Astonia SC 300 Stereo Amplifier - Budget Performer !!

[rajachiru]

Hi Friends,

Came across the review of Astonia SC 300 Stereo Amplifier in AV MAX , Sep edition .. it has got very good rating and AV MAX's "Recommended" !!

Link to the Site : Astonia SC 300

Price : Rs 3500 !! hyeah:

Its Specifications are :

Power Output :25 watts per channel
Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) :0.1%
Frequency Response :20Hz- 20 kHz
Signal-To-Noise Ratio (SNR) :94dB below rated output.
Damping Factor :160
Dimensions (H x W x D):3.54x13.38x8.66
Weight :3.64 Kgs

So has anyone auditioned or listened to this amp ??

and which book shelves will go well with this amp ..??

Iam considering Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 and Cambridge Audio S30 .. Will these pair well with the amp having above mentioned specs ??

Hope we got a under budget power performer which beats Topping TP20 ..

 

[ukjeyaraj]

Where did you get that price from?

 

[rajachiru]

@ukjeyaraj

it was quoted in AV MAX magazine .. Sep 2012 edition .. it can be Rs 500 more or less than that in market for sure ... !!

 

[arunlouie]

Mentioned in the magazine front cover.

Can you paste here the complete review here in this thread?

There is 8 channel amplifier also mentioned in the site, wonder how they sound.

 

[rajachiru]

I Cant paste the review as i have the magazine in physical form .. not ebook ... but i can type the verdict given there ..

VERDICT : "The astonia SC300 has an incredible balance in sound and its ability to recreate acoustic instruments is superb..whether you give it a full orchestra,jazz or a busy rock album to reproduce , the SC300 will perform its task flawlessly with a smooth and detailed sound. We tested SC300 with two different bookshelf speakers - the budget friendly Norge Nano and High End Totem Acoustic Fire. The Fluidity and control it showed was breathtaking. We cant help but giving full marks for its versatility and performance .. !! "

 

[Kittu]

Makes me want to order one right away.

 

[athirst]

I read the review too, in AV MAX Sep issue. I am eager to compare this mini amp to Norge 1515 or 2030 stereo amplifier. AV MAX have paired the Astonia amp with Norge Nano and Totem speakers. Why not pair both of these amp with Norge Nano speakers to be sure about the TRUE BUDGET DESKTOP AMP+ SPEAKER pair ?

Any input from anyone ?

 

[spirovious]

aready Posted here-
http://www.hifivision.com/av-lounge/28220-thread-intoduce-new-av-products-available-india.html
SW also got good review for Rs.12500

 

[rajachiru]

@spirovious : yes..SW also got very good review ...

but we should see how the amplifier SC300 gets paired with other popular speakers ..!!

Mostly preferably with CA S3's and Wharfedale 9.1's

 

[spirovious]

@spirovious : yes..SW also got very good review ...

but we should see how the amplifier SC300 gets paired with other popular speakers ..!!

Mostly preferably with CA S3's and Wharfedale 9.1's

Considering 25w,one can compare it with CA A5 amp.

 

[prabhu]

I was thinking of pairing this with Polk Tsi100 (was getting them for Rs10500). But space is not a constraint for me, so I am now thinking of buying Yamaha NS 8390 (NS-8390 - Home Speaker Systems - Yamaha - India).

Any thoughts on whether the SC300 can drive these floorstanders? The power output for the SC300 is 25W while the power handling for NS8390 is 70W-220W. I have heard that it is always better to have the amp output lower than the speakers can handle (otherwise you risk blowing the speakers). Also Mr Vaibhav (of Astonia) has mailed that they "have successfully tested our amplifier with a range of bookshelf and tower speakers with very good results".

PS. The above FS and BS were also recommended in this month's AV Max.

 

[kaushik]

Do u guys believe biased AV max, ?i have seen they have rated crappy ipod docs and Fnd china garbage 2.1s as awesome

the Amp dunt have even tone bypass..
one day local speaker dealer playing ear pinching amp,asked why he dont usee good amp,he said this amp has 4 stars in av max..whoa!

Any day moving away from tripath in that price will be like leaving toyota corolla and entering indica

prabhu,

stick to used Tannoys Yam/polk are poor toys......a little higher budget you can go KEF Q series

 

[prabhu]

> Do u guys believe biased AV max, ?
I am pretty much a newbie to this world and had no reason to suspect their reviews - until now!

> stick to used Tannoys Yam/polk are poor toys...... a little higher budget you can go KEF Q series
How much higher? Where can I get them in Bangalore?

 

[spirovious]

Do u guys believe biased AV max, ?

Not too much,but since they rated these product 5star,perhaps need to give some attention.

 

[rajachiru]

I was thinking of pairing this with Polk Tsi100 (was getting them for Rs10500). But space is not a constraint for me, so I am now thinking of buying Yamaha NS 8390 (NS-8390 - Home Speaker Systems - Yamaha - India).

Any thoughts on whether the SC300 can drive these floorstanders? The power output for the SC300 is 25W while the power handling for NS8390 is 70W-220W. I have heard that it is always better to have the amp output lower than the speakers can handle (otherwise you risk blowing the speakers). Also Mr Vaibhav (of Astonia) has mailed that they "have successfully tested our amplifier with a range of bookshelf and tower speakers with very good results".

PS. The above FS and BS were also recommended in this month's AV Max.

Hmm .. yes NS8390 got a very good review .. but those floor standers are being treated as crap in these forum ... don't know why .. i had auditioned them in Hypercity mall (Inorbit) in Hyderabad .. they sounded good ..but that guy has connected them to a Yamaha AVR .. so i thought that they must have sounded excellent if connected to a dedicated stereo amp ... !!

so please go ahead with the pairing that u have mentioned and let us know about the results .. !!

 

[rajachiru]

Do u guys believe biased AV max, ?i have seen they have rated crappy ipod docs and Fnd china garbage 2.1s as awesome

the Amp dunt have even tone bypass..
one day local speaker dealer playing ear pinching amp,asked why he dont usee good amp,he said this amp has 4 stars in av max..whoa!

Any day moving away from tripath in that price will be like leaving toyota corolla and entering indica

prabhu,

stick to used Tannoys Yam/polk are poor toys......a little higher budget you can go KEF Q series

May be biased.. we cant completely trust AV MAX or WHAT HIFI .. but if the amp really stands upto the review then it will be very handy to the many members here who wants to have a budget stereo setup

 

[kaushik]

i am not against the new amp but recently we have seen many amps..popped in a toroidal in side.people saying ..wah!

remember once you make a buy in 3.5k..sound is way dull wrt tripath ones ..
normally it will not even sale at 1k.

prabhu, KEF is thre at profx

 

[athirst]

@ Kaushik: Sorry Boss, But I have no reason to believe that KEF Q series speakers can be bought at "a little higher budget" than Polk Tsi 100. Polk is 10.5K to 11K. And Kef Q100 is how much ? 25-27K ? That is little higher ?

@prabhu: Polk Tsi100 is, somehow, bright speakers. They do sound well, but extended listening do bring ear fatigue. Why dont you go for Q acoustics, if you are keen to pair those with Astonia SC300 ?

 

[keith_correa]

And never buy blind [or deaf]. If you cannot audition the amp. you ARE taking a gamble.

No matter what reviews or recommendations say, it should sound good to YOUR ears.

Tripath/Astonia/Norge - whatever, if you haven't heard it and are buying based on reviews, be prepared to be dissatisfied after buying blind even though ultimately you MAY not be.

 

[kaushik]

athirst,
forgot the profx KEF model price ,it was less than 25k as i remember.
it was wonderful match for AH TA2020 MkIII kit