I'm currently using a Chord TToby (fed by a Music First passive) for a few months. It's a really nice little amplifier and the sound quality belies its diminutive proportions. However during lengthy listening sessions I sometimes find the sound a little sterile (may just be my old ears!) so was wondering if anyone could advise of other power amplifiers I ought to consider?
Thanks in advance.
I’m happy to recommend the Boxem. It’s the only Class D amplifier i’ve had in my system that I actually enjoyed listening to for any extended period. It’s accurate without being sterile/boring.and hopefully ian wont mind me posting this but i wonder if the boxem would be any better than the chord ??? maybe ian could comment
Boxem Arthur Purifi amplifier | audioaddicts: Everything HiFi, Music and More!
I love the orange facia. Great sound too! .audioaddictsforum.com
I have two of those! (Toshiba branded, which are identical). They are nice. Not much power, tho (45wpc). I prefer the hard-to-find Peachtree Sona amp, which is also very small. Plenty of power (150 wpc). Very good sounding Class D, if you can believe that! I have two of those too!Aurex SC-M15. Not sterile-sounding at all.
Exposure XM7? I haven't tried it but I had been considering it for a while.In general, it seems harder to find a good compact preamp than power amp. The little Toshiba/Aurex preamps were very nice, but preamps don’t age as well as power amps do and two of those have died on me. In addition, apparently lots of people get by without any preamp at all these days, so there are just fewer of them around. I still haven’t found a reasonably priced, very good compact preamp for the bedroom, where the Sona amp fits the bill perfectly.
Looks nice, but the S/N and channel separation really aren’t that good, especially for the price. I’m not usually a “spec” kinda guy, but these issues might be audible, particularly in quiet environments.Exposure XM7? I haven't tried it but I had been considering it for a while.
Yes, I have a bel canto pre3 in the living room. Might wind up w/one in the bedroom as well.The bel canto pre 5 is a superb compact pre amp if ever you want one
Very helpful! Thanks! Not crazy about my pre3s flaccid volume control but the sound is excellent!brill , had all of them pre 3 , pre 3 vbs x 2 , pre 5 ,and eix pre . The pre 5 is great .one pre 3 vbs i got a sean jacobs dc3 upgrade .john stronzer is very talented
You might like to try the c5i as a pre amp in your bedroom .on ebay at 795 and make a super pre amp.although i doubt they would send to Hawaii !!
Functionally the bel cantos volume control is excellent. But the “feel” is undamped, which is what I don’t like. Also would really like a balance control, which is a significant omission, in my opinion. Minimalism taken a bit too far. One reason preamps are so hard to choose.Interesting, the vol control is normally superb with these with 200 steps on the pre 3 or pre 5