Lightning quick DYNAMIC amp in the under $1000 range


Hi guys, slowly upgrading my system on a bang for the buck budget. Anyone know of a musical, dynamic amp for under a grand? I would prefer new, but if anyone knows of a good deal on the used market, that could work, as well.
bstatmeister
bstatmeister OP
May need to add the Schiit Aegir to the list now that it’s available. It’s $100 more than the Vidar, but supposed to sound better overall as long as you don’t listen at high levels with inefficient speakers. The Vandy 2Cs are 88db efficient and I do like to listen loud once in a while, so if I wanted to go this direction, I may have to monoblock them, however if I do this
Don’t!!!!! bridge them, you gain wattage only, sound quality takes a hit.

Horizontal Bi-amp instead, put the Schiit Aegir on the mids and highs of the Vandersteen 2C for the best sounding Class-A mids and highs, and get a cheap 100w Class-D with level control (to match level to the Aegir) for the bass, they’re good for that. (maybe your behringer pro-amp) and use your preamp as the master volume control. 
http://www.av2day.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/biamp1.jpg

Cheers George
read your model 2 manual on the recommendation to use identical transfer function amplifiers IF you vertically bi-amp
otherwise you can kiss time and phase goodbye.....
tomic, I agree, but George spoke about horizontal bi-amping in this situation.
Correct, you would only vertical bi-amp if using identical poweramps if powerful enough, using the speakers xovers there is no phase problems!!. But not with 2 Aegir’s as 25w is still not enough for the bass.

But in horizontal bi-amping still using the speakers xovers, I suggest the OP if he has the superior Class-A Aegir on the mids and highs and an cheap 100w midfi Class-D on the bass which they’re good at doing. And still no phase problems!!

Cheers George
George, excellent idea. Hadn't even considered it. Gonna look into the different biamp options. Thanks for the tip, too Tomic!
PS Audio Sprout 100 is a bargain, and you can stream Bluetooth to it and bypass preamp/dac etc. MM phono stage, Optical digital input to cut the ground, and even can be run preamp out.  $599 and you can return it for free if it doesn't work with your system. Plenty of power to even power my Rockports in my Main System to crazy fast bass volumes. Not as sterile like typical Class D amps. Two weeks of burn-in has opened it up and it actually responds to power cord upgrades.
bstat, jetter, I made a recommendation on a very good, inexpensive power cord. Did either of you do anything about it, to try?  Enjoy ! MrD
mrdecibel, funny you would ask, I just received three of the 6 footers and one is settling in very nicely on my parasound A21+.  The others will be powering my Museatex-Meitner monoblocks that I will be getting back tomorrow from being modded by John Wright.  

I am a novice regarding aftermarket power cords, but these do seem very well made.  Thanks for the recommendation. 
It's still in my cart on Amazon. Haven't pushed the button yet.

Question: would the power cord still make a difference even when all my gear is plugged into a line conditioner? Would the line conditioner need a power cord upgrade, too? What about my preamp? Is the amp the best place to put it if just buying one?
I would start with the one, for your Behringer, and let your ears tell you. Nothing more. The new pc will be obvious, but it will require a bit of " break in ". How much, depends. Let the amp play music with the new cord for a week, and you will be there ( a tuner or streamer, even at low volume ). I did not ask this, do you leave your amp on 24/ 7. You should, if you listen every day. It is not a class A amp, so you will not be spending so much on electricity. Just get the one pc for now. Enjoy ! MrD.
I do listen everyday, but I always turn it off after the listening session. Would you do this just to break in the cable or do you always leave everything on all the time? Seems like it would drastically decrease the life of your equipment no?
Tube equipment, and hot running Class A amplification, I would ( have ) turned off. All other ss gear, I leave on, which sounds better, and I believe, lessens wear and tear on a product. But, both of these points to leave gear on 24/7, is always debatable. My ears tell me the first, and I have never had a solid state product fail on me. Well, I did have an older PS audio power amp, a 200 C, smoke a little upon turn on, but other than that, never. YMMV

RE Lightening quick
can't be done. electricity moves much slower than lightening.

RE PC & PLC
the supply cable to the PLC adds its influence to everything downstream of it. naturally then this single PC can be quite influential and one can deal with it either right off or later on with this knowledge in mind.

RE power on 24/7
its all about heat. well, almost.

with consumables like tubes, especially NOS tubes, judicious use is pretty much preordained. shut it/them down when not in use, unless you are sitting on a goodly supply of vintage tubes.

... or you don't mind re-tubing more frequently.

if you can control the temps where the gear resides and maintain it pretty chilly, I'd say leave whatever on all the time.

if the gear is pure Class A it has to be running a signal which will lower the temp and or increase the efficiency of the amp. even if the volume is very low.

heat, especially excessive heat kills electronics more than repeated powering up and down.

in the Navy shipwide public address system was all tube based of course there were other sensitive electronics which when energized were kept on for months at a time without failures due to heat because the ambient temp in that space was maintained quite low..

certainly it was quite cool in that space! ambient temps were usually in the low to mid 60s.

lessen the ambient temp, keep the gear cooler and you will extend the life of your electronics.
Lightening quick
can't be done. electricity moves much slower than lightening..


If you mean "lightning" I wonder what you think it's composed of...
I just got a time capsule yamaha mx1000u that matches or beats the specs of everything mentioned here. Paid 750 on ebay. It's the quietest and most dynamic amp i've ever owned...from Krell to PS Audio. Unbeatable for the money.
johnkent3, YMMV. The important thing, is that you are enjoying the MX1000, as this is what it is all about. Always, MrD.
johnkent3, YMMV. The important thing, is that you are enjoying the
MX1000, as this is what it is all about. Always, MrD.
 
Mr.D - now that it's brought up - my mileage did vary with Schiit products...

The quality of the freya was sub par because it introduced noise and a slight hum no matter what I did in any of my systems....

The modi 2 über was pretty good sounding but same thing - it was not quiet enough.

I was seriously thinking of the Vidar - but was a little apprehensive due to my experience with the company .

All of this and - Super Best Audio Friends - they hype the Schiit stuff hugely probably Schiit pretty much keeps that forum alive with advertising - and they're total dicks. Audio science review is the opposite and the only one posting legitimate, unbiased audiophile information. 
Hello everyone,,
A Van Morrison quote comes to mind...
No guru, no method, no teacher....
hopefull LL I am just a passionate student of kaizen
i like your idea and thanks for the refresh on mental block I had on the amp

i strongly agree with the biwire approach, if OP needs to borrow a set of cables, I have a shotgun set of AQ type six with about ten K frequent flier miles as loaners...easy to have an open mind when investment in listening is a flat rate USPS $13 to get them to the next intrepid listener

love your idea on vertical biamp, especially w identical transfer function amp
Hello everyone,,
A Van Morrison quote comes to mind...
No guru, no method, no teacher....
hopefull LL I am just a passionate student of kaizen
i like your idea and thanks for the refresh on mental block I had on the amp

i strongly agree with the biwire approach, if OP needs to borrow a set of cables, I have https://xvideos.onl/ a shotgun set of AQ type six with about ten K frequent flier miles as https://xnxx.onl/ loaners...easy to have an open https://chaturbate.onl/ mind when investment in listening is a flat rate USPS $13 to get them to the next intrepid listener

love your idea on vertical biamp, especially w identical transfer function amp
________________________________________________________________
Thank you my issue has been solved,...
Just got in my Waudio 10AWG power cable. First impresssion: Wow! great build quality and a nice heft to it for only $60. I have not plugged it in to my amp yet, but I hope I notice some subtle changes. Although not sure my system is resolving enough...

I feel I may be going down a long road of tweaks here :) What is the next item I should get? Hospital grade outlet?
bstat, wonderful. I believe jetter ( who is, unfortunately, angry with me at the moment ), stated above, he was enjoying the Waudio pcs. I find that the iec plug might be a little loose at the amp end, and if you find this to be the case, trim a bit of painters tape, or electrical tape, to fit around the end of the pc plug, to widen it a bit ( circumference ), to make it more snug. Most tape is 1 inch wide, so you would need to minimize this, so the plug goes in all the way. You will hear differences, for sure, but the cable will take time to break in. Just does. Enjoy, and keep us posted. Enjoy ! MrD.
Thanks Mr. D, I will. Any recommendations for next tweak? Hospital grade outlet, or something else that might make a bigger difference?
If it were sunny outside, I would be at the pool. Give this cord at least a week, to break in, running your power amp continuously 24 / 7, with a signal ( it can be at low volume ), if you can. After a week, we can talk about another move to make. Keep in mind, some folks, like myself, hear dramatic changes in sq, generally for the better, with just a beefier power cord ( specifically on a large output power amp ), and some, hear little, to no difference. Need to see ( hear ) where you are at, with this one change. Be patient, my son....Enjoy ! MrD.
run it in enjoy !!!!! get a solid solid grip on sonics of your new baseline....then contemplate the next move...IF any...
Thanks guys, so not just switched on for 24/7, I actually need a music signal going through the amp the whole time? if so, can I do it with the gain turned all the way down on the amp and preamp? or does there need to be some audible output on the speaker end? 
You would need signal into the amp for everything to cook properly. I would recommend some audible output on the amp. You can take a source directly into your amplifier and use the input level controls on the amp ( you have a tube pre, right ? ). Bypass the pre for this break in period. You might actually like it without the pre, as this would be a " passive " hook up. If you cannot do this, it will all just take longer. But as I mentioned to you earlier, if you listen every day, the amp will do you so much better, in sq, if left on all of the time. It is also possible to unplug your speakers, as many solid state power amps are ok without seeing the load of a speaker. I would ask Behringer, or a tech of some kind, if it would be ok. My 3 Yammie pro amps have no problem with this. Maybe someone else here will jump in at this juncture. Tube amps like to see a load.
You know what, I've only put about 5-6 hours on the Waudio PC, but I do believe I hear an improvement in the bass - just seems a bit more meaty - long ways from total burn in, however. I will report back in a few weeks (as I do't think I can get away with constant playback -wife/kids great room gets used a LOT)