Amplifier suggestion

[sudeeps]

Hello All,

I'm deciding on my first stereo setup and is deciding on amp + BS. A friend of mine has kindly agreed to get me the amp from Singapore and I'm inclined towards KEF q300/MA BX2/ MA BR2/ Boston acoustics A26 for the BS options.

Budget - 20K for amp, 20-30K for BS.

I listen to various genres of music but mostly classic rock ( BIG PINK FLOYD FAN ), country ( Alison krauss/ Blackmore's night etc ), some EDM ( Armin Van, Tiesto etc ) and of course Indian film music and melodic Ghazals


Love to listen to music for hours, and love deep tight bass

Now I have some queries and looking for guidance :

1. For amp I'm inclined towards Marantz PM6004 / CA 351A . Which would be a better choice ? Reason I was kind of inclined towards 351A is the usb audio in to let me use it as a DAC for music through PC and also 3.5 mm ipod in .But then I see Marantz getting better reviews than CA almost everywhere . I know I should audition stuff but currently my health is doing very bad , just got up after being bedridden for almost 2 months and can't travel much to places to audition and my friend from Singapore is coming next month

2. I called up Alpha audio, Sim Lim , Singapore and they said price for PM6004 would be around SGD 550 for Japan made model and SGD460 for China made model . Now obviously going for China made will save me few bucks ( and I'm tight on that ) but will it turn out to be a bad decision with no international warranty being offered by Singapore stores ?

Please guide me !

 

[koushik]

Stick to Marantz. As you are getting a good deal consider it as a used product or a product whose warranty period is over.

Monitor Audio Bronze BX2 is good option, or
MS Aviano 2 is also very good.

You can also go for active speakers at that price range -
AudioEngine A5+ and AS8 package. This combo will give you deep bass and relax listening experience.

 

[sudeeps]

Thanks for the suggestions. As I mentioned what tempted me for cambridge audio 351A is the USB in DAC as I have lot of music on my PC and more than I listen a lot to internet radios.

 

[Kittu]

With your budget you can buy a decent setup in India with Bill and Warranty. Keep your choices open and audition the speakers.

 

[sudeeps]

I know but then its around 10K difference getting the same amp from Singapore.Any concerns I should have ?

 

[nav135]

Hi,

Buying Marantz for 10K less with no warranty is worth every penny.Dont worry too much about warranty since the saving is 10k and you are buying a reputed product.

Not sure what will be the big diff btwn japan made and china made .

cheers
NAveen N

 

[X man]

The Alpha Audio includes 7% GST I guess, which you would also get refunded. So costs should be even lower

 

[sudeeps]

My friend stays in Singapore ( He's doing Phd there ), will he also get GST refund
? or it's for tourists only ?

 

[krell]

+1 for marantz

 

[afj]

for speakers in that price range the ushers s 520 is the one to beat