boXem ARTHUR 2408/N2 Review (Stereo Amplifier)

[Alice of Old Vincennes]

Are the binding posts the standard spacing for dual banana plugs?

Who cares.

 

[JSmith]

It's a shame such a well performing amp that landed in the "excellent" category has not been awarded a golfing panther... I voted "great" myself as there appears to be no glaring issues at all and SINAD over 95dB.


JSmith

 

[amirm]

Golfing panther is awarded to state of the art. We don't have this here. It is very good performance but shy of that.

 

[boXem]

Thanks for the review @amirm ! Did you notice at what part of the "power corner" the clipping indicator started to blink?

Yep. Senses a signal and comes out of standby, after 10 minutes of no signal it goes back into standby.

Indeed!

Are the binding posts the standard spacing for dual banana plugs?

Yes, 19.2 mm if memory serves.

 

[H-713]

Who cares.

Anyone who uses Pomona MDP connectors? It's a convenience thing. There's a standard spacing so that they work with a relatively common connector. I've given power supply companies no small amount of crap over this as well. It's a minor thing that is highly annoying.

Glad to see they got it right.

 

[Tks]

It's a shame such a well performing amp that landed in the "excellent" category has not been awarded a golfing panther... I voted "great" myself as there appears to be no glaring issues at all and SINAD over 95dB.


JSmith

Yeah, it seems simply because it's only clearing CD quality on the SINAD metric. Not really state of the art is the basic reason. For that, it would need to butt up against Benchmark ABH2 (by being approximately in the top 5).

 

[MCH]

Yep. Senses a signal and comes out of standby, after 10 minutes of no signal it goes back into standby.

Yep, have been testing the auto on/off of the Arthur for a few days now and works like a charm. So you don't even need that your source has a trigger, and you can even forget your amp has an on/off button, or any button in fact

 

[Dmitri]

I’d accept a golfing panther if we could get a bit more power for the investment. 53 watts into 8 ohms doesn’t do much for me at $735 US. Unless I’m mistaken, you can get the NC252 based Buckeye with a remote trigger for quite a bit less. Might not be as sexy looking or have a clipping led...but then again, you probably wouldn’t need one.

 

[Phorize]

Yes, I have kind permission from the owner to do so.

Hurrah!

 

[JSmith]

the auto on/off of the Arthur for a few days now and works like a charm.

I really like this feature and wish it was more common, especially considering many standalone DAC's and even amps now don't have 12V triggers.

53 watts into 8 ohms doesn’t do much for me at $735 US.

True, but then @4ohm it's quite reasonable for general use and appears to reach the Hypex NC122 spec in general which I would commend.


JSmith

 

[pma]

Thanks for the review, @amirm , and congrats to the NC122MP implementation, @boXem | audio . I am glad to see a product with well sized binding posts and good looking case, as well as standard Neutrik XLR connectors and IEC plug.
How long is it possible to run at 100W/4 ohm, re thermal management?

 

[Billy Budapest]

I’d like to see Boxem’s Purifi unit tested, too.

 

[GWolfman]

we at Rythmik Audio

Are you Rythmik Audio? IIRC, I still own a plate amplifier I bought from you guys back in ~2000!

 

[beefkabob]

Seems like a lot of money for not a lot of power, especially at 20hz, but nicely clean. I think if I ever went back to separates, I'd want at least 200 watts mono and speakers that could handle all that and more.

 

[H-713]

It's not real powerful, but keep in mind that a lot of people have been quite happy with GFA-535s and smaller Hafler amps and they're only marginally more powerful.

It's a little pricey, but if a 60 watt (into 8 ohms) amplifier is sufficient (and in a small room with reasonable speakers, it probably is), this would seem to be a very reasonable choice.

 

[ririt]

Thanks for the review @amirm ! Did you notice at what part of the "power corner" the clipping indicator started to blink?

Indeed!

Yes, 19.2 mm if memory serves.

Congrats boXem Audio! Amir´s review confirms my guess about the quality of the products you are offering.

 

[CMB]

Superbly built quality and nice looking. The touch feeling is of great Quality.
Easely passt wife approbation for the living room. Would have maded there if I would not have gone active.
The company owner is the type of guy you want to buy from.

 

[gsp1971]

Thanks for the review @amirm
Many of us had been waiting for a review of a boXem amp.

@boXem | audio : Kudos to you for a well-designed product, assembled with care.
The fact that you are also active in ASR, always willing to answer questions and/or accept feedback from members, is a bonus.
It looks like you manufacture your products to last long.

PS1: This unit must be one of the early production units, as the 'd' in Hancrafted is missing, and we know you have rectified that.
PS2: For those not happy with the power output, for just €100 more you can get the next model up (3409 / N2), which is based on the NC252MP module, offering up to 250W at 4 Ohm

 

[amirm]

Thanks for the review @amirm ! Did you notice at what part of the "power corner" the clipping indicator started to blink?

My pleasure. Yes, it put a smile on my face the way it was blinking on overload.

 

[vicenzo_del_paris]

Boxem's amplifiers are indeed not the cheapest hypex based offering.
But the build quality/care and the auto sense features are extremely valuable criteria in favour of Arthur's
As @gsp1971 mentioned, for few bucks more, the 3409 offer twice more power

@boXem | audio kudos