Sound quality wise it is no contest. The B&K is many levels better than the Adcom. However, when it comes to driving 4 ohm speskers the early ST140-the one with the gold lettering and silver handles-is a little weak. Not very good current delivery. But the later ST140 with the red and blue lettering is a different story. It has no problems with 4 ohms and sounds just as good and in some ways better than the early one. I own both versions and have done an extensive comparison so I am not guessing on this. The Adcom while having a nice tight powerful bass is otherwise a very mediocre sounding amp. The B&K is just a much nicer amp with a sweet smooth musical sound that the Adcom can't touch.
Adcom 545 vs. B&K st-140
Looking for a bargain amp to drive 4 ohm speakers and mate with tube pre....any thoughts?