Most aesthetically pleasing amplifiers

[Emulator II]

Yamaha P3500S (-Handles/+Feet)

 

[pablolie]

i have also always been partial to Electrocompaniet but have never owned one - considering this one...

 

[antcollinet]

View attachment 198374

Emerson BD-197 also know as the "Mae West" Table Radio

A modern version would be known as the "Madonna". Am I past it if I think it looks more like a frog?

 

[Berwhale]

You are all wrong; you want something pure and unsullied; no silver bits, no markings for input selection or volume and definitely no VU meters like my ONIX OA21S (not a photo of my actual OA21S)

 

[BoredErica]

View attachment 197874

These are the best looking ones in this thread so far for me. I seem to have a very different sense of aesthetics than most people here. Honestly I wonder how amps would look it if audio was a hobby dominated by young women. There'd be more ones in my style I bet, haha.

Best bet for me is to hide the amp, that way I can purchase base on price, features, etc. Can't hide speakers though so I am picky on looks there.

 

[TheBatsEar]

i have also always been partial to Electrocompaniet but have never owned one - considering this one...

Do you think the acrylic front will age gracefully?

 

[DavidMcRoy]

Most of the Threshold power amplifiers

 

[kschmit2]

 

[TheBatsEar]

I personally don't like their titan color scheme. If they had taken regular silver, the devices would fit previous and past devices in terms of looks.

 

[Angsty]

Honestly I wonder how amps would look it if audio was a hobby dominated by young women.

Maybe for the Lilly Pulitzer crowd...

Most aesthetically pleasing amplifiers

This guy powers the system on my screened in veranda and has survived a couple of decades of Wisconsin weather without a hiccup. I have always liked the look of this unit, just a simple little cube. I'm with you, I prefer the minimalist look. Simple yet elegant. I still have a couple of these...

audiosciencereview.com

 

[Killingbeans]

Nahh, a Fiat Multipla in a flowery vinyl wrap is still just a Fiat Multipla

I don't think women are better or worse at seeing through that s¤¤t than men.

 

[TheBatsEar]

There is one Melinda Murphy talking on Youtube about her record collection. She has the same random stuff others have, what i remember:

Rega P9, forgot the cartridge
Emotiva XPS-1 phono preamp
Emotiva PT1 and A-300
SVS something something speakers

I don't think there are gendered speakers or amps yet.

 

[Waxx]

They are absolute snake oil "why make it simple if we can make it complicated" and ridiculous expensive amplifiers, but they are very beautifull build, this custom "Thomas Mayor 211 SET" monoblocks. The middle section are the power supplies based on two 886A and two 6AU4 tubes , the power amps are a 211 tube driving a 211 tube. These are only custom build on order and cost more than an average house...

 

[Waxx]

And on more reasonable amps, this Audiomat Opera Reference 12 looks absolute gorgious...

 

[Katji]

I don't think there are gendered speakers or amps yet.

Except in some audiophile minds. Unusual [I hope] but I've seen it, referring to amplifier as "she".

 

[Leporello]

Anti-bling = good. The green power button is a nice reference Braun design aethos. I would choose this over any Accuphase etc.

 

[JSmith]

JSmith

 

[Doodski]

There are/have been oh-so-many.

Here's a personal fave -- setting a benchmark for timeless design, IMO (and FWIW).
borrowed images, since I'd have to sell a kidney to afford a single amp, much less a stereo pair.

the original morph (early 1960s):

the reissue (mid-1990s, IIRC):

This explains why Marantz uses that small round display on the receivers. They are being nostalgic.

 

[Digby]

If this thread proves anything, it is that there really is no accounting for taste.

It would be interesting to see if there are regional differences. Do US members prefer the big, beefy amps? (muscle car amps). A few UK posters seem to prefer the simple looking stuff, that seems like it could have been cobbled together in someone's garden shed (NAD, Aura).

I can't say I see the appeal of rack ears and my least favourite are the amps that look like they have a speedometer/porthole from a ship in the middle.

 

[dlaloum]

Slightly understated bling