Dynamic, Neutral, High Performance/Price ratio

the soundstage is a bit narrow, but i think my speakers have some contribution to the soundstage too

Very smooth and detail mid-range sound, Combined with my 90db KEF RDM2 and Cary 303/100 CD player, it provides a fast, accurate and neutral sound, the dynamic range is good too. I find myself listen to classical music more often than before, and the pop songs have excellent performance.

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Bada Pearl 10a

Pace, almost tube-like, not harsh

I agree with a previous poster that the remote is a little tricky to use

I picked up the AR Complete amplifier and CD player at a price I couldn''t refuse - I literally rushed down and grabbed them without a decent demo. They were 2 years old, and they were offered to me for US$700 (for both). 2 days later, and I am very pleased. Before this, I used the Marantz 6000 OSE and a Creek 4330 amplifier. The AR pair just blows them away (and it should, considering that they cost a fair bit more at current prices). The AR pair has great drive and body, and there is no harshness whatsoever. I am going to buy the Triangle Titus to replace my Monitor Audios, and I am sure it is going to be a great combination.

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Creek 4330 (great little amp)

Pace, almost tube-like, not harsh

I agree with a previous poster that the remote is a little tricky to use

I picked up the AR Complete amplifier and CD player at a price I couldn''t refuse - I literally rushed down and grabbed them without a decent demo. They were 2 years old, and they were offered to me for US$700 (for both). 2 days later, and I am very pleased. Before this, I used the Marantz 6000 OSE and a Creek 4330 amplifier. The AR pair just blows them away (and it should, considering that they cost a fair bit more at current prices). The AR pair has great drive and body, and there is no harshness whatsoever. I am going to buy the Triangle Titus to replace my Monitor Audios, and I am sure it is going to be a great combination.

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Creek 4330 (great little amp)

This Amp just gets better and better! Iv''e had it for 2yrs and after "burn in'' it souds great! Link DAC improved the componentry simbiosys too. I listens to mostly Rock like Graetfull Dead, Dier Straits but also Clasical like Orchestral Moody Blues. And this Amp

Presents the human voice in a very lifelike intimate way.Great highs , mid range and bottom end.Great rythm.

Remote feels expensive but is a little tricky.

This amp is smooth , detailed, powerful , rythmic ,exciting and never fatigueing.Having owned and auditioned dozens of amps over the years I have finally found an amp that is exciting from the very first track and continues to perform at this level for hours on end with all kinds of music with absolutely no weariness or fatigue being inflicted on the listener.It handles all kinds of music exceptionally well from classical to rock

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Naim, Arcam, Musical fidelity , Moon,Talk, Exposure, Creek.

Rich, full bodied sound, very 'musical', enough power at 50W

lack of headphone output, preamp/poweramp out/in, lack of phone stage, high freq extension or string detail

This is a very good value integrated amp. I have not used a tube amp but heard them at high end audio stores. This amp sounds pretty close to those amps. It is very 'musical'. The vocals are rendered really well. Has good soundstage (with the help of a MSB Link DAC and Hales Revelation 1 speakers).
Has a clean dark background (Monster power conditioner HTS2500 helps here). Also, I am using a computer 14 AWB power cable instead of the stock cable. This seems to 'ease' the sound.
Only thing I am lacking is the detail in string sounds which I have heard in more pricier setups. But for the money I have spent I am more than satisifed.
If you want a pure stereo setup or dont care for using this as part of a home theatre. I really suggest his amp. Acquits itself well with music like Loreena Mckennit, Sarah McLacghlan, classical and jazz and even Dire Straits, Eagles Pink Floyd. Bright/Bad recording will not annoy you on this amp.

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NAD 314 Integrated amp, Receivers

despite continued debate over the qualification of this
product for "hi-end" status, I am repeatedly amazed at this
amplifiers ability convey emotional drama. No it's not the
last word in resolution but realistically,this is a thousand dollar amp.There are several audiophile amps that
have received similar critique by the audio press. I recognize this amp for what it is.

highly reactive to cables /ancillary components,to me
its a tweakers wonderland

This amp suffers from economic determinism. It is what it is. It cannot compare to many costlier units, yet(speaking competatively) it gives most of them a good run for the money.Thats the point.Its an oustanding value in its class.
The Complete is not even a true integrated,there is no pre-amp section.What you have is a power-amp with a passive volume control and input switching.Very simple,very basic.
There is elegance in this simplicity.I can no longer tell
how burn-in has altered the sonics, I can only try and express my constant pleasure during listening sessions.
Two weeks ago we had a surprise party for my wife, it was
my job to detain her elsewhere while guests arrived at our
home.I placed my sister in-law in charge of the "stereo".
When my wife and I arrived I felt my heart race. The amp was "cranked" up louder than I'd ever dared to play it.
Thumping top-40 rap and R&B resonating at club levels.
My first inclination was to lower the volume,but I was pulled to the dance floor.All I could do was listen for catastrophic melt-down.That never happened.There was my Complete slamming the JMlabs with such authority...I couldnt get over it. My music library: Sade, Lead Zep,
The Duke, Meters, Beach Boys, Jay-z, Primus, Seal, etc. never played at these levels. I was not aware of this amps versitility until now.The CJ Premier 11 that I had back in '97 could not do what this amp was doing, And the Carver I had( 1990) would make your ears bleed.Not only was the Complete loud, it was clean.The music was a joyful noise.
Later that night I stayed up late by myself and listened
to Monks Dream,the Thelonious Monk Quartet. As my favorite cartoon character Kartman would say, " Sweeet!"

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McIntosh,ConradJ,BK,Carver,SAE,......

Sound, performance for price ratio

remote

(sorry if this got posted twice, kept receiving error messages)

Aloha,

This is truly a *great* amp, especially for the money. It's essentially under-priced YBA gear. I did lots of research before purchasing, being on a budget I was looking for something with a high performance to price ratio, and this fits the bill. There's not much more I can say about the sound that hasn't already been said, other than I agree, it sounds great. Brings the music to life, the highs are clear yet liquid and smoothe, yet not muted. Plenty of bass, though this could be due to the Ah! Tjeob which has bass to spare.

I've found it plays nearly all kinds of music well, including rock. I listen to a wide variety of music, rock (Grateful Dead, String Cheese Incident, Allmans etc), folk, jazz, string jazz (Grisman), classical, new age, african (Tuku, Mariam Makeba, Samite etc), blues (Taj Mahal), lots of live music, Indian (tabla), Native American, on and on, just no heavy metal harsh bang your head deafen the dog music, and have found the Complete to do well with everything I listen to. It is revealing, so a poorly mastered recording will sound, well, poor. Creates a nice holographic image. The unit really has great looks as well, looks classy and more expensive than it is. I'm quite satisfied.

The remote is ok but rather odd. It has rounded sides thus I drop it about once a day, just slips out of my hand like a piece of ice. But it's sturdy, so no damage so far. Folks w/Marantz or Ah! Tjeob CDP should know that there is some frequency cross-over. Meaning the Complete remote will also control functions on your Marantz CDP. But not always in the way that you would want. For instance, lowering the volume w/the remote on the Amp will also lower the volume on the Ah! Tjeob (modified Marantz) CDP. If you hit the "CD" button on the remote to access CDP controls, the CDP's tray will open. This happens with my Ah! Tjeob '99 and I've heard from a fellow with a Marantz CDP that has the same issue. This is just a peculiarity between AR and Marantz products. I just put a piece of tape over the sensor on the Tjeob as I mostly use a remote for volume control anyway. YMMV.

If you have no Audio Refinement dealer in your area, it pays to shop around. I was able to save a good bit off MSRP by comparison shopping. I settled on www.audiocompostions.com as they matched the best price I could find, answered my emails promptly and thoroughly, and were the only place I could find that offered a 2 week trial period. I've been completely satisfied with Deryl's service before and after the sale.

Also, the Audio Refinement distributor, Audio Plus Services, offers great customer service. They have a toll free line and answer emails promptly. My unit was drop-shipped directly from Audio Plus. Unfortunately it arrive w/some slight damage. A scratch on the face plate. It generally played well but had the peculiar habit of self muting once every couple of days. Obviously damaged in shipping. These things happen. Once this was brought to Audio Composition's and APS's attention a new unit was immediately sent out, no fuss. And the new unit is perfect. A company that is friendly and helpful before the sale is fine, but it's how they act after the sale that shows what they're worth. In that regard I'm 100% satisfied with the service I received from Audio Compositions and Audio Refinement. I would suggest that you request that your unit be shipped double boxed w/ a layer of peanuts between the inner and outer boxes.

I spent months researching amps on the internet before making this purchase. This is a highly regarded amp, one I find deserving of the praise. I'm very satisfied, for the price it's very hard to beat.

Gear:
Audio Refinement Complete Int
Ah! Tjeob '99 CDP
NHT SuperOnes (soon to be upgraded to probably Meadowlark Kestrels) Yamaha YST SW40 sub (also to be upgraded) HHB CDR850 CD Recorder
Yamaha TX 480 Tuner
DH Labs inter-connects.
Speaker cable also to be upgraded soon.

You owe it to yourself to give this unit an audition!

Other Complete owners please contact me with speaker suggestions in the $1200 or under range.

Peace, Love and Boogie,
John

Incredible quickness, excellent soundstaging, revealing midrange.

Almost no bass

First off I know the YBA Integre isn't a fair comparison but it seems that many reveiwers are comparing the two. Claiming that your getting two thirds of the sound for one tenth the price. Anyways, I have had the product for two months and have compared it with the YBA (in my system) relentlessly. As a reference I have
B&W CDM 1 SE Speakers
Rotel 951 CD Player
Kimber PBJ Interconnects
Kimber 4tc & 4vs Speaker cables (biwired)
Audio Refinement Complete

I must say that the Complete offers incredible sound for $1000. It has quick pacing and keeps up with whatever music you throw at it. It has a very revealing soundstage, keeping the instruments and vocals hovering right where they should be. It's almost holographic, giving you the sense of depth and ambience. Due to its quickness details are extracted for you to hear clear as day. The highs are also very nice, the have a sheen to the sound and are very extended, leaving all of the music information there for you to enjoy. Now, the weakness. What you sacrifice for the strengths above is the bass reproduction. It's tricky to say in words but the bass is there. You here the sound of bass but aren't offered the depth, weight, or realism of bass. Due to this the overall sound of the Complete is hollow or thin sounding. There is no weight to the quick sound. This prevents the Complete from giving the music the "it is there in front of you" sound. You know, complete realism. But for $1000, should I ask it to? Of course not!

Hears where the YBA makes the step up.

The YBA is rated at the same 50 watts per channel but offers one of the most realistic bass response I've heard with any product. This absolutely incredible sense of weight to the music is added. For the first time I actually felt like the music was in front of me. I don't mean the kind that comes from "If I close my eyes and sit with my head exactly in between the speakers and say yeah, that sounds like what a drum should sound like." I mean that the instruments where tonally precise. The vocals where uncanny. The soundstage was hologrphic. I no longer had to look for it in the music it freakin jumped out and told me what music should sound like. I could no longer find any significant flaws, I didn't question the sound. It was all right there for me to enjoy.

Anyways, I currently have the Complete and am enjoying its virtues everyday. The YBA is the next and final stop.

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YBA Integre

Don't know what happened to the original reviews, but I'll try reposting mine.
This is an entry level YBA product. Essentially it's a scaled down Integre minus a phono stage, using about 80% of the same components/design for less than half the price (US$1000 vs US$2300).

Definitely resets the price to performance ratio, and I beleive it's one of the best integrateds on the market. Preferred it in comparison with the Classe CAP-80, Linn Majik, Naim Nait III, Quad 77.

Very detailed, with excellent separation and great dynamics over the entire spectrum. If you're shopping for an amp, you've got to hear this one.

Enjoy,
Tom.