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What are the best amp options to drive KEF R3?

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dlaloum

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Ok, I am not sure of their amps for cars but their integrated and power amps are mostly class AB. If you check out their int amps like 5802 and 5805, they are all AB amps. I do know their have something close to class D no.53 amp. But that thing is a monster and cost 50k a pair. Their lastest ml50 power amp is AB as well.

No doubt their are now owned by Samsung (after Samsung acquired haman). But they are not created by Samsung.

As I said, the price of ML products are out of reach the the most of us.

ML is a subsidiary of Harman (which in turn is now owned by Samsung)...

Crown is another subsidiary of Harman.

There was talk a few years back of some of the Crown amp engineers being involved in the design of the No 53 - and also in the core design of the Drivecore chips, used in the Crown, Lexicon, and JBL amps. - Same design principles were applied. (I don't think the ML amp uses the Drivecore chip - the Drivecore chip consolidated a bunch of components making the more mass producible - apparently)

Not sure whether the 53 is drivecore on steroids, or whether Drivecore is the 53's mass market version ...

And the link between the two was never claimed by anyone at ML, Crown or Harman - so it might just be a myth
 

dorakeg

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ML is a subsidiary of Harman (which in turn is now owned by Samsung)...

Crown is another subsidiary of Harman.

There was talk a few years back of some of the Crown amp engineers being involved in the design of the No 53 - and also in the core design of the Drivecore chips, used in the Crown, Lexicon, and JBL amps. - Same design principles were applied. (I don't think the ML amp uses the Drivecore chip - the Drivecore chip consolidated a bunch of components making the more mass producible - apparently)

Not sure whether the 53 is drivecore on steroids, or whether Drivecore is the 53's mass market version ...

And the link between the two was never claimed by anyone at ML, Crown or Harman - so it might just be a myth

Oh, thanks for highlighting this. I didn't know that. The 53 appears to be just a one off product from ML. Seems be ML went back to traditional AB and linear power supply after 53. Their latest ML50 is also linear power supply.

I assume it either didn't work well or it could not achieve the results they wanted. Or maybe they use it only for car audio.
 

dorakeg

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Talking about class D I think one of the very famous brand would be MBL. Their class D amps uses hype, modules that's customized for mbl (no idea what are the differences). But of course prices are astronomical.

I have never seen a piece of MBL gear in my life, only photos of it either in magazines or online...lol
 

dlaloum

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Oh, thanks for highlighting this. I didn't know that. The 53 appears to be just a one off product from ML. Seems be ML went back to traditional AB and linear power supply after 53. Their latest ML50 is also linear power supply.

I assume it either didn't work well or it could not achieve the results they wanted. Or maybe they use it only for car audio.
All reviews were very positive... but you do need different engineering design skills for Class-D as opposed to A and AB...

It would make sense for them to draw on the Crown engineers to develop their "cost no object" class D implementation.

But it might have come down to a marketing decision, based on the preferences of ML buyers?

Many of the highly regarded Class D amps now use modules designed by Purify, Hypex or ICE (B&O) - and both Purify and Hypex originated with the same designer!

Harman/Samsung's in house development team worked on their own chipset (Drivecore) - which they have since deployed to products from Crown/Lexicon/JBL. - But those first came out about 15 years ago... I do wonder whether they are working on a new updated version? (not that I am in any way disappointed by the old version!)

In any case, I would urge an exploration of the pro amp world
 

Chromatischism

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i can extend my budget as long as item is really with groundbreaking technology and worth every penny.

should i seek amp which can go to up to 110db? Please advice i am new to home audio. I want performance and high end price ,not to impress anyone if i buy purify in chinese enclosure i will have 0000 resale value so i will loose 1000euro.
I need great amazing performance and price,

You can get groundbreaking technology (Purifi) as posted already on page 1.

And if you are operating on the assumption that your amp will go to zero, that is ludicrous. There are plenty of members here who would gladly take it off your hands for a fair market price.

If you really want to add a touch of luxury or whatever to it, get a NAD C268 or C298.
 
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D

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You can get groundbreaking technology (Purifi) as posted already on page 1.

And if you are operating on the assumption that your amp will go to zero, that is ludicrous. There are plenty of members here who would gladly take it off your hands for a fair market price.

If you really want to add a touch of luxury or whatever to it, get a NAD C268 or C298.
Some people claim nad is not very reliable or high quality Amir tested several nads and they was junk with low specs for high price,

The point I am making, is that you can look outside the audiophile world and marketplaces - look at the professional audio, and public address (PA) market - the equipment DJ's and Live Bands use for their concerts...

Some of that gear, can blow preconceptions about "audiophile gear" up! - High power, at low prices, and purchase used, no loss in value on resale.
i am not familiar with this world, so i have no clue how to get that equipment , and i dont want to make costly mistake.


Ok, if you really want a very good integrated amp with built-in dac and lots of power, I would personally recommend the Krell K-300i. It's still not 200wpc but close. Rated 150w but tested 192w before clipping.

But then, it's very expensive. It's cheaper than ML but still very very expensive.

i can call that Vintage piece of equipment rare hard to find and very high price not idea why, it will probably need repairs as well, since its more than 20 years old.



good people what do you think of parasound 200 integrated will it do my job is it better than denon , so far my current favourite is denon lets say it - only thing i dont like bulkiness..
and 000 availability.




Someone mentioned nad ,

C 268

nad that the unit i can get its widely available in europe and in my budget around 80w per channel

Speaker AmplifierNAD ElectronicsC 26887

sinad specs 87 which are better than cambridge audio.

i can get this its in my budget , my only concern is thats its 80w per channel,
and not sure how reliability and resale value goes, also sinad is not very high,
this c268 is same price or more compared to the denon which is quite amazing,
also denon is with at least 25% wats per channel more powerfull.
Denon is with 101 sinad and same price and more features which i quite like like airplay streaming etcs etcs... multi channel.



Purifi is available in europe from chinese made amps mostly and its expensive compared to reliable unit like denon and it lacks features craftmen ships etcs quality.
Its not a simple chip inside only you need to have radiator good one enclosure etcs etcs.



Regarding Krell
i like it its solid unit,

Krell KAV-300i thats in my budget but i cant get proper specs.​

Power output: 150Wpc into 8 ohms (21.8dBW), 300Wpc into 4 ohms (21.8dBW). THD: <0.06%, midband, rising to 0.3% at 20kHz. Input impedance: 210k ohms. Input overload: 9V RMS. Maximum voltage gain: 36.1dB. Input sensitivity: 55mV unbalanced, 28mV balanced, for full power, volume control maximum. Output impedance: 0.16 ohms. Power consumption at idle/standby: 50W.


year 1996
 
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NiagaraPete

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dlaloum

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You are chasing down too many targets.
Everything will loose value once you buy them. as much as 25% (return and full refund excepted). The value is lost over time, and instead of thinking about selling with minimal lost, you should calculate how much you will pay for it every day over 1-2-3-4-5 years.
The audio equipment that hold value the most are the one with a brand name. AND you pay for that brand name/ quality upfront. They may hold the most of percentage value over time, but in term of absolute $, it will be quite the same.
If you want minimal lost, buy an used product.
Not quite true - well chosen used items, will maintain their value - and in some cases increase in value - they seldom lose value, once they are past the 10 year mark....

You can purchase a Quad 606 today, refurbished, for under $1000 - less than it sold for new... a 35+ year old amp, and it will absolutely give many of today's audiophile competitors a run for their money.

I purchased a Crown XLS2500 , used, for $250 circa 10 years ago - today I can get more than that for it.
 

antcollinet

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Purifi is available in europe from chinese made amps mostly and its expensive compared to reliable unit like denon and it lacks features craftmen ships etcs quality.

I'm not aware of any Chinese branded purify amps. All I've seen have been European, or American.
 
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D

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I'm not aware of any Chinese branded purify amps. All I've seen have been European, or American.
Purifi doesnt have any good resale value.
What about Lyndorf
Lyndort are quite expensive not sure if they hold their value,
i dont see any more benefits than denon,
i plan to buy used product probably not yet sure where to look,
how about krell model i showed here is it any good or not?
because its vintage,
Not quite true - well chosen used items, will maintain their value - and in some cases increase in value - they seldom lose value, once they are past the 10 year mark....

You can purchase a Quad 606 today, refurbished, for under $1000 - less than it sold for new... a 35+ year old amp, and it will absolutely give many of today's audiophile competitors a run for their money.

I purchased a Crown XLS2500 , used, for $250 circa 10 years ago - today I can get more than that for it.
Quad is decent option but it will probably need repairs,
since its very old...

Krell KAV-300i thats in my budget but i cant get proper specs.​

Power output: 150Wpc into 8 ohms (21.8dBW), 300Wpc into 4 ohms (21.8dBW). THD: <0.06%, midband, rising to 0.3% at 20kHz. Input impedance: 210k ohms. Input overload: 9V RMS. Maximum voltage gain: 36.1dB. Input sensitivity: 55mV unbalanced, 28mV balanced, for full power, volume control maximum. Output impedance: 0.16 ohms. Power consumption at idle/standby: 50W.

is this good option?
 

NiagaraPete

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Krell are not cheap either and if you find one cheap it didn’t hold its value.
 

NiagaraPete

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NiagaraPete

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Danaxus

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It's over your budget, but maybe worth considering the upcoming NAD C 389 (https://www.sevenoakssoundandvision.co.uk/p-55376-nad-c-389-integrated-amplifier-with-dac.aspx).

FWIW, I would personally consider the Topping LA90, but I'm not recommending it as it doesn't meet your criteria, and I'm also not sure if it's got enough juice to drive the R3's (I don't own them, or any other KEFs). Still, if you find yourself without any good options, give it a look - it's an A/B amp and does have 90W/ch. Apparently the noise is so low it actually sucks sound out of the room converting it into a quasi-anechoic chamber! :p
 

mglobe

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It's over your budget, but maybe worth considering the upcoming NAD C 389 (https://www.sevenoakssoundandvision.co.uk/p-55376-nad-c-389-integrated-amplifier-with-dac.aspx).

FWIW, I would personally consider the Topping LA90, but I'm not recommending it as it doesn't meet your criteria, and I'm also not sure if it's got enough juice to drive the R3's (I don't own them, or any other KEFs). Still, if you find yourself without any good options, give it a look - it's an A/B amp and does have 90W/ch. Apparently the noise is so low it actually sucks sound out of the room converting it into a quasi-anechoic chamber! :p
Isn’t the NAD unit D class? I thought that was something the OP wanted to avoid.
 
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D

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Sensibly changed his mind.
Yes i am still open for suggestions market is crazy
once used amps like rega are sold for prices like they was new or even more,
so 5 -6-7 years rega models amps are sold for higher prices than they costed new crazy market...
probably due to chip shortage..
Topping LA90 i think its chinese, no resale value

Have you ever told us what your source is?

Aux 3.5mm jack or i can use digital audio, from my computer is the source i mentioned it many times :)

About NAD its not available in Europe,Pre Order Now - stock due in late October


i like Denon but i struggle to find it.
at normal price.

May be someone can reccomend units from maranz they older reference class they was good or not?


PM7200 is this marantz unit any good its in the budget old school around 2000 year 95wats.
 
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dlaloum

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Quad is decent option but it will probably need repairs,
since its very old...
There are usually quite a lot of reconditioned/serviced 606's for around EU500 - out of the UK

also 405's, 707's, 909's - with various levels of upgrades and mods... there is an entire community around these, their maintenance and upgrades!)

I have two 606's currently unused - due to the Crowns being more suitable to my current speakers - but they are damn good amps, and I am sure I will find another use for them at some stage. - 1 is original and still running to spec, the other had a refurb that I organised about 15 years ago...
 
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