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Sunfire Signature or Aragon 8008BB to power SL3?

Follow goners, I come to you again for help in choosing an amp for my SL3.

After more than a year of searching and collecting funds, it has come down to two amps: The Sunfire signature and Aragon 8008BB. Before arriving to these final two, I have looked at Rotel 1090, Bryston 4B-ST, Odyssey Extreme monos, and Levinson 333. I am not into whether the sound is warm or bright, but just good sound-stage, transients, and tonal balance - things that my previous Onkyo 504 couldn’t reproduce (It had great specs, though!).

I am more impressed with the 8008BB, but I cannot seem to shake-off the Sunfire signature, even though I have seldom come across people associating the Sunfire with “deep unbelievable sound stage”. On the other hand, I am not sure if there is a significant sonic difference between the 8008BB and 8008ST, besides their differences in the number of components and power supply design. The 8008ST has a more appealing price.

The lack of a place to demo has forced me to rely on my fellow Goners, and I am grateful for that. I am looking forward to your advice, opinions, and suggestions.

Thanks
planckscale
planckscale OP
60 posts
 
Never demoed, and never will in any near future! That is why I rely on your opinion and my instincts! I have a background in electronic engineering, but I have come to learn that selecting audiophile gears requires more than that. So I intend to buy a set of gears at a decent price and then spend the next 10 years building synergy using all the tweeks I can afford. It should be fun!
wccoe
75 posts
 
Nothing wrong with doing your homework. It helps us make a wise decision. Helps us get the most bang for our buck. But when you make a statement that suggests factual information on how an amp will perform, compaired to another, without actually hearing it, seems misleading and a little presumptuous on your part. And I just wanted to call attention to that fact. I also have an electronics background (28 yrs) and specs aren't everything. If they were, both of us would be satisfied with our Onkyo's :>). The proof is in the listening. Maybe you could find a fellow Agoner that has an amp that you are interested in that lives nearby. I'm sure that they would be willing to give you a demo. There are a lot of very good sounding amps out there and whichever you end up choosing, I hope you experience the same kind of satisfaction that I have, everytime you turn your system on. :>)

planckscale OP
60 posts
 
Wcce,

Please don’t misunderstand me, when I say I won’t be able to demo. There is no place for me to demo. Not whatsoever! But I believe your good advice and my background knowledge will lead me to something I can work with, at a lower price. I also believe you did understand me when I said that specs aren’t a thing. I sold the Onkyo (I hate to mention it again – it feel like I owned a Bose!) more than a year ago. Since then, I have been searching for a replacement – something that is very musical and yet cheap ($800 - $1400).

When I research, I always try to match peoples’ opinions on an amp and the speakers they are using. This should hep me on establish some initial synergy. The rest I will do it through tweeking. It should be fun.
planckscale OP
60 posts
 
I ended up with the 8008BB. It is sound much much better than my ex-Onkyo (for obvious reasons :). I also bought the Aragon Aurum preamp, hoping for a synergy.

Thanks
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