Best Integrated, period.

David12, I definetly agree with you about SS and Class A, that has been my experience too, but I do wonder about some of those Luxman A/B amps that are highly regarded, I do wonder if they somehow have managed to transcend the limitations of A/B power in a SS amp - that would be nice, just don't know if they would really do the trick - but might be worth a listen - but where?

That's exactly what I'm wondering too Pubul57. I really would love to hear from someone who's heard those luxman A/B amps on the Merlin speakers.

Arte Forma Audio Susan with remote controlled Dual lightspeed attenuators will be coming on the market at the end of this month. From what I heard on the forums these lightspeed passive attenuator preamps sound alot better after you put them (inside a amp)! Keep a close eye on this Integrated amp it just might be the best to come on the market yet !!

I have no idea what is best. I do know that I am very happy with my Rowland Continuum 500. It has the blackest background and is really easy to listen to. I've compared it to a few other pricey integrated amps and it easily won out for me. I wish I could hear half of the amps mentioned in this thread as I bet they are killer. One of these days, I'd like go pick up a tube integrated for my bedroom system. I should mention that the Continuum replaced a VTL pre/power.

Lfd ncse! Just kidding. Superb for me, but it's in the eye or ear of the beholder...

I second Notec on the Leben. I just auditioned one in the past week, but its smaller bro: check out this superb review.
http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/leben/cs300x.html
Pricey, but is extremely high quality and will last a lifetime...note the point to point wiring. If too expensive, consider a cheep interim solution like an NAD320BEEE and patiently wait to pounce a on a good deal for your dream.

Is there a "best" integrated? I like my Musical Fidelity A5 coupled two my dynaudio's...but that's just me.

For the money - DUSSUN V8i

Really enjoying my Triode Japan 300b 18watt integrated. Cuts straight to the music and sounds much more powerful than it's 18watts suggest.
Use to have the Pathos Logos another great integrated.

Audio Innovations Series 500
I've had it for a decade and just can't get rid of it.

You can add the Burson PI-160 to the list.
Never never land awaits.

Linn is the best

Ah! Well that settles it.

Dartzeel

Here's a review on Arte Forma I-150 (without) the lightspeed passive attenuator volume controller... http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue53/arte_forma.htm

The Acurus line of Direct Input Amplifiers when properly modded with the finest components available would give all those Big Boys mentioned above a slap in the rump.ACURUS DIA-100/DIA-100MkII/DIA-150.Ask any technician/audiophile who has owned and or replaced a few parts with this amps.The amps simply beg for a few better components to sing.and sing they they surely can.Not the best but can surely hang with the best.

I would second trelja's comment that I was slightly surprised not to find jadis at least in the running. I have not heard the gryphon but have heard wonderful things. the jadis da88s is also a very involving amplifier, which i pair with sonus faber guarneri. best wishes to all, rk

I agree with you Keiseeg, about Jadis. It is just that they are so expensive, for what they are. Here in the UK, the DA88S was about £6500, a few years ago, now the importer lists it nearer £12000. It is very good, but not £12000 good. The answer is to look second hand I suppose

The Micromega AS-400 is very impressive. The direct streaming capabilities and massive power output make it a very versatile product. It sounds great to boot.

Except for Mike60 it doesn't seem like anyone's hearing the question. Has anyone COMPARED Gryphon, Gaumet, Vitus, Jeff Rowland, etc. I know I haven't. I have a Rotel. Has anyone besides Mike60? Thanks.

Several threads are right on, VERY difficult to say which one is THE best, but for me, not having heard anywhere near the number of integrateds available today, I went on a friend's recommendation and listened to the DK Design/LSA group VS.1, fell in love with it and now I own 2,"nuff said!

I'm kind of torn. I like working with both separates and integrated amps. From my experience, I don't think that sound quality is the issue. I think the Integrated can sound just as good as separates. But with that said, I have never heard separates that are from the same company in my system. So from my understanding that may be the best way for system synergy as long as one likes the sound sig. of the company's products.
I think ergonomics of one's system is more the determining issue. I think people that have a tv/video system (in my case just two channel) that integrated's are better(even though I currently have separates). If I did not have a tv to incorporate, then separates would be okay. There is just so many cords and interconnects and cables all of the place. My back wall is a mess. It was worse when I had a sub.

Some I think a good integrated amp will in most cases out perform a pre/power of the same price class and in some cases outperform pre/power above their price range. Now if only they would add a really good phono amp as an option it would be perfect.

But that is one of my problems with audio gear. That you actually have to buy a whole new amp if you want some extra power,better PSU atc. I would like it if amps, CD players etc were more upgradeble.
Say an amp is standard 100W SS for $1000, then for $500 you can buy a external power supply for the power amp part. Then for another $500 you can buy a an other 100W board. So you can bridge the first one and second one for 200W per channel or you can have 4*100W for bi amping. For $500 add a DAC etc etc.

I just made up the prices but I think audio should be more modulair. I know a company that makes a DAC that comes standard with a RCA and a optical S/Pdif. But the DAC has 2 more slot. So you can also have a USB or AES/ebu or I2S etc input and if they don't have a standard card for like my CEC superlink they can make one. More companies should offer this kind of flexibility.

"The best there is, the best there was, the best there ever will be"...Mark Levinson No.383!

Bret "The Hitman" Hart quote aside, it's the best solid state integrated I'VE heard (owned). As a 1-box solution for 2-channel audio (why else would you buy an integrated)...it doesn't get much better than this!

Just my $0.02 CAD!

Love my Chord 3300. Beautiful sound and built like a tank.

My short list to listen to:

Ayon Triton (probably not enough power but worth taking a flyer on)
VAC Phi
LSA Statement
Simaudio 600i or 700i
Krell FBI

The Dart, Vitus and Demidorff Diamond would be tempting to listen to but out of my league financially. The VAC i believe is discontinued. Hmmmm....should I have added Burmester to the list?

Dartzeel. I replaced my Tenor mono block amps, phono preamp, two amp stands and cables and bought the Dartzeel. I have no regrets, the Dartzeel does everything right.

I'm looking at downsizing my system, want to try something different. Currently I use an Ayre KX-R preamp and two MX-R monoblocks, with Proac Response D80 speakers. Sounds great. The dealer wants me to listen to the Rowland Continuum 500. To those of you who bought a 500 a few years ago, I'd be interested to know if you still have it, has it changed with time, and are you still happy with your purchase. Or, have you moved on to greener pastures?

Rogalog statement above looks to be the best I have read regarding the best integrated ever,the Great Mark Levinson 383 Integrated.Why would a great marquee like Mark Levinson come out with an integrated at all if it was not a true great integrated.Lets put it this way and if you were smart and loaded and had a couple of Rolls Royces in your garage and needed a do it all SUV or station wagon with the same performance as your main cars,wouldnt you buy a Rolls or Bentley station wagon if they ever made one.Ten or twenty years from now your ML-383 would still hold its own both in sonics and re-sale value down the road like gold does.The other contenders would have turned to ????. I have heard the ML-383 and it was surrounded by the best preamps and amps ever made in the same showrooms and it stood its ground very very proudly.

I've owned two No.383's, great design, but not the best nor close.

I have never heard it, but I wonder if the Lindemann 882 Integrated should be part of the conversation? What about Luxman Gear, the 509u?

Having owned quite a few integrated amps and listened to many more, I have to agree with USB, the dartzeel is pretty remarkable, lightning fast, but smooth and detailed. If I could only afford it, I'll just have to wait a few years till one comes up second hand. Why would anyone sell one?

I used to love integrateds:

went along those lines:

Perreaux i150 (early model with Audiostatics)
Bow ZZ1
Krell iL300

then a step up:

Einstein light in the dark (OTL based on mosfets, changed to Merlin vsm mxe by then)

Accuphase E550
Pathos TT

Both of those two are absolute wonders in sound, I could imagine that the Inpol2 ist an amazing amp, as both Accu and Pathos did run a bit out of steam..

Since then I moved to Berning,that does it for me, but its not strictly integrated ;-)

Symphonic line RG10 MK4, the best integrated I have every heard. Very powerful yet sublime !!

Any Chinese 845 based output can be tweaked to sound better than any solid state integrated.

Any Chinese 845 will give you as much distortion and noise as 100000 good SS integrateds. You got a golden ear, man.

I still have my Sonic Frontiers Anthem Integrated 1 after 13 years, and THAT is saying something for an audiophile. The others have all gone after a few months, a year at the most.

NAD C375BEE....when music matters most!

I have a new yamaha a-s2000 and I think this amp is one of the BEST BANG FOR YOUR BUCK integrated amp on the market right now ! It sounds like a good Class A amp..like the Luxman L590A MK2 or Accuphase! The Law Of Diminishing Returns kick in fast with a product like the Yamaha a-s2000 and the improves you get with a top of the line Luxman or Accuphase is very very SMALL !... The Yamaha a-s2000 is a Classic that we will talk about for a long time !..

the original jadis orchestra is my favorite integrated amp.

Thanks for your astute observations Sumitko!

It's also interesting that Brianmgrarcom has owned 2-No.383's, yet opines..."not the best nor close." Apart from having 2 eyes, 2 ears, 2 nads (not those NAD's) etc. etc., I've never owned 2 of anything. I have NOT (of course) heard them all...who has?

As I strap on another 'Depends' (eeewww), I CAN say...I've heard a few!

Not sure of your point rogalog.

Not knowing the circumstances that led to your acquiring 2-Levinson integrateds (of course), I was only questioning why anyone would buy 2 of anything...assuming (that is) the second amp sounded much the same as the first???

My apologies if it came across as something more!

Having been at this great hobby we all share here since the early 70s,and I have very good ears I may add having them checked out at least every year no less, I have always found it very very beneficial to evaluate equipment that just arrived in your listening room early in the morning before your first cup of coffee,or tea,or drink,whatever you have first thing in the morning.Water is fine.If you continue listening on and tend to forget about your coffee/tea,then my friends you have something good going on there.If you just keep on listening till lunch and totally skip breakfast all together than you REALLY have something extremely musical happening in your space.Imagine the singers and musicians serenading you live from your open window early in the morning,would you even think of coffee or breakfast?It is a fact that upon just getting up from bed we are in a state of mind that that anything not sounding right,or correct,will reveal itself very faithfully to our ears and brain and we just cannot tolerate distortions early at the start of the day.However very well reproduced music with a very good system,like live music,is accepted as something good by the brain and we just continue on and dare not turn it off early in the morning after a short time listening.If your system is any good at all at keeping itself turned on early on,then you can honestly say,YES!,I have something going here.Next time around when evaluating your next Integrated amp,try this and you will end up with what You and only You will say is the best for your system.Believe me it never fails. Try to visit your dealer first thing in the morning and have your coffee after the visit.You may just walk out with a great integrated to enjoy the next morning Cheers!

Neodio 600 Signature. It replaced a Air Tight 300b amp and a Joule Electra 300 ME preamp. Improved in all areas, clarity, micro & macro, depth, layering, soundstage ect. 100 watts of sonic bliss. The Neodio certainly qualifies as one of the top integrated you can buy.

How about the latest Goldmund Telos 390.2 with a buitin DAC.

If your system is any good at all at keeping itself turned on early on,then you can honestly say,YES!

for this reason I would add Krell KAV500i.I like the power and attacking dynamics this amp provide with dynaudio confidence c1

I was quite impressed with the sound of the full ASR Emitter 11 system driving Dynaudio speakers.

Not cheap but I've heard more exotic and expensive systems of separates and full range speakers that didn't have as much going for them.

thanks for input .It always good to discover somenthing new .ASR Emitter 11 looks impressive inside

ASR Emitter 11 system driving Dynaudio speakers are the speaker I use and have always had good luck with them, and I have yet to hear better.