Here's an excellent amp from Musical Fidelity, the A-2, 25 w/ch pure Class A integrated amplifier. I had the chance to audition this amp in my home for the past few weeks and really loved it. Very elegant looking design with a beautiful high gloss black front panel sported by beautiful matching knobs with a small red light on each knob, the knob is surround by nice gold trim. The chassis is built like a tank, and the unit as whole is very very rigid and heavy. A huge heat sink at the center of the amp vents through the top and bottom of the chassis dissapating the massive heat coming off this thing while it runs in it's "full" mode non-stop. No remote, but who cares with this level of musicality.
The 25 watts do not at all _seem_ like 25 watts, where it seems like there's much more power there than that. These are high quality, very musical watts. The sound of this amp is as they say- valve like, warm, smooth and sweet. But, it rocks too. There's no sluggish warmth here or lack of slam, it's detailed and fast. It's afterall solid state, but sounds valve like. I recently experienced a Conrad Johnson Premier 11 amplifier and the A-2 reminded me of it's fluidity and smooth, natural tone. The resolution is outstanding, with excellent soundstaging and imaging. The sound is highly controlled and smooth, which focuses images very neatly and effortlessly. Midrange is very smooth and natural. Voice and horns are outstanding. Like others have said, horned instruments about make you cry they are realistic and natural. The highs are right on, both extended and detailed but smooth and controlled. Compared to a Rotel RB-960 (predecessor to the RB-970 and RB-971) I am currently auditioning, it's much smoother. The Rotel seems a bit more lively, but foward and less refined. The Rotel muscles it's power and grabs the speakers hard, where the A-2 is more in control and musical. The A-2 works well with all kinds of music too, but just shines with vocalists and Jazz. Just a great amp.

As I audition other amps this one will definately be at the top part of my list when it's time to make my decision. If you want outstanding fidelity rarely found at this price, I highly recommend it.

Used with:

B&W CDM1's
MSB Technology Link DAC

I've owned the A2 for a few months now and I love it. Even though it really doesn't suit heavy rock and techno, it's 25 wpc bring jazz, blues, and vocals to life. It has a nice warm, smooth sound (beautiful correctness of tone)- so finding a good front end that has good detail and crispness is a must to achieve neutrality. Right now I have an MSB Link hooked up to it and the sound through my KEF RDM 2s is VERY nice- especially after about an hour of warm up. This as amp for people who have a taste for acoustic music- John Coltrane, John Lee Hooker, even Dave Mathews Band. I bought mine from Audio Advisor (demo) for $500, but even at $700 this is an amp that is worth every penny.

Great tonality

Limited power... but you get what you pay for.

This amp excels at delivering a musical tone to the listener. I have it and a CAL Icon II driving my Sonus Faber Concertinos, and while there is admittedly little bass (both from the speakers and from the low power))) the sound beats anything else I have heard in this price range. I only wish that I had a remote control...

Similar Products Used:

Acurus A100, Adcom GFA555II

Musical fidelity A2. What a great amp!!. You must be warned though, it only suits some genre of music. I found that it excels in vocals, soft pop and r&b . They sound so full and life like. Alas, Its not so well suited to hard music like Rock. Don't fooled about its 25W per channel output. When coupled with my Krix Lyrix speakers (4 ohms) there is no shortage of power. All in all, a great amp for its price.