Hi, I've been a bit of an audiophile for a few decades, but I've never owned a power amplifier before. I'm considering building a new system and wondered what you might recommend within my budget of about $7,000 for the total 2-channel system--loudspeakers, amp, pre.
Equipment I own:
- Hegel H80
- KEF LS50
- Acurus DIA150
Equipment I've owned
- NHT SuperTwos
- Yamaha R9
- DBX RF-100
I love my KEF LS50 and the Hegel H80 is a nice pairing, but the Acurus DIA-150 has more grip and power.
I'd love to get a Hegel H20 ($6K)+ Hegel HD30 ($5K) DAC (no-pre-amp) and maybe KEF R5 $1.4K) but that would put me nearly 200% over budget ;)
I'm considering an Aragon 8008 ($3K) + KEF R5 which leaves about $2k for a pre-amp. Are these likely to be well matched? I really like the idea behind of Hegel HD30 which can connect directly to the power amp, since my music is all digital, but it's quite pricey. Is there anything similar? Otherwise, any recommends for a balance pre-amp for the 8008? The Aragon 8008 has been on market for a while, but I had a great experience with their system brand (Acurus). What other power amps I should be considering?
Cheers!
Max
Hi, I've been a bit of an audiophile for a few decades, but I've never owned a power amplifier before. I'm considering building a new system and wondered what you might recommend within my budget of about $7,000 for the total 2-channel system--loudspeakers, amp, pre.
Equipment I own:
- Hegel H80
- KEF LS50
- Acurus DIA150
Equipment I've owned
- NHT SuperTwos
- Yamaha R9
- DBX RF-100
I love my KEF LS50 and the Hegel H80 is a nice pairing, but the Acurus DIA-150 has more grip and power.
I'd love to get a Hegel H20 ($6K)+ Hegel HD30 ($5K) DAC (no-pre-amp) and maybe KEF R5 $1.4K) but that would put me nearly 200% over budget ;)
I'm considering an Aragon 8008 ($3K) + KEF R5 which leaves about $2k for a pre-amp. Are these likely to be well matched? I really like the idea behind of Hegel HD30 which can connect directly to the power amp, since my music is all digital, but it's quite pricey. Is there anything similar? Otherwise, any recommends for a balance pre-amp for the 8008? The Aragon 8008 has been on market for a while, but I had a great experience with their system brand (Acurus). What other power amps I should be considering?
Cheers!
Max