Hi all. I will be purchasing an integrated amp to go with my Klipsch RF-35 floorstanding speakers, and I would like to hear some of the members' feedback/thoughts on the units I am considering. The unit and speakers will only be used for listening to music, no HT. The room is my family room with a size of about 25x20. I listen to classic rock, blues and a little bit of jazz/easy listening.
The Klipsch are very efficient with a bright high end, so an amp with a soft high end would be a good compliment. The units I am considering are as follows:
I have listened to all 3 units. Unfortunately I could not do any side by side comparisons as no single retailer carried more than 1 of the brands. So, please fire away with your thoughts, impressions, likes, dislikes etc. Thanks in advance!
They're all good amps in their price bracket Frank. You really need to make the choice based on the sound you prefer as all three will make different music with your Klipsch. One isn't "better" than the other two, it really comes down to which you prefer the sound of. Also, when people prefer certain amps, it is how they sound in their system - they might prefer another amp in YOUR system so recommendations in this category are a bit worthless in my opinion. I'd say go for the Nad but that isn't because it's better than the other two, I purely prefer the Nad sound in the context of my own system. The Nad does have a slightly rolled-off treble so would perhaps complement your speakers best but also the Arcam is a "warm" amp too so the same applies. The Rotel will possibly be best for rock music. Again, they all have strengths and it boils down to individual preference.
I listened to several NAD amps and ended up going with a vintage Sansui integrated amp instead. I couldn'd be happier: lots of clean, uncolored sound, plenty of headroom, great preamp for my turntable, and several hundred dollars cheaper than any of the newer models. My set up is also just for music.