What kind of amp?


Hi. I would welcome opinions and suggestions for an integrated amp (ss or tube)(new or used) that would go with my system. I am venturing into the great new world of hi-fi and am tin the process of upgrading -- I am a bit overwhelmed by choices. I am looking for a good, solid all-arounder -- jazz, classical, latin, pop/rock, and thought this would be great place to get some advice. I have about $2500 or so to spend.

System now --

Heart CD-6000
Harbeth compact es&'s
Planar 3 with rega arm
Audioquest type 4 cables
Old creek 4140 s2 amp.

Thanks in advance for your help.
pyun
I use a McCormack DNA 0.5, which has not been upgraded by SMC Audio. I hear that the DNA revision A is excellent and is better than some amps at more than twice it's cost. I know that I sure do enjoy my standard DNA. Give them a try. I would then take the left over money and upgrade your cables.
The three really strong solid state amps in your range IMHO are:

1) the Musical Fidelity A3cr ($1600 new, $1000 used) - there is an even better A300cr (not to be confused with the A300 integrated amp) which is around $3k new (I've never seen one used)

2) Bel Canto Evo

3) Bryston 4B-St ($1400 used, not sure new but under $2500)

These are all great amps, but I'm particularly fond of the Musical Fidelity which sound truly wonderful.
Pyun, all of the amps recommended above should be fine. I assume you mean Harbeth HL Compact 7ES. As a Harbeth user, you might want to go to the Harbeth website and either join and ask your question or just browse the user group messages as this question is asked from time-to-time.

There are two schools of thought w/re amps and Harbeth Compact 7 speakers, although both schools agree that they work well with almost any amplifier. One school, made up of card-carrying audiophiles and audio distributors and retailers, will tell you that these sepakers are very revealing of everything an amplifier does right or wrong, and every member of this school with a favorite amp will tell you that his favorite is the best, along with maybe one or two others. Some of these audiophiles will say tube amps are best. If you choose to follow the advice of an audiophile in this group, just make sure you get an amp with plenty of power, at least 100 wpc. I use amps with 150 to 180 wpc.

The second school of thought w/re amps and Harbeths, made up of Alan Shaw, the designer of the speakers, Professor Greene, who reviewed these speakers in The Absolute Sound and uses a pair in his living room just to listen to music, and a lot of electrical engineering types who design audio equipment for a living, say you should just get a competently designed high power solid state amp, like the ones recommended to you above (there are many more). Dr. Greene likes the Plinius and Brystons. Some members of this group would recommend something like a NAD C370 integrated amp, and I think that would work fine.

I belong to both schools. I use high current low distortion solid state amps that I have decided sound better to me than anything else I've heard, a Muse 160, and with my slightly smaller HL K6's, ahem, a Carver AV-705x (using 2 of the 5 channels) designed by another Harbeth user, Jim Croft, who earlier designed the Carver Lightstar II praised as a perfect amp by the aforementioned Dr. Greene, which I found on Ebay for about $500. Even though Jim has told me I shouldnt hear a difference between his amps and other competently designed solid state amps with enough power to drive the speakers (like the NAD C370), I like his amp a lot. I cant seem to hear any sonic character from it at all and it certainly has enough power to drive just about any speaker. Nevertheless, if I were you, I would probably go with a new amp or if used, something like a Bryston with a long transferable warranty.

Paul