Name Your top 5 Amplifier Companies
 

Douglas had a great idea to start a thread for top 5 speaker companies so I feel inspired to start one for amplifiers. Here are my top 5:

1) Burmester - Nothing else comes even close. The only brand that has me wanting to upgrade from McIntosh and that is really saying something.

2) McIntosh - Most beautiful amps ever made especially in a dark room. Very warm sounding and has stood the test of time.

3) Moon by Simaudio - I only recommend their evolution series. It sounds incredible in every system I have heard it in. Excellent drive. Custom gold finish available.

4) Bel Canto - One of the best sounding amps I heard at RMAF. Affordably priced. Very much underrated.

5) Accuphase - The most reliable amp that money can buy. Great for classical music.

In no special order:

1) Burmester

2) Esoteric

3) Bryston

4) Accuphase

5) McIntosh

1 - Pass
2 - VTL
3 - Ayre
4 - Audio Research
5 - Conrad Johnson

1 - McIntosh
2 - MBL
3 - Audio Research
4 - Conrad Johnson
5 - Wyred 4 Sound

1. Lamm
2. D'Agostino Audio
3. Ayre
4. BAT
5. McIntosh
6. Shindo
7. VTL

Couldn't do only 5... :D

1. Accuphase (I can stop there). Just amazing (not denigrating any others, but every accuphase I've heard has just been right, and I haven't ever heard of any maintenance issues with them).

Yong - Interesting that you named Pass Labs. I do like those amps :D

In no particular order....

Audio Research
Pass Labs
Soulution
Lamm
Dartzeel

Your system is one of the most beautiful sounding hi-fi combos I've heard. Reviews and regard by Stereophile and AbsoluteSound seem to be unqualified endorsements of Pass amps.

1. Audio Research
2. Pass Labs
3. Soulution
4. McIntosh
5. Ayre Acoustics


Sidebar......I miss the days when Krell would be on this list! :tears:

- Buck

With permission to take the liberty to specify six top tube and solid state amps:

Tube
1. Audio Note Kondo
2. VAC
3. Audio Research

Solid State
1. Soulution
2. Dartzeel
3. Constellation

1) Burmester
2) Soulution
3) Accuphase
4) Esoteric
5) Constellation

1) Accuphase
2) Mark Levinson (vintage)
3) Soulution
4) Spectral
5) Pass Labs
6) Devialet

In no order:

1. Boulder
2. D'Agostino
3. Audio Research.
4. Constellation
5. Bryston

Have never heard them but always wondered about how the Vitus Audio amps sound.

Has the quality of Krell gone downhill?

Krell was prominent when Dan D'Agostino was their lead engineer. Their glory days were in the 90s. As we know, he has his own company which bears his name. I heard his latest gear a few months ago. Nice stuff.

In no specific order:

Solid State:
Burmester
Gryphon
Mcintosh
Bryston
Pass

Tube:
Audio Research
Shindo
Mcintosh
Unison
VAC

In no order:

D'Agostino
Soulution
Boulder
Constellation
TAD

1. Pass Labs
2. Audio Research
3. EAR
4. Constellation
5. Boulder

Burmester!

Burmester
Viola Labs
Karan Acoustics
Pass Labs
Audionet

Cheers

Sujay

Based on some lukewarm reviews and other tidbits I've read, they seem now like just another high end company making amplifiers. I personally think their cosmetics look rather cheap and not befitting equipment of that price. I used to salivate over owning something in the KSA series and then the FPB series. Those were some truly impressive amplifiers and could drive anything. Two of my favorites were the Krell Audio Standards and the FPB 350s. Just awesome.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YtWcG9C14c.../kaskrellk.jpg

http://img.canuckaudiomart.com/uploa...considered.jpg

My top five amplifiers in no particular order:

> McIntosh MC2301 mono power amplifier

> VAC Statement 450 mono power amplifier

> McIntosh MC1.2KW mono power amplifier

> Mark Levinson No.536 mono power amplifier

> Leben CS-600 integrated amplifier

Boulder
http://blog.ultimateavmag.com/images/3050-Main_0.jpg

Pass
http://audiofederation.com/ces-2012/...amps-small.jpg

D'Agostino
http://www.stereophile.com/images/01...ostino-600.jpg

Ayre
http://artcrew.sakura.ne.jp/sblo_fil...20MX-R2001.jpg

Bryston
http://d1c51ih66j7l74.cloudfront.net...ir_800x600.jpg

Audio Research
Nagra
Ayre
Burmester
EAR

Only McIntosh

1. MBL (ref series)
2. SIM (Moon)
3. Ayre
4. Lamm
5. Accuphase ( New entry, Class A )

**Deletetion from no1 {(Pass lab .8) Sorry no idea about XS series, Missed the .5 series}
***MBL 9008A mono with 5011 pre are in action in my rig, recently upgraded from 9007 mono and Marklevension No326S.
****Marklevension, you took it too long to lunch a new good power amp, they should enter with a Class A instead of Class AB. you will be Missed, SAD.

Audio Research for preamps
McIntosh, Boulder for power
Emotiva, Parasound and Dynaco variants for affordability
that last is my neighborhood
don't get around much anymore, meaning...
there is a lot I haven't heard

In no specific order. These are the best of what I have heard.

1. McIntosh
2. Audio Research
3. Boulder
4. D'Agostino
5. Bryston (the 28B SST2 in particular)
6. Special mention to the Bel Canto Black. Amazing amplification system.

I am sure companies such as Soulution, Constellation, Tenor, Karan, Gryphon, etc. are amazing, but I have not had the ability the hear them yet.

So, here are the standings so far (as of post #30). No specific order if votes are tied.

1. McIntosh: 11
2. Audio Research: 11
3. Pass: 8
4. Burmester: 7
5. Accuphase: 6
6. Soulution: 6
7. Ayre: 6
8. Boulder: 6
9. Constellation: 5
10. D'Agostino: 5
11. Bryston: 5
12. Lamm: 3
13. VAC: 3
14. Simaudio Moon: 2
15. Esoteric: 2
16. VTL: 2
17. Conrad-Johnson: 2
18. MBL: 2
19. Shindo: 2
20. darTZeel: 2
21. Mark Levinson: 2
22. EAR: 2
23. Bel Canto: 2
24. One vote each for AudioNet, Wyred 4 Sound, Karan, BAT, Audio Note, Spectral, Devialet, Gryphon, Unison, TAD, Viola, Leben, and Nagra.
25. Affordability distinction: Parasound, Emotiva, Dynaco

Man, I should have participated in these (amp and speaker threads both). Maybe they should have been done using the polling feature?

Please do! This is just a temporary tally, and by no means the end! :yes:

Halgorythme: my amps now, not expensive, and they clearly beat my former Burmester amps in a side by side comparison
Kondo: pure Japanese art
T+A: impressively built, very good sounding; price/quality ratio excellent
Accuphase: the whole range is magnificent
Burmester: still outstanding.

Pass Labs
Plinius
ARC
Parasound - value leader in SS (IMO)
Rouge Audio - value leader in tube (IMO)

Please feel free to participate! I am thrilled by how successful this thread has been. I didn't use a polling feature simply because of the huge diversity of brands out there. Plus, I would have never even thought to put a brand like Ayre on the list. I hadn't the slightest clue it was so popular! This has been a learning experience for me.

Thanks for doing the math for me. I was hoping someone else would take the initiative...lol. I'm surprised Audio Research is tied for 1st place. Personally, their amps don't do it for me. Soulution has me really intrigued. I only started reading about them recently and have added them to my list of amps I need to demo. I forgot about VTL when I picked my 5. They are fantastic sounding! I am surprised by the popularity of Bryston. If Ivan thinks so highly of them then they must be truly special. I have a local Bryston dealer but they don't carry demos of Bryson amps even though I have asked in the past. How they are allowed to stay a dealer is beyond me...

No particular order:

Burmester
McIntosh
TAD
Accuphase
Bryston
Esoteric

That's should make TWO votes for Kondo! Way to go Bart! :)

1-Mcintosh
2-Acoustic Arts
3-Unison Research
4-Naim
5-Jungson

Carlos, I was surprised you didn't put Absolare amps in your list.