Amplifier within 50K : Please suggest

Hey raghu,

Its not speaker agony, already have Z3.

just wanted to check how well does it gel with CA.

M in belgium currently on a very tight schedule and audition wont be possible .

Oops, my bad! Fair question on speaker/amp match up. JayaRaa is right - you ought to confirm BT connectivity before you splurge.

Excerpt from whathifi: Youll be tempted to stick your smartphones charging cable into the other USB port at the back, but the CXA80 doesnt have any charging powers. Instead, that USB port is designated for a Bluetooth dongle (Cambridge offers the BT100 for 70) that lets you stream songs wirelessly from a smartphone.

I don't think it has BT built-in. Good luck with your purchases :thumbsup:.
 
Hello all,

Apologies for the late reply.

Checked and found that CA cxa80 needs an extra attachment to make it Bluetooth enabled.

How would Yamaha A-s701 would be in this case?

Will get it at about 45K with yamaha bluetooth YBA11.

The difference between the 2 is huge.

Also Yamaha bears a SABRE DAC.

Could this be made wireless enabled?

Please advice.
 
Hello all,

Apologies for the late reply.

Checked and found that CA cxa80 needs an extra attachment to make it Bluetooth enabled.

How would Yamaha A-s701 would be in this case?

Will get it at about 45K with yamaha bluetooth YBA11.

The difference between the 2 is huge.

Also Yamaha bears a SABRE DAC.

Could this be made wireless enabled?

Please advice.

Any Amp can be made Wireless enabled by using Apple Airport express or apple TV 3rd gen with Optical out. Airport express also has an audio out which can be used with your existing WIFI connection. Plus there are other hardware devices which can enable wireless on Amps. you can google for them
 
i would like to say to the op that the thought process is incorrect. just going by specs, bluetooth requirement and price is not going to give ideal results. you are playing russian roulette and making us fms guide you blindly.

if you are hell bent on playing such game then just toss a coin & hope for the best. sorry for sounding negative but had to say so. hope you end up with something that will give you years of pleasure - good luck!
 
In my experience WiFi is better than Bluetooth. Bluetooth requires line of sight. I use chromecast and it never drops any signal.But have had bad drop outs with Bluetooth. Keep that in mind.
 
I would suggest go for CA CX-a80 or the CX-a60 which is as per many sounds more musical. But at the end its you who has to listen to it.. No amount of people bickering to buy this and that and especially Quad Venas will help.... Audition and take a call
 
I am surprised no one talked about NAD D3020
For bookshelf size, it is a phenomenal amp and it has all connectivity possible
 
I have the Marantz PM 8000, which I can give away for 40000. Never listed it, because I absolutely love it. Brilliant amp. It has been repaired though. One IC was replaced.
 
Hello Fms,

Sadly, the hunt is still on :-(

Auditioned NAD C326BEE yesterday, was really good for the price point, heard it with PSB Imagine B. However, the bass sounded a bit muddy.

Have to let it go due to lack of connectivity option/inbuilt DAC.

And then the amp was changed to NAD C375BEE and wow, every detail was just amazing. The source was bluesound and the music in flac format. The Sad part, way out of my budget. :-(

Came across NAD C338 at the same store but was not available for audition.
Has anyone auditioned this amp? Would be great if anyone can share audition experience.

Also, can anyone also suggest, how is Cambridge Audio SR20 at the 38K price point?

Feedback and suggestion would be of a great help.
 
Hello Fms,



Sadly, the hunt is still on :-(



Auditioned NAD C326BEE yesterday, was really good for the price point, heard it with PSB Imagine B. However, the bass sounded a bit muddy.



Have to let it go due to lack of connectivity option/inbuilt DAC.



And then the amp was changed to NAD C375BEE and wow, every detail was just amazing. The source was bluesound and the music in flac format. The Sad part, way out of my budget. :-(



Came across NAD C338 at the same store but was not available for audition.

Has anyone auditioned this amp? Would be great if anyone can share audition experience.



Also, can anyone also suggest, how is Cambridge Audio SR20 at the 38K price point?



Feedback and suggestion would be of a great help.



+1 for NAD C375 its an amazing amp, especially if you like the warmer Nad signature sound. I haven't heard SR20 but Cambridge Audio tends to sound neutral. Cambridge Audio CXA 60 etc have a more pleasant sound signature with a good quality inbuilt DAC. Audition is the best option.

Actually, I'd suggest you to not to bother about Digital inputs, the in built DAC are mostly below par when compared to dedicated DACs. Add a Chinese Smsl or Schiit Modi Multibit DAC later when budget permits, instead of relying heavily on inbuilt DAC.

The creek evolution in classifieds section should be a good deal for your requirements.
 
Hello Fms,

Sadly, the hunt is still on :-(

Auditioned NAD C326BEE yesterday, was really good for the price point, heard it with PSB Imagine B. However, the bass sounded a bit muddy.

Have to let it go due to lack of connectivity option/inbuilt DAC.

And then the amp was changed to NAD C375BEE and wow, every detail was just amazing. The source was bluesound and the music in flac format. The Sad part, way out of my budget. :-(

Came across NAD C338 at the same store but was not available for audition.
Has anyone auditioned this amp? Would be great if anyone can share audition experience.

Also, can anyone also suggest, how is Cambridge Audio SR20 at the 38K price point?

Feedback and suggestion would be of a great help.

paired with right amp the imagine b speakers can sound very good. key is amp synergy. by the way what speakers is the amp searching going to be paired with?
 
paired with right amp the imagine b speakers can sound very good. key is amp synergy. by the way what speakers is the amp searching going to be paired with?


Hello JayaRaa,

I am planning to pair the new amp with Dali Zensor 3.

Came across NAD C338 which has all the possible connection options including built-in google chromecast. However, was not able to audition it.

Rated at 50 WPC, my only worry is that will this be enough to drive Z3.

I am yet to audition CA CXA60 in the upcoming weekend but won't be able to benchmark this against NAD C338.

Not many reviews were found in the forum for C338 and hence the dilemma.

Please advise.
 
would suggest to select amp based on synergy with speakers than connection options. most do not even use all options provided 99% of the time. if you will be using only 1 source then better to focus on that then what options/connectivity provided with amp. what will be your primary source?
 
Hello All,

Sadly, the hunt is still on.

Re-visited and re-auditioned NAD C326BEE a week back, this time carried my own speakers(Dali Z3). The overall experience was much better, so much so that I am actually considering this amp.

Along with the amp, am also planning to get CA DACMAGIC 100 DAC.

Have few concerns:-

- I am choosing this setup over CA CXA60, would it make sense to take this route? I am getting the NAD C326 and CA DACMAGIC both under 40K here in Belgium.
- Can I add google chromecast to the amp to make it wireless enabled? Dealer claims it cant be. But I doubt his conviction. Kindly advice.
- The front panel has MP3 input, can a smartphone be connected to this input? (An amateur question :))
- Would adding a DAC to this amp solve for the digital inputs like USB, COAX and optical? How is CA DACMAGIC 100 as a DAC? Feedback much appreciated.
- Can a Bluetooth dongle be added to optical/coax through DAC to this amplifier?

Kindly advice and pull me out of this dilemma.
 
Hello All,

Sadly, the hunt is still on.

Re-visited and re-auditioned NAD C326BEE a week back, this time carried my own speakers(Dali Z3). The overall experience was much better, so much so that I am actually considering this amp.

Along with the amp, am also planning to get CA DACMAGIC 100 DAC.

Have few concerns:-

- I am choosing this setup over CA CXA60, would it make sense to take this route? I am getting the NAD C326 and CA DACMAGIC both under 40K here in Belgium.
- Can I add google chromecast to the amp to make it wireless enabled? Dealer claims it cant be. But I doubt his conviction. Kindly advice.
- The front panel has MP3 input, can a smartphone be connected to this input? (An amateur question :))
- Would adding a DAC to this amp solve for the digital inputs like USB, COAX and optical? How is CA DACMAGIC 100 as a DAC? Feedback much appreciated.
- Can a Bluetooth dongle be added to optical/coax through DAC to this amplifier?

Kindly advice and pull me out of this dilemma.

There is Chromecast Audio
https://www.google.com/chromecast/audio/
which does exactly what you're looking for

Bluetooth receivers are plenty, but might result in drop in quality



Sent from my STV100-3 using Tapatalk
 
Thanks Grunthos.

Any view of Dali Z3 and NAC C326BEE synergy and CA DACMAGIC 100?

Also, could anyone please guide me as to how to add google chromecast to C326BEE?

Help and suggestions much appreciated.
 
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