I have owned both brands. One was an old Bryston 4B ( 250 @ 8 / 400 @ 4 ). I had purchased the unit used via the net and it arrived in poor condition. I ended up sending it back to their US repair facility.
While Bryston's customer service and warranty are second to none, i was not impressed with the unit when i got it back. It did not seem to be nearly as powerful as it was supposed to be and was constantly going into clipping. I was guaranteed by the service tech that the amp was running better than factory spec when it left their shop. I sold it shortly thereafter.
Using the same set of speakers, i tried a Classe' 70 ( 75 wpc @ 8 / 150 wpc @ 4 with 3 db's of dynamic headroom ).
While this amp was last made in 1994, it was WAY newer in terms of parts & design as compared to the Bryston. Not only did it drive tough loads much better than the more powerful ( on paper ) Bryston, it sounded much more musical. While both amps were somewhat lean sounding, i would have picked the Classe' if it came down to either sonics OR "power".
Please keep in mind that each "system" is a sum of all the parts combined. As such, try not to look at things "piece by piece" but as "what will work well together". Good luck and do as much listening in person as you can. Sean
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While Bryston's customer service and warranty are second to none, i was not impressed with the unit when i got it back. It did not seem to be nearly as powerful as it was supposed to be and was constantly going into clipping. I was guaranteed by the service tech that the amp was running better than factory spec when it left their shop. I sold it shortly thereafter.
Using the same set of speakers, i tried a Classe' 70 ( 75 wpc @ 8 / 150 wpc @ 4 with 3 db's of dynamic headroom ).
While this amp was last made in 1994, it was WAY newer in terms of parts & design as compared to the Bryston. Not only did it drive tough loads much better than the more powerful ( on paper ) Bryston, it sounded much more musical. While both amps were somewhat lean sounding, i would have picked the Classe' if it came down to either sonics OR "power".
Please keep in mind that each "system" is a sum of all the parts combined. As such, try not to look at things "piece by piece" but as "what will work well together". Good luck and do as much listening in person as you can. Sean
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