Excellent power. Reproduces eaxctly what it should. Value.

None

Killer amp. Soundstage, imaging etc. are all excellent on my Martin Logan Requests. Sound can be very detailed and the image a little "sterile" to some, especially LP listeners. However I enjoy it , and am hearing stuff that previously went un-noticed.
The speakers are newer than the amp, so some of the imaging lies there. Also, I have a Parasound pre (AVC2500) that probably does not "warm stuff up" much.
However MLs can hit anywhere from 4 ohms down to 1.8, and the Bryston handles it all with ease.
And heck-what a warranty!
If your not after Mark Levinson- go get one!

Similar Products Used:

MAC 7100, Adcom,

Taut deep bass. Rich Midrange. Extended and unfatiguing highs. Open and easy to listen to.

Not the most holographic and depth of stage could be better.

You don't know what you've got till its gone. I just sold my Bryston 4B-ST because I am moving to a low wattage tube set up and Silverline Sonatinas. In the interim(my tube amp is now being built) I substituted the Adcom 545.

When I first bought the Bryston, I had a completely different set up. I had a passive preamp, a Rotel CD Player, Kimber 4TC Speaker Cable and AudioQuest Quartz interconnects and Spica Angelus speakers. Inserting the Bryston for the Adcom wrought some improvements but it was not that noticable.

Over the last year, I changed the Rotel CD player to a Pioneer 606 DVD transport feeding an MSB Link DAC via a Harmonic Technology Cyberlink Copper. I upgraded the AQ Quartz to the HT Truthlink from MSB to passive pre and AQ Quartz to JPS Superconductor from Pre to AMP. The stock belden cord went out and in went a APEX power cord for the Bryston. Out went the Kimber 4TC and in went the TG Audio Silver speaker cable. Lastly, the Spicas were replaced with the Soliloquy 5.3s. Each time a change was made, the Bryston just let it on through. Each time, more detail, a better harmonic balance and more extension came through. Replacing the Adcom 545 back into this system was a revelation. The Adcom collapsed the soundstage, lost detail, lost bass drive, got the harmonics wrong(i.e. too much string and not enough body on acoustic guitar). You'd think the Adcom was broken. Not that the Adcom is a bad amp. It's just that under the new system, the magic that was the Bryston was clearly gone and the system is now silent awaiting the 15 watt tube amp.

So... what am I trying to say here? If you didn't get my feelings on what a great amp the Bryston is... well it is. Every upgrade and tweak that I made to the system showed me it was the system and not the Bryston that was wanting.

Now, before you write this off as another rave, this amp does have some shortcomings. Namely, the soundstage is not as deep or holographic as the Art Audio Diavolo or Jota tube amps(on suitable speakers). They don't the get the harmonics as right either. However, since the Art Audio stuff is 13 watts and 20 watts repsectively, those amps wont drive the Aeriel 10Ts but the Bryston can and will with ease. In the end, I decided to change my methodology and bought the Silverline Sonatinas and the AES Super 25 amp(15 watts) with oil coupling caps. I think that this combo will beat my old system (fingers crossed)in almost every regard but bass... but I will surely miss the Bryston till then.

Similar Products Used:

Adcom GFA-545 McCormack DNA 0.5 Dlx

See my review submitted 5/6/2000

See my review submitted 5/6/200

This is a follow-up commmentary to my earlier review, since I have now been using my 4B-ST on a continuous basis for almost 2 months. In my first review, I commented that there was a degree of "whiteness" in the upper mid-range, and I thought the soundstage sounded a bit foreshortened. Almost all of those two "negative" qualities have disappeared, although the soundstage does not have quite the depth of the best amplifiers I have heard (such as Ayre, Levinson, etc.) I will second the comments made here that the strength and weakness of this amp is that it amplifies whatever goes into it with essential accuracy. If you don't like what you are hearing, it isn't the fault of the 4B-ST.
I have made one interesting discovery: the quality of the electric power can make a decided difference. Shortly after I bought the 4B-ST, I purchased a Monster Power HTS3500 power conditioner, assuming it would add only positive qualities. It turned out to be a mixed bag. I like what the HTS3500 did for the video quality of my home theater system, and I like the reduction in "noise", but I do NOT care for the edge/sharpness added to the higher audio frequencies. My wife has particularly noted that some recordings she really likes now sound harsh and unpleasant to her. So, I am replacing the HTS3500 with the HTS2000 (which got excellent reviews in TAS), and I will provide further comments. The real strengths of the 4B-ST amp become more apparent with time: great bass control, rich mid-range, good to excellent imaging and soundstage depth, and a clear, effortless quality. I have a combined audio/home theater system, and this amp has proven to be a superb choice. I failed to mention my speaker system in my first review: Vandersteen 3A's main speakers, Vandersteen VCC-1 center channel, and B&W rear surrounds. If the AudioReview rating system allowed for tenths of points, I would rate the 4B-ST a 4.5 for both quality and value.

Similar Products Used:

See my review submitted 5/6/2000

Sound, sound, sound !!!

NONE!!!

I agree with all that is written below. You cannot go wrong with this amplifier. It performs well will all types of music, and can drive any speaker well, even the most demanding loads without even blinking. Well done Bryston.

Overall sound impression: Excellent bass, accurate sound reproduction, timral accuracy, wide soundstage

Openness, bass control, detail, power

Rather forward, aggressive presentation

I am rather amazed with the number of 4BST's available on the used market (for prices ranging from 1500.00 to 1950.00). I suspect the reason for this is that people buy this amp based on the good press (most notably in Stereophile), then find it's not at all the sound they were looking for. It is a very accurate amp. It has a forward presentation and can be pretty relentless with cymbals, horns, etc. I found the presentation tiring--this was using an MSB Link DAC and a Bryston B60 as a pre-amp. The MSB DAC itself has a rather forward presentation, and in combination with the 4BST I found myself being bombarded with music rather than being able to listen into it. With my NAD 533 turntable, the presentation was less forward, but high frequencies were rather hard to take. I decided my money would be better spent on smoothing out my front end before adding more power. Frankly, the B60 has plenty for my Meadowlark Kestrel speakers. Anyway, I bought the Bryston used, sold it for the same price and reinvested (some of it) in a Birdland Audio DAC, which is a fantastic piece of equipment. The 4BST is certainly a great product, but it can be the wrong choice for some systems and some listeners.

Terrific, deep, fast bass; amazing mids and highs

None

I used to scoff at the notion that amps of similar power could actually sound different, the Bryston proved me wrong. I did a three way comparison using my Denon 5700 alone, as a preamp with a Hafler 500 and as a preamp with the 4B-ST. The speakers are Energy C-8 with no added subwoofer (it was turned off). I bought my amp used so it's already broken in.
The 4B-ST "woke up" my music (Panasonic RP-91 DVD player - highly recommended).
Most of my listening for these tests consisted of Loreena McKennitt: " The Book of Secrets"
Track 1: "Prologue" I heard a heavy bass note I had not heard before, clearly and distinctly. The bass was so pronounced I got up and made sure the subwoofer was actually OFF. The whole track was alive.
Track 2: "The Mummer's Dance" - my favorite, I noticed something very startling I couldn't expect- the vocals were also clear and distinct. I could understand words I hadn't been able to before.
Track 8: "Dante's Prayer" - this track is great for equipment testing, in fact it could be THE Test Disk! There are some very low frequency notes at the beginning that if anything in your room is not firmly planted down it will vibrate loudly. My Hafler breaks up on these notes, at the time I thought I had blown a speaker driver but it was the amp. The 4B-ST reproduces these notes perfectly and then goes on immediately to Loreena's soaring vocal high notes that bring tears to my eyes.

In fact the whole CD came alive with rich soaring notes that were apparently muddy and hidden before.

The 4B-ST is a wonderful addition to my system. I love it's forward sound and amazing detail

Similar Products Used:

Denon 5700, Hafler DH-500

One button only

1. Binding post, 2. bal/unbal switch at rear side.

Per user manual, factory not recommended to change the power cord. One day, the powercord of my Hotpot damaged by my dad. I have to drink hot water. Therefore, I put out the 4B stock cord serve the Hotpot. Afterthat, I replaced a Harmonic tech 11ac instead. Something positive changed, I found that Powercord can change the performance of 4B not as manual said. War of Power cord began, XLO ref2 10AC, Mini Lab, Acoustic Zen Tsunami, Zu Birth, G-Clef, C-Clef, at the end, JPS Power AC winned. It makes 4B become a 5 stars product. Before, JPS AC arrived, I dont want to post my comment at here, because its still not reach 5 stars for its value.

Powerful, Neutral, detail, transparent, built quality and of course the unbeatable 20 years warranty.

can reveal bad recording.

I only have this Amp for a few day and already love it. I currently have it playing music 24/7 for the past few day to have it broken in since I read below that it takes a long time to break in. It already sounds sweet the first day and now even better. For the price, service from Bryston and warranty, It's very hard to beat. It sound better than all listed above except the W5 which is better to me and of course retail at $4800; However the W5 just does not justify the 3x the price of the Bryston. Together with my system, Oh boy I'm in audio/hometheater heaven. Highly recommend the Bryston.

Associated equipments:
Bryston 4BST for L/R channels.
Sherbourn 5/1500 for center, 2 side surrounds and 2 back surrounds.
Lexicon MC1 music and cinema controller.
Sony 9000ES progressive scan DVD/SACD player.
Mitsubishi S-VHS.
Dolby Digital RCA DirectTV
Infocus LP350 DLP projector with a 10 feet Dalite 1.3 gain screen.
Mirage OM6 and OMC2 for the entire front.
Paradigm ADP370 for sides.
Paradigm Monitor5.v2 for backs.
Paradigm X30 crossover.
2 Klipsh KSW12 power Subs connected along with the 2 side speakers.
Hsu TN1220 sub + 500W amp for LFE.
Monster HTS2000 conditioner.
All Tara Labs Prism interconnect with DHLab Silver Sonic speaker cables.

Similar Products Used:

Sherbourn 5/1500, listenned to Krell 250, Proceed HPA2, Rotel 1090, Sunfire, Classe' 201, SimAudio W5.

Lots of power, deep tight base

None at this time

I just received my 4B ST a couple of days ago, it should have been sooner but UPS sort of forgot to transfer it from one of their hubs so it missed the plane for a few days.
When I first hooked up the amp it seemed a little bright.
A couple of days after receiving the 4B, the Bryston BP25 pre-amp showed up at my door. How can two packages with the same shipping date and time show up a couple of days of each other. Thanks UPS! The brightness dissapeared. The sound opened up, dynamic, airy, tight base and vocals are excellent.
At this price range this is the best bang for your buck (IMHO).
The service I received at the Audio Centre was excellent.
Thanks to John Mossop
If you are considering buying Bryston products, give John a call. I'm sure he will help you out.
In no way am I associated with Audio Centre, just a satisfied customer.

I won't use fancy audiophile words to dazzle anyone here. I am very satisfied with the purchase of the 4BST. I compared this amp to several of Krell's amps and there does not seem to be any difference. However, it does sound much better ("cleaner" for lack of a better audiophile term) than many others at a simiar price range. There is no trace of harshness as described by a previous reviewer (equipment associated?). My audiophile friends brought their amps over for side-by-side comparisons and they have all been thoroughly impressed.

Equipment:
Amp: Bryston 4BST ($2500)
Pre Amp: B&K Components PT3 ($600 - Very clean sound)
Speakers: Joseph Audio RM22si ($2600 - Very highly recommended!! Everyone who listened wants to get one.)
Interconnects: Monster 550
Cable: XLO $10/ft with some sort of twist construction