Audio Research i/50

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My local brick-and-mortar ARC retailer has one on demo with a phono. Paired with efficient speakers, they are big fans, and big fans of ARC in general. I am told that i/50s are very popular.

The last 3 times I visited, with no other customers in the space, they were playing it for their own enjoyment. They have lots of other options, and they choose to listen to the i/50.

I listened casually and it was very pleasant. I too am a big ARC fan, but I'm not in the market for an integrated, so I didn't listen critically.

If I were in the market for an integrated, an i/50 would be at the top of my list.

The I/50 is an amazing amp. Wonderfully warm and musical. The Zu DW look interesting. Efficient enough. The Lumin streamer, very well respected. It is hard to criticize. 

I should have mentioned in my previous post that I own an ARC Ref 6SE, and that I toured the ARC factory last summer (I live nearby). The i/50s are built by the same folks in the same building as everything else. They were building a lot of them, palettes and palettes marked for shipping all over the world. They even have their own paint booth for them in-house (cerakote I believe). They sweat the details at ARC, the i/50 is no exception.

for the same $$$ you can buy a Mcintosh 252  plus the MC has auto bias.  wonder how they would compare?

The McIntosh 252 doesnt have autobias, it does have tubes in the preamp stage of a solid state integrated amplifier. How would they compare? Two different audiences bult to drive two different kinds of speakers.

thanks guys!

I like the idea of an all american system, I might sell my Acoustic Signature TT and get myself a VPI. 

There a big difference in the MacIntosh sound and the Audio Research sound. I love the look of the Mac… I have repeatedly gotten motivated to buy one… gone in to audition and within 30 seconds gave that idea up. Macintosh is a very well respected brand, well made, keeps its value. Personally I think they sound fantastic with rock music and speakers that have a good amount of treble. But they do not have the detail and balance of Audio Research which plays to my values. Anyway, listen to determine which appeals to you.

I've had a good deal of MacIntosh gear (although never a 252). Good quality stuff, looks great (which is of course in the eye of the beholder), sounds good. It's real magic is resale; buy it right and you can use it for a year and sell it for the same as you paid or even more.

Can say many of the same things for ARC. Good quality stuff, looks great, resale is good (although not as good as Mac gear). It does however, sound better. Much better, at least to my ears. YMMV

The point of all of this is to enjoy the journey.

"I've had a good deal of MacIntosh gear"

Still having a hard time spelling it though?

what speakers should be good for i/50, Zu Omen or Forte/Cornwall IV? And How Would U describe ARC sound?

btw, my amps are INT-25 and Dueundici.

@roxy54 never make a typo? I bow to your pedanticism. 

@nosualc

Can say many of the same things for ARC. Good quality stuff, looks great, resale is good (although not as good as Mac gear).

I have just started looking into the purchase of ARC gear and thought this also regarding good resale values.  I don’t know whether or not ARC dealers sell new products with a discount off MSRP or maybe it’s the economy.  I mention this because I was surprised to see it appeared that much of the relatively new but not current model used ARC gear was listed at around 40%-45% off MSRP.  And ARC does come out with new models rather often, but fortunately appears to offer updates of previous models, but I guess this isn’t all that helpful resale wise.

just pull the trigger and bought one with onboard DAC&Phono stages.

Wondering if I sell my Lumin D2 with Sbooster and use just a Bluesound Node or a other pire streamer will make much difference and I can put the money in a good cans or MM Maestro V2.

An onboard DAC will make at least part of your Lumin potentially redundant. I guess I'd wait to see if you prefer the sound of the onboard DAC before moving on from your Lumin.

Problem is, if I don't like it, is a 1.500€ waste but... 

Also thinking, actually I have Zu Omen MKI, would like to go up for a Cornwall IV, 4349 or Devore O/96, any tips?

Thanks!

I talked to audio research again this week and they don’t know when the dac module will be available but soon. The dac module looks like a great option.

I think it is a very safe bet that ARC's DAC module will deliver top level performance. Remember that without the power supply, output stage, and casework to expend resources/cost/labor upon, ARC can devote a much greater percentage of that cost to the DAC itself. ARC's past DAC's have been state of the art so....

It won't be up to the level of their stand-alone DAC's but likely not far off. 

Cannot wait to put my hands on it, haven’t been so excited till I bought my O/93 speakers and Pass Labs.

I own an Audio Research DAC (ARC Reference CD9SE). For some reason, I just never thought of ARC when it comes to DACs. Until my dealer brought one over. I was not in the market… 30 seconds after I put it in I texted him to tell him to order me one… then I had the job of figuring out how to find the money. 
 

Since then, I had a Berkeley Alpha Reference 3 in my system. Both absolutely outstanding DACs. I was expecting to have to cough up another $5K to get the Berkeley. I was really surprised to find them virtually identical with an ever so slight (tiny) warmer more natural sound for the ARC and a slight (minuscule) more detail in the Berkeley. If they were the same price I still would have chosen the ARC. 

I’m gonna give you another alternative. I have heard the i50and it punches beyond its build.

There was one major reason I didn’t end up with it: even with all of its color iterations, I could not stand the looks of it. I got the vsi75 instead which in my mind, just sounded "bigger" and more pleasing to my eye. There is a shop (Paragon) selling the 75 for $5995 plus $74 shipping.

When ARC announced the discontinuation of this integrated, this owner bought a dozen of these things. It does not auto bias but I consider this not a big deal in the least as it is so easy to do it’s like eating oatmeal. They even give you the plastic screw driver. It also does not have a phono stage but you’re almost better off as it gives you the opportunity to get a separate piece that is usually better than what they stuff in an integrated, You can get a real nice one for under a $1000.

When the 75 first came out, they were $7500. As they rave reviews started coming in, they went to $8000. then $8500, then $9500 and capped at $10,000 and all ARC did along the way was reconfigure tube selection to the eventual K150's. 

You won’t be sorry with its selection as it pushes all of my buttons of immense sound stage, clarity, truth of timbre, presence of production, and dead quiet between the notes which is more important than people realize as this element serves as a spring board to the initial transients of the next notes that makes things sound accurate and lifelike.

looks  awesome!! Same sonic signature?

Seems to be they are ready to ship DAC card within 10 days!

@superelmar any update?  It's been about a month, do you have your i/50 yet?