My Triad of Integrateds

If it turns out that the reincarnation thing is real (could be cool, or maybe not, depending on how you look at it), I suppose I might wind up owning several more integrated amps.

But if this is the only life we get, I'm pretty sure that Nelson Pass's sublime-sounding and beautiful INT-60 will be my last integrated.

Been a big Ayre fan since buying an AX7E and finding it compared very favorably with a BAT/McIntosh combo costing nearly 5 times as much.

This was replaced earlier this year with the full boogie Ayre EX8 hub.

My search ended that day......

Raven Audio Tube amps.  3 levels to choose from.  Outstanding sound that can drive any speakers.

Just to follow up on this particular post, Raven will soon also have the upper end Elite Series Reflection MK3 integrated out with several new enhancements. 

Before obtaining a Belles 250i Integrated from a fellow member here I would have quickly offered Pass Labs as a serious consideration. My experience with Pass Labs was with the X150.5 amplifier, which became my benchmark for amplifiers.  Clean, articulate, uncolored.  Made my Thiel CS3.5’s sound absolutely wonderful. 


The Belles model I now own is out of production, but David Belles is still in business as Power Modules.  Currently they offer the Aria integrated, 75 watts per channel into 8 ohms. 


IMHO, based on my experience with this integrated, Belles should be given serious consideration. It’s in almost every way as good as Pass Labs and a helluva lot cheaper.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m still a fan of Nelson’s gear, but Belles is definitely a discovery.  

The Aria exists in three incarnations.
Integrated.
Preamp + stereo amp.
Preamp + monoblocks.
Each level offers excellent value.