SaabKen

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
3.33 of 5, 3.00 votes

Price Paid:  $850.00 from Local Roksan retaile

Summary:
After 5 years with a Nakamichi AV-2S HT surround receiver, I decided to go pure 2-ch and get a mid-fi/entry hi-fi amp to complement a new pair of Totem Arros. A 5-star rating from What Hi-Fi ? prompted me to seek out the KA-1 for a listen. I also listended to various Creek, Arcam, Cambridge Audio, Rega, Linn (used), Rotel and NAD before deciding the Roksan was the best sounding amp around $1500 Cdn., not to mention its build quality. The clincher came when the local retailer was clearing out its floor models of Roksan gear and offered it to me for Cdn$850, a large reduction from regular retail price. With about 300 hrs use, the amp is npw starting to reveal just about everything that's on a CD with warmth, openness and alacrity, not to mention awesome soundstaging. Especially fantastic with vocals like Diana Krall and Norah Jones, but with all types of music I put it through the KA-1 treats them with accuracy and neutrality. A very good compromise between the laid-backness of Arcam, Creek and Rega and the disco punchiness character of NAD. A most listenable and neutral amp for the entire segment at this MSRP.

Strengths:
Accuracy, neutrality, warmth, dynamics and soundstaging.

Weaknesses:
LED colors for "stand-by" (green) and "on" (red) are counter-intuitive. Front "mode" button should be labeled "on/stand-by". Easy to accidentally go into 1/2 mute using the front power button

Similar Products Used:
Listened to: Creek 4330 Arcam DiVA A Rega Brio & Mira Linn Majik (used) Cambridge Audio A500 Rotel RA-02 NAD C320BEE, C370

Price Paid:  $775.00 from Audiogon.com - priva

Summary:
I bought this Kandy integrated amp and the Kandy CD player all for $775 through an audiogon.com private seller. The equipment looks and runs like new. The build quality on these products is first rate. The amp is over 30 lbs, and the cd player close to that too. I have the Roksan geared mated to a a pair of Energy C-3 speakers on 24" stands. I use Monster Z-1 cable and PG 800 series ICs. This is a great little 2 channel music system for $1050. Hard to beat it at all, and it looks great too. Great, clean sound, drives most speakers with ease, and my C-3s are very easy to drive. This is not a bright sounding amp, but it is revealing, so if you have a crappy recording, it will probably reveal that too. No tones controls or balance, which I thought at first I would miss, now I am glad it doesn't have it - keep it simple stupid. Remote works fine with both gear, and I know I can resell it if I want in a year or two and get at least $500+ which makes this a real bargain. Highly recommended.

Similar Products Used:
I looked at the NAD C-350, 370, got more from Roksan, especially used. Also considered Cambridge Audio, but I liked the look, feel and sound of the Roksan better. Arcam, Creek and Musical Fidelity wou

Price Paid:  $700.00 from Responseaudio.com

Summary:
The Kandy MKIII is an upgraded version of the Roksan integrated amplifier. It seems to run around $1000 in the US, but availability isn't good. After reading a number of reviews, it was on my short list of auditions--but fell off because it was impossible to locate locally for comparison. In the market for equipment in the $1000 to $1500 range, I auditioned a number of products from Arcam, Creek, Musical Fidelity, etc. If money were not a consideration it would have been the MF A3.2 integrated--very impressive in a set up similar to mine. But $1500 was at the max end of the budget and I wasn't quite ready to spring. Found the Kandy on sale as a year-end close-out demo item and decided to impulse buy. In a word, wow. I was prepared to part company quickly if the Kandy disappointed, I plan now to keep it a good while. My listening room measures 20'x14'x8' and is if anything a little on the bright side acoustically. The Kandy drives a pair of Dynaudio Audience 70's and provides a line out to feed a Paradigm powered 12" subwoofer. CD is a Sony 7ES. Cabling is Monster with Monster MkIV interconnects. The Kandy replaced an old Sony 5.1 8ES that was bought used because it was cheap and delivers 120wpc into a 4Ohm load--enough to easily feed the Dynaudios. Not that great a sound, but an acceptable interim solution. I've never had separate pre/power units, but have consistently found integrated stero amps to be far superior, for music, to stereo or ht recievers. After being on and frequently in use for about a month, the Kandy treats all kinds of music very well. I mostly listen to classical, older rock, blues...big and small ensembles, and the improvements in imaging, timing, reproduction of instrumental and vocal timbre are extremely fine for an amp in this price range. The Kandy's performance has steadily improved and really started to shine after about 180-200 hours, when a slightly too aggressive high end lost its occasionaly harsh edge. The specs are impressive, check the owner's manual on the company web-site. I am especially intrigued by its claimed bandwidth ( 100kh) and the robust 220 wpc bcd into 4Ohms. Anyway, this is the upgraded MKIII and it seems to be very nice indeed, so do give one a listen if shopping for an integrated in the $1000 range.

Strengths:
For the buck, outstanding musical performance in most or all critical areas--great sense of openness, timing, and presence.

Weaknesses:
That remote really does look tacky, but it works. There's not much for it to do either, you get no tone controls with the Kandy, not even a balance knob. I consider this a virtue, others may think otherwise.

Similar Products Used:
Sony, Sanyo, Technics, Allied, Heathkit

Price Paid:  $950.00 from Klangpunkt Aken

Summary:
I was looking for a new amp about 1000€ for my Dynaudio contour 1.3 mk2. Also I was listening to Nad c370,Marantz pm8000 and 8200 and Arcam a75 with Contour 1.3.It was the best amp I ever had heard for this price (950€). It even can be conpared with more expencive amps. It reminded me of the Densen B100 amp, witch was sold about 10 years ago.

Strengths:
Very pleasing sound, sweet treble with good extension, bass is fast and tight, realistic and open sound.

Weaknesses:
cheap remote

Similar Products Used:
Densen B100

Price Paid:  $1000.00 from Hobo Hifi

Summary:
Before buying i was listening to Nad 370 Marantz pm 8000 Harman Kardon Hk670 Arcam Diva 85 and last but not least the Kandy ka-1. During test listening it was very clear that the Kandy ka-1 was the more musical amp. Offcourse the golden 5 * in What HiFi did decide me to listening to the Kandy, must admid that during test listening the bass sound off the Kandy was dry, like they wrote in What HiFi in Febr, 2002. Total sound was what i like the most with the kandy Ka-1. First thing what i did when buying the Kandy was Also buying The Mainsstream kabel from van den Hull 199 euro. My serienr. is 2038 and after 1 week i can say TOTALY no dry bass at all and more powerfullbass like i read from the test off the VD Hull Mainsstream kabel the amp is 24 ours on the first month, every day the sound is improvement, and offcourse much better when demostrating in shop, it's allready so fine sound now musik is comming off the speaker Keff Q 7 the Mainsstream brings more then i hoped for!! It is high End sound now allready, and it is going tobe better after 2 or 3 weeks, it is allready unbelieveble!! Removing the fuse after 1 month will bring even more improvement, alway's weak point off every!! AMP!!

Strengths:
Very musical sound also powerfull detail open rich dept everything is there!!Also very controle sound!! Absolutly the best buy for round 1000 euro!!

Weaknesses:
remote is reasenble

Similar Products Used:
Sfhinx pre and power amp Dutch made