rayjay@ihuxr.UUCP (07/13/83)
1. Sumo model 9 (70 watts-approx $700)
2. Amber Series 70 (70 watts-approx $600)
3. Apt Power Amp (100 watts-approx $550)
4. Hafler DH-220 (115 watts-approx $350 for kit)
I would not hesitate to recommend any of these units over the Yamaha. As
someone who has somewhat followed Yamaha products for the past ten years,
it's kind of sad to see whats happened to their products. They seemed to have
decided to close the gap between themselves and the other "mid-fi" Jap audio
firms. While their performance is not "bad", its not that much better than
most Pioneer or Sansui units. Their seperates are just not worth the money.
( I had a Yamaha B-2 pwr amp & C-2 preamp for several years and as far as I
am concerned, they have not produced anything close since ).
1. The Sumo Model 9 is a class A unit with a small Gould Mini-brute fan
included to keep things cool. This is my current unit and I am quite
happy with it. I don't know about your pwr requirements, but I get along
quite nicely with 70 "clean watts" when I always thought I needed to have
at least 100. The bass is ultra clean and well defined and handles my
tube preamp quite well. It outperformed my Hafler 220 by a large measure.
2. I was quite impressed with the Amber unit. (My best friend owns one and
I've spent quite a bit of time listening to it) In an A/B test ran
against the Hafler, it was the clear winner. It's built along "military"
lines and the company enjoys an excellent reputation with owners and
dealers.
3. The APT unit is rather compact and probably the best looking of the
units mentioned. While the dynamic range could be a bit better, ther
is not much to complain about. I've always liked this unit but I
would prefer 1 or 2 more. Also, there is a rumbling that Apt is
floundering on the edge of oblivion.
4. I put together a Hafler DH-220 kit and found it to be quite easy. It
was alot easier than the DH-101 I tried several years before. There
is alot of good comments about the 220 on the Net and when you consider
it's $350 price , there is nothing that can touch it. Since you mentioned
a limit of $700 for a power amp, you are willing to move up from the
Hafler and items 1,2,&3 are better performers.
To all you "Hirsch-heads":
"Each of these units would make a fine addition to any system"
John Wray BTL- Napervilleellis@flairvax.UUCP (Michael Ellis) (07/14/83)
I disagree about A/B speaker test comparisons. They're only misleading
because nobody does them right. Here's how I selected my speakers:
1. Borrow an amplifier identical to the one you own.
2. Take home the speakers to be compared. This may require considerable
amount of cash, if you're like me and hate credit cards. But it's
worth it. Specially if the leading contenders are at different stores.
3. Hook everything up so both systems play the same source. Then adjust
each amp separately so that volume differences on each pair of
speakers have been compensated for.
This part is great fun. You can adjust bass/treble on one to sound
best for that speaker, and then try to match that sound on the
other, etc. This is where the strengths and weaknesses of each
brand of speaker really show up. Do this for one week.
4. Return the losing speakers and go to another store to pick up
yet another brand to continue the test. After a month or two,
you'll KNOW you have the right speakers.
It is true, however, that A/B speaker comparisons are almost meaningless
in the store. Especially when there's only one volume control for
several speakers, and no way to reposition an unfavorably placed pair.
Michael Ellis - Fairchild AI Lab - Palo Alto CA - (415) 858-4270