For that kinda budget nothing on this planet would top the performance of the ARCAM A65 plus try em out.Considering because you failed to mention what type of speakers you would be using so I assume they would be bookshelf type monitors?
I would disagree with lorenzo, and it shows how difffernet people hear differently. I think the Arcam is a good unit, but unlike the higher end Arcams, it sounds a little "steely" to me--a little hard edged sounding for my tastes. However, lornezo raises an excellent point about what speakers are you using. The best amp is going to be the best amp for your speakers and your room, so that is important information necessary to give you the best recommendations. Give us some more info, please.
The CMB-170 are fantastic monitors! I had a chance to use em at home hooked up to my ARCAM A65 plus. I highly recommend you try and hear em` hope your audio dealer can loan it to you so you can evaluate the ARCAM at home.
My den setup tho uses CARDAS wirings all the way. However switching to my mid-cost cables by ecosse and eichmann bullet interconnects took me to the music hall as well try em`!
The CBM-170s are very fine speakers, a little laid back sounding, but with a very nice flat frequency with very good bass extension for such a small monitor. Therefore, you need an amp with a sound that is a bit forward sounding.
Based upon that, I would suggest either an NAD C372 or a Rotel RA-1070. Both are real brutes with 120 wpc and 100 wpc, respectively, but it is all clean power that will make your Ascends sing. Also, I would recommend the Rotel RX-1050 receiver, which is the same thing as the RA-1070, but with a tuner built in. That is what I have in my study and I think it is quite good.
lorenzo may be correct about the Arcam. I have never heard the Arcam with Ascends, but I reason that the sound of the Ascends should smooth out the "steeliness" that I mentioned before. Certainly worth investigating. In that regard, I would take your Ascends to the dealer and have them hooked up to the amp you want to try out. Then you can tell which one of these four suggestions would work best for your speakers.
Happy hunting!
Anonymous
Posted on
Thank you very very much to both of you. Very nice people.
