Please help choose Sonodyne SIA 320 or Yamaha A-S500

arvind.kanswal

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Aug 30, 2013
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Rishikesh, Uttarakhand
Hi,

This is my first post on HFV, although I have been reading discussions for a while and gained a lot from them. First of all, my apologies for the longish post.
Until now, I have been using an integrated amplifier of an indigenous brand (Birco, 65 W per channel) matched with a pair of 3-way towers of the same brand (80 W, 4 ohm), which worked well for more than 8 years. I use the laptop to stream the music to the amp. Now since the amplifier is dying, I wish to upgrade to something that would improve my listening experience. I would like to do so in parts. So the amplifier first. I will upgrade the speakers in around a year. I have shortlisted Sonodyne SIA 320 and Yamaha A-S500, although the latter will stretch my budget considerably. Initially, I had a budget of around INR 20K, but I could not find options except Sonodyne in this range. Later I may go for towers such as Sonus 2605 and an affordable but practical USB DAC. Please advise if the extra bucks for the Yamaha are worth it or the Sonodyne will serve the purpose well. I love the sound with confident lows and not very shrill highs, in order to avoid listening fatigue. Also, will these two amps be able run my current 4 ohm towers comfortably, as I intend to keep them for another year? Many thanks.
Best regards,
Arvind
 
Welcome to HFV Arvind. I had recently auditioned the Sia 320 amp with Sonus 2605, the sound signature was on the brighter side, you have mentioned that you dont like shrill highs, i assume this combo may not be of your liking.

Of course a lot also depends on the source one uses to stream music (cdp/bdp/TT etc). If your current FS is warm sounding then you can audition it with Sia 320 or 310. I guess Sia 310 should be enough given the speaker specs you have mentioned as 310 pumps in 55w @ 8 ohms and 70 w @ 4 ohms. Speakers should be safe if you get exicted and pump up the volume occasionally.
 
Hi Prakash and Sunil, thanks for your suggestions.
Prakash, Technically, I am not sure about the nature of my current speakers. They deliver authoritative bass (so much that I can feel it more than hear it. :)), but the highs are also strong, which need to be toned down by suppressing the HF. Anyway, I will upgrade the speakers in a year or so. So Sonodyne can still be a possible choice, provided I am able to find warm-sounding floorstanders for it within a budget of around 30K.
Sunil, any idea whether Norge is available in Delhi for auditioning? Also, I noticed that Norge does not have a remote as a standard but as an add-on. Is it still the case?
Thanks.
Best regards,
Arvind
 
The Sonodyne Sia 320 is advertised as 80 watt per channel, but I find them weaker than that. The amplifier itself is balanced, they hit the low end quite nicely, the midrange is also nicely defined, at least to me. I certainly feel though that it does not do justice to the 80 watt rating. Even then with quality efficient floor standers Sia 320 will not let you down.
I have heard the Yamaha as well, very good amplifier with lots of power, but twice the price of Sonodyne.
 
Hi Prakash, Sunil, and Shibashis, finally I bought the Yamaha A-S500. When I ran it for the first time, it seemed a bit underpowered for the towers, but there is vast improvement after it has run for about cumulative 8 hours. And believe me, it's not a placebo effect, since I have the old amp for comparison. As discussed in several several forums, the amp appears to be on the brighter side, yet is very pleasant to listen to. I understand that currently the weakest links in the chain are the speakers, cables, USB DAC, etc., which I will upgrade in about a year, but the amp has made the cheap speakers (just 3K a pair) sound very good. Over the time, I will keep a close eye on discussions on speakers, so that by the next year, I am well equipped to make a reasonable choice.
Thank you very much for your insights and also thanks to fellow FMs whose discussion are highly enriching.
Best regards,
Arvind
 
Last edited:
Congrats Arvind!!!!!! Glad to know that you are enjoying your current setup.
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