Review: Acurus DIA-100 mkII Amplifier


Category: Amplifiers

I had read alot of good reviews for the DIA 100 and was
in dire need of a quiet pre-amp\amp for my horn loaded
loudspeakers.The horn's magnify background noise and hiss
and I was getting a little too much with my Audio Research
SP6-b pre-amp.But would the Acurus match the awesome
sound quality of the Audio Research with a separate amp?
Yes,Yes,Yes!
I now have excellant sound and NO background noise
whatsoever.I use the Donald Fagen NightFly CD as my
reference,and I can tell no noticible difference
in sound quality in switching to the Acurus DIA 100.
The high's are sweet,not to forward,and the low's
are solid and tight.It has a great balance of both.
I had been warned of system matching with this amp,
but I have not encountered any of those issues so
far.The Acurus provides clean,clear detailed music.
It will make a poor recording sound very poor,
and the opposite is also true.
The DIA 100 make's my horns come to life,you just
want to listen more and more.For me personally,
I like a good balance of treble and bass,not too
much of either.With my setup,the DIA 100 is perfect.
It was built with pride-solid as a tank,no frill's,
very well laid out control knobs.
No noise,no hiss,etc.
My only gripe would be the speaker post's-they don't
accomidate thick speaker wire.
I only have the highest praise for this unit.
The fact that a Audio Research SP6-b now sits in
my closet should tell you how much I love this
amp.In the future I may try another amp,but the
Acurus DIA 100 will never leave my house!

Associated gear
Loudspeakers used are Altec Lansing
Voice of the Theatre-511-b/808-8a horns.
Sony 96/24 CD/DVD player.
Monster cable speaker wire,custom made
RCA cables.

Similar products
Audio Research D52-b,B&K ST2140,B&K ST202,AudioSource Amp Two,Linn LK100,
Hafler DH500,Carver TFM 6,Yamaha M45.
Pre-amps:Audio Research SP6-b,
Hafler Iris.
128x12889vett