Integrated... and cheap

[MrMister]

Hi there-

I'm still on the hunt for a replacement for my old NAD 3130. Been eyeing Darren's HK6550

but not sure he'll be replacing it any time soon, so thought I'd post and see if anyone has any ideas as to a suitable alternative?

Looking for something of a similar price, off eBay or from the classifieds. I'm using a Marantz CD-63 KIS and B&W 602 S3 speakers.

Moving to a new house with a listening/study room of about 16'x20'.

I have looked (or rather, have been feverishly examining) vintage amps form the 70's :nerd: but I'm a little out of my depth in that department! A HK6550 would be ideal, but as I am sure you are all aware, they are hard to come by (especially now we are all talking about them all the time!)

Cheers for any help, Mr Mister

 

[Lefty]

Don't know what your budget is but there is a Rega Mira 3 on hififorsale which is £225.

It'll be very different from your NAD in presentation though...

Lefty

 

[darrenm]

The HK presentation will be different to your NAD too, btw.

I may be buying another amp tonight anyway, so don't rush incase the HK becomes available next week

 

[unintended1]

darrenm wrote:

The HK presentation will be different to your NAD too, btw.I may be buying another amp tonight anyway, so don't rush incase the HK becomes available next week

Another! Is it the Copland Darren?

 

[Jezzer]

I would look for a Harman Kardon HK 680 as an alternative to the HK 6550. Often crop up on German eBay. I have had both amps and prefer the HK 680 (smoother and more refined - the HK 6550 can sound a little aggressive... but then again you might like that....).

 

[MrMister]

Well with a Marantz CDP and B&W 602 speakers, anything that is smooth is going to be benificial! I'll see what happens with Darren's HK 6550, I would like to try it. Have had the NAD for eons, so anything will be an improvement. I feel the 602's would benefit from a bit more 'oomph'.

Darren, I'll wait a bit to see what you go for

Feel free to keep the ideas coming though! Anyone know anything about the 70's vintage amps made by Sansui, Pioneer etc..

Cheers, J

 

[darrenm]

unintended1 wrote:

darrenm wrote:

The HK presentation will be different to your NAD too, btw.I may be buying another amp tonight anyway, so don't rush incase the HK becomes available next week

Another! Is it the Copland Darren?

Not the Copshop. You can guess by browsing this forum though.

MrMister, the HK6550 is soo good though. It's not perfect, it's not smooth - in fact treble is crap - but the amp is fun, unpretentious, cheap... one of the best I've owned when you take into account VFM.

 

[Jezzer]

Also worth looking out for a Harman Kardon PM 665 VXI. A very good amp of late 80's vintage....

Not sure about older Pioneer kit but my dad had both Luxman and Sansui amps. The Luxman was especially good - decent resolution and power. I compared a Luxman side by side with a Harman Kardon HK6500 - the Luxman was certainly more refined with better treble. However, the Luxman was perhaps a little 'thin' sounding compared to the warmer HK (which runs very warm). Also, Luxman amps from the mid 80's were very well built....

 

[Matt J]

PM sent MrMister

 

[darrenm]

Matt J wrote:

PM sent MrMister

I'm intrigued!

 

[Matt J]

I didnt want to blatently plug something for sale on his thread so I PM'd him instead, nosey :lmao:

 

[PeteVid]

I can recommend the Sony 940QS amp. Vastly under rated imo. They sound marvelous, have fantastic build quality and great features. They can be picked up on eBay for as little as £100.

 

[MrMister]

Isn't that Sony amp a surround-sound model?

 

[Plug]

MrMister wrote:

Isn't that Sony amp a surround-sound model?

The model number's on my profile MrM. It's not a surround/av amp and I'd also recommend it. I've downloaded a copy of the user manual. I can email it if you want to see the spec. Battleship build quality. Got mine for £97 inc.delivery about a year ago and it's mint. I'm very happy with it and got no plans to upgrade. Think it was about £350 RRP. If it wasn't made by a high volume seller like Sony I reckon it'd be twice the price.

 

[Nawty]

Hows about a newer NAD?

 

[cjr]

These go on eBay for £100-150 (I have had 2 of them) :

TAF-30ES Does nothave the out and out grip of the HK-6550 but lovely amps all the same.

Also consider the TAF-3000ES - little shoebox gold amp from Sony ES. 35 Watts but a lovely device. £150 eBay.

 

[russ abbott - royds broth]

Hi,

i have a few amps that i might be selling in the next couple of weeks

nad

a&r and naim

 

[155]

cjr wrote:

These go on eBay for £100-150 (I have had 2 of them) :

TAF-30ES Does nothave the out and out grip of the HK-6550 but lovely amps all the same.

Also consider the TAF-3000ES - little shoebox gold amp from Sony ES. 35 Watts but a lovely device. £150 eBay.

CJR- where did you get the stand upon which the LP12 is placed? It looks stunning.

155

 

[auralflea]

Not sure of the price range you're looking at, but I'll happily plug my Rega Luna amp

Let me know if interested....

Kevin