in no hurry to put the Nait 3 back into play and I’m looking forward to hooking up a turntable soon.

I suppose what I’m saying is you don’t have to spend a huge amount to get a decent amplifier. Good luck.
 
Fergus said:

I recently picked this up locally via Gumtree for under £100. Its a Sony STR-DB930 AV receiver from around Y2K and it has a phono input so I thought why not. From what I’ve read since, Sony’s from this era are quite capable performers.

Anyway its massive, it weighs 13Kg and is very well built. In keeping with its build its powerful too at 110w into 8ohms. So far I’ve only tried it with streaming but it sounds very good. Good enough that I’m in no hurry to put the Nait 3 back into play and I’m looking forward to hooking up a turntable soon.

I suppose what I’m saying is you don’t have to spend a huge amount to get a decent amplifier. Good luck.
Click to expand...
I had one of those Sonys when they came out, one of the few AV amps I’ve had that made a decent fist of music in the context of its price. Nice remote too.
 
Mr Pig said:
Safe bet and easy to find, get a Rotel.

Whafdale speakers, typically, have a thick, slow sound and need a bit of power to wake them up. If they can be woken up. Rotel is bright and dynamic so will be a good match. Also easy to find, cheap and reliable.

Avoid Arcam, Yamaha, Marantz as they all have a laid back sound which isn't what you want.

There are other good options but Rotel is a simple and safe choice.
Click to expand...

Exactly why I chose Onkyo as an alternative, Sony's and Arcam's are good amps but on the warmer side.
 
Tempted by that Onkyo, but the ebayer seems a little shady. On the other hand I've found a Rotel RA-02, in great condition, sold by the original owner, on a French classifieds site. 140 Euro + unknown shipping. If it turns up defective I've got a local repair guy to have a look at it.

Amazing suggestions, thankyou, didn't expect so many. Think I'm going to go with Rotel.
 
Fergus said:
I've found a Rotel RA-02, in great condition, sold by the original owner, on a French classifieds site. 140 Euro + unknown shipping. If it turns up defective I've got a local repair guy to have a look at it.
Click to expand...

They don't go wrong very often.
 
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