2. amps-preamps
  3. 1122582001

Integrated Amp Choice: budget tubes or ss?

Hi,

I just recently started to get into hi-fi but have been an avid music lover/listener/maker for many years. Right now my setup consists of a Rega P2 with Clearaudio cartridge, a cheap mediocre cd player, a Marantz 2100 vintage tuner, and a Marantz 1152DC vintage integrated. My speakers are StudioLab 402's (StudioLap made in France by Mosquito www.mosquito-groupe.com, not the Canadian StudioLAB).

My listening habbits are about 70% vinyl, 30% CD and styles ranging from Wire to Taj Mahal to Steve Reich.

Right now I have the option of keeping my 1152DC, but there are a couple good deals and I'm interested in upgrading/changing/experimenting. I could get a Cambridge Audio Azure 340A, or a Ming-Da MC-34A .. I know that the tube/SS divide is pretty big, but I can't decide which one would give me more bang for the buck in that price range. Both are about the same price.. the Cambridge would be new and the Ming-Da used.

Given my brief explanation of my musical taste and formats does anybody have a recommendation of one or the other?

Thanks,
Matt
emenel

Showing 2 responses by mimberman

mimberman
299 posts
 
I agree with Kotta, I haven't heard the Ming-Da, but the cambridge is underwhelming in my opinion. For 250 you can't expect much, and this is better than the 250 bucks, but if you can you're much better spending a little more on a used piece of gear which you'll be happier with for a while. In terms of tube/ss there are about a thousand posts that mention this, and it's really about personal preference (the typically warm/sweet/musical sound of tube vs. the detailed/analytical/fast sound of ss--however you can find tube that does analytical and ss that does warm so these are usually just stereotypes...err..bad pun). I'd say for the price range you're looking there are probably more ss options that will have perks like remotes and phono stages, but I could be wrong.

Just a random sampling of things on agon that might fit the bil:

Audio Refinement Complete (no phono, but this is a great unit):
http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?intatran&1127326657

Arcam A65+ (has phono...this would be my pick!)
http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?intatran&1127251562
mimberman
299 posts
 
Have you auditioned the cambridge already? You can get the 540 for like 270 used, which packs a little more punch, but I have to say that the audio refinement and arcam are much better IMO than the cambridge. If you can find a Prima Luna Prologue one used then that's a great little amp (you can install a mm/mc phono card for like 160...more info at upscale audio or prima luna web site).

If you can scrape together 800, then you should seriously purchase this classe cap-150:

http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?intatran&1127494398

This is a seriously great integrated for the price, and considering it has a remote, an mm/mc phono stage, and puts out 100 pwc, you really can't beat it. Seriously, it's worth the extra money (I was thinking of getting it myself for a bedroom system, but I'm saving my moolah for a beefier integrated for the main system).

Otherwise, I prefer this Onix to the cambridge:

http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?intatran&1127053815

It's not that the cambridge is bad, seriously, and for the money it's a bargain, but more money on the used market gets you a big step up, which would probably happen anyway because I don't see the cambridge as an amp I could live with for a long time (IMHO).

get the classe, it's worth whatever sacrifice you have to make (who needs food anyway...)
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