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2000-2500 USD budget for an integrated amplifier. Do amplifiers sound the same? :)

Hey guys!

My first post here! Great community here!

I recently bought a pair of Klipsch Forte III and I’m thinking about upgrading my current budget amplifier Cambridge CXA60. My budget is around 2500 USD. I hope you guys can give me a few insights. Cheers!


Current setup:

  • Macbook Pro
  • Network streamer + DAC: Chord Mojo + Poly
  • Amplifier: Cambridge CXA60 (60 watt)
  • Speakers: Klipsch Forte III, 99db sensitivity
  • Subwoofer: Klipsch R-115SW
  • The room is pretty small: 4*6 meters (roughly 13*19 ft) but very well acoustically treated (I covered all the power corners with GIK acoustics bass Tritraps and Soffit + complete acoustic treatment on early reflection points

The Cambridge amp sounds nice with the Fortes but I feel like I’m missing out on something. I don’t know what "something" actually, since I haven’t paired the Fortes with anything yet but the Cambridge.

So the crucial question is: should I upgrade?

I’ve been considering integrated amps like the Rotel RA 1592 and the Peachtree nova300.

I know that it’s kind of an overkill to drive the Forte III with respectively 200 watts (Rotel) and 300 watts (Peachtree).

However knowing myself, I might upgrade the whole system (speakers included) in like 4-5 years or so. And it might be nice to have a capable high powered amp around (with lots of power headroom) so I won’t need to spend further capital again on a new amplifier in a few years.

On the other hand, I feel like I’m wasting quite a bit of money buying a powerful integrated amplifier right now. At the end of the day the Cambridge CXA60’s got 60 watt and it is more than sufficient to drive the Forte III.

This leads to another thing that’s bugging me… The sound quality of an amplifier! People like Ethan Wiener argue in a very convincing way that when compared evenly, the sonic differences between amplifiers operated below clipping are below the audible threshold of human hearing.

This guy summarized this view here:

https://jakekuyser.wordpress.com/2016/05/23/do-hi-fi-amplifiers-sound-alike/


Furthermore I’ll most probably have Sonarworks room digital EQ correction toggled on all the time to remove all the equipment unwanted colorations. These colorations might sound nice, but I’m more of a "I want to hear what the artist intended" type of a listener.

(((To me Sonarworks was an eye opener when I first used it to calibrate my Sennheiser HD800.

https://www.pro-tools-expert.com/home-page/2017/8/24/headphone-shootout-sennheiser-hd800-vs-hd800s

It made me think about the extreme amount of the self delusion nature in the audiophile community. Many audiophiles rave about the alleged flat response of the HD800 when there are indisputable peaks at 5,5kHz and 11kHz, plus very very weak bass. Without correction they’re almost annoying to me and they definitely do not deliver what the artist/sound engineers intended. However, these cans are very often just described as extremely revealing, clinical, unforgiving… which eventually led to the claim that the HD800 is picky regarding the amp…)))

Questions:

  1. So considering that I’ll most probably have Sonarworks room digital EQ correction toggled on all the time to remove all the equipment unwanted colorations, do you guys still think that I might be able to get a "better" sound by upgrading the Cambridge to a more powerful amp, like the the Rotel RA 1592 and the Peachtree nova300?
  2. Is it worth to spend 2000-2500 USD more for this? Or should I use this money for a better DAC or a network streamer?

Sorry guys for this long post!

Cheers,

Egoq


egoquaero
digepix's avatar
digepix
121 posts
 
I'm not a fan of Klipsch speakers but whatever. The Belles Aria integrated is the best I've heard in your budget. 75 watts/ch but that's not your concern.
Post removed 
thyname's avatar
thyname
3,107 posts
 
Ethan Winer is in the business to sell acoustic panels. Of course he would say "nothing matters, spend your money on acoustic panels". 
noble100's avatar
noble100
2,419 posts
 


     I agree with Erik, it seems like Egoq would benefit from gaining some more experience by trying several different integrated amps, of various amp types, with his Forte IIIs.  This will enable him to discover for himself whether amps sound different while also discovering which he prefers.  
     Many of us know that a tubed integrated will sound different than a solid state integrated and even different solid state integrated amps will sound different based on the types of amp stages (class A, AB and class D)  utilized.  We also know that the type of preamp stage (class A tube or solid state) utilized will influence the sound.  Lastly, we know that there's more than just the specific preamp and amp stage utilized in an integrated amp that determines its overall sound, it's the complete integrated amp design implementation as a whole that's important.
     My main point being that we know this through years of listening experience and accumulated knowledge that Egoq currently lacks.  While I think it's useful for this young newbie to rely on us older and more experienced members for advice and suggestions, it's also a very good time for him to begin developing his own knowledge and experience. 
     I'd suggest looking for a local dealer that will let you audition a few different integrated amps in your system and with your speakers before purchase.

Tim
vinylfan62
119 posts
 
I’ve used several Klipsch horn designs. They sound best with tubes or quality class A solid state. If you can try one of those I’m positive it will erase the idea that amps don’t matter. And before you do that please pull those horns out and cover the back of them with some dynamat or other damping material. It’s very simple yet transformative. I can’t understand why manufacturers don’t do this to keep the horn from ringing. It takes that little edge off the sound that keeps many people away from horns. You may find that you don’t need an amp change at all. 
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