Bryston BP-25 Preamp, 10B-Sub Electronic Crossover, and 3B-ST Amplifier - Measurements and Review

[101geo]

No mention of cables?

 

[Clara 7]

Next to most of you guys, like Sgt. Schultz " I know nothing ", but it is great reading these Bryston reviews. I am learning a great deal from reading reviews and following threads here on ASR. I am 62 now, and the greatest audio system I had over 30 years ago now was a Bryston stack centered around the 2BSST, with a Bryston pre-amp-DAC and CD Player. I loved this system, but had to sell it to pay bills back in the day.

I have always wanted to own the 4BSST, now the 4B3, and I still compare pretty much every amp I read about to the 4B3. My argument for the Bryston 4B3 is " This one goes to Eleven".

Anyway, Thanks MAB, for the great reviews.

 

[bigguyca]

Thanks for the kind words.

The cost was high, 2-3x an equivalent Adcom for example.

My memory was fuzzy on the list prices back in ~1995, I recall:
BP-25: ~$2000 (the phono and DAC modules added large cost, mine is the basic version)
3B-ST: ~$1600
10B-Sub: ~$1500
Bryston was seldom sold at any discount.
I got mine when I worked at a store that sold them, so did get a discount. The crossover was used, still not cheap.

You can make an argument that $50 per year per piece isn't too bad. It's a weak argument, but sounds good in hindsight.

It may be true that most Bryston gear is or wasn't sold at a discount, but it only took or takes a bit of shopping to get discounts. This is true of most AV equipment. This doesn't mean run-of-the-mill sales, it means getting quotes and talking with people.

My favorite Bryston piece is the 4BSST2. Schematics for most Bryston power amplifiers up through the 4BSST2 are available on the Internet. Until the past few years the schematics for the Bryston power amplifiers were even available on Bryston.com. Some preamp schematics are also available.

Bryston power amplifiers are very interesting. One unusual feature is that the amps have a nested feedback loop with the output section having its own loop with a closed loop gain of 3x per memory. The amps had an amazing build quality. I've not had my hands on a recent unit. The ST in a the name of many of the amplifiers is for Stuart Taylor who did many of the designs.

 

[GavriloD]

Bryston, at this point, has nothing that made their products attractive in the past.

You can get a much better-performing Class D amplifier from Buckeye and others.

Their DAC/Streamer is stupidly priced, dual AKM AK4490, better or equivalent DACs are dime a dozen, and you can get streamers for nothing.

Bryston will either reinvent itself ot go out of business.

 

[sceptical1]

They are making an attempt, you just don't realize it. The new T10 series of loudspeakers is well regarded, moreso than the original series that customers and reviewers agreed were excellent and accurate.

They have the digital amplifier series available with linear supply. The best of both worlds effidiency and peak power as opposed to your dynamically crippled smps based designs.

Look at a direct comparison between the (industry opined) best amp available, the benchmark ah2b and a 4bsst3. Both available at about the same price (that is 2 benchmarks in mono) yet the single 4b puts out more (4x the peak) power, is equal in thd even when measured with 14db more gain than the benchmark I might add, has a warranty 6 times longer and quality of design and assembly equal to or better than the benchmark.

If you mean the competitive realm of dacs,phono, streamers sure they can't compete. You need to realize that these products are made available for customers who want a complete bryston system and believe me there are alot of fans with alot f money that would have been left on the table if not taken advantage.

You must have thought of a dozen other hi end companies that deserve your wrath more than bryston. Take another stab at it.

 

[Vhond]

It would be interesting to measure the BP25 together with the MPS-1 Power Supply instead of the older BP-PSR one to see what's the influence of the power supply.
Also I read some people about recapping these older gear.
What components are in favour?
BP25 schematics

 

[EJ3]

Bryston, at this point, has nothing that made their products attractive in the past.

You can get a much better-performing Class D amplifier from Buckeye and others.

Their DAC/Streamer is stupidly priced, dual AKM AK4490, better or equivalent DACs are dime a dozen, and you can get streamers for nothing.

Bryston will either reinvent itself ot go out of business.

There are those of us that neither stream (either don't want to and/or live in places where you have to drive 30 or more minutes to get a decent cell phone signal [I'm in both catagories]).
And are not enamored by Class D, and believe in helping the environment a bit by having repairable gear that doesn't end up in the land fill.( I'm in that category, too).
I tend to deal with places that have a similar philosophy, such as:
Audio Proz from Watertown, MA (USA):
Audio Proz has been in the Hi-Fi and Pro Audio business for over 50 years.
The owner, Vince Naeve has worked for companies such as Apt, H.H. Scott, and KLH.
And says:
We assist our customers by helping them choose the correct equipment for their application, with special attention to the
serviceability, longevity and manufacturer support.
We try to be competitive on prices for new products and all of our used items are fully serviced, calibrated and Warranteed.
We do not stock cheap throw away electronics that are actually more expensive to own and needlessly pollute the environment.
A man of my philosophical ideas.
It is rare for me to buy something that will not be able to be repaired in the future. And will end up in the landfill in my lifetime.
EJ3