Best amp for Sonus Faber Concertino Domus speaker

Do you want to stay in the same brand line for both your CD player and your AMP?

Are you considering only an integrated amplifier, or have you also considered getting a Pre-Amp as well?

I would take a look at the Primare line of electronics, they are also imported by Sumiko like the Sonus and should be a good sonic match. Another brand to take a look at are McIntosh or Krell but these could be out of your price range.

Take a look on audiogon for used equipment, you can save a bunch of money going this way as well.

If you want to up your budget a little, I believe a used Mcintosh 275 tube amp will probably make your Concertino bookshelves really sing.

While I have not heard Concertino and 275 together, I do not believe that is true. Tube amps supposely have a roll off at higher frequencies. And SF speakers also have a sharp roll off at higher frequencies. Not sure if that effect compounded will sound nice.

And AFAIK, Sonus Faber only sold solid state amps.

Are you going straight 2-channel with no subs? What kind of music do you listen to...volumes...how far away from the speakers?

The local SF dealer here pushes them with Classe, IIRC. Sounds superb.

Wouldn't Classe outclass the Concertino Domus?

So, maybe you've misunderstood my post.

Does he carry Classe?

http://www.classeaudio.com/

Not sure about the Concertinos, I have heard the Mac 275 on the SF Cremona Auditors and this match up was really nice, granted the Cermonas are 4800 dollars vs the Concertinos at 1500. That is where I draw my conclusion for the Mac 275.

Currently Sonus only sells a sold state amp called the Musica, for $3,000 rated at 2x100 at 4 ohms. I have not heard it so I cannot offer an opinion here.

Wchek:

The Primare equipment is nice, but I wont tell you that its a "must have" for your equipment. I went with a Primare Pre30 to separate my 2 channel audio from my HT because it is a fully balanced pre-amp with a passive HT bypass option, and I got a killer deal on it.

Budget I would take a look at Adcom's stuff, maybe used off Audiogon. Otherwise, the Rotel RCD-1072 is a great bang for the buck player and will pair nicely with most any integrated amplifier. Typically people go with one brand of equipment for aesthetic reasons, IE everything looks matched. You should be able to mix and match electronics without any issues technical issues. Just make sure you go and listen to stuff before you buy anything. Everyone has their own opinion about how things sound, demonstrated by Vitamin C and my differing opinions on SF monitor speakers and tube amps .

I've heard SF matched with Primare. It sounds very nice, but I can't compare it to anything, so...

my 2 cents: I am under the present impression that your choice of source (cd player) will affect your sq more than your choice of pre/pro, amp, or integrated.

Chu Gai asked some very, very important questions. If all the answers are of the modest sort, I would say splurge more on the cdp, and get an integrated. Thats just me though, gl and hf!

Not sure where WChek lives, but without 30-day return period and a fat credit limit, it would be a pain in the arse to test all those amplifiers.

Also, IMO you would need a sub for Concertino; it's bass line is pretty not impressive despite its amazing warmth at midrange.

I guarantee you that the vast majority of the Concertino owners do NOT use them with a subwoofer.

Magnolia Hi Fi in the Seattle area carries Primare, McIntosh and SF. Best buy may be expanding this, my bet however is they cut back on the higher end lines like SF and Mcintosh and focus more on the Mid to High such as Boston Acoustic.

Also, these speakers are small enough where you could actually box them up and take them with you to a store to demo electronic equipment. Just a thought.

Vitamin and I finally agree on something! Yes, I do believe these will need a sub with them. Take a look at HSU research or SVS, something in a 10" should be fine and not kill your pocket book.

I don't know, but it seems to me that the Concertinos has a pretty sharp bass-line roll off and you won't 'feel' the bass resonance until you crank it over 80dB.


Magnolia A/V (the higher end store) should carry all the high end lines. The 2 Mag A/V around my area both have Cremona in stock/on display.

I am actually eagered to hear the Aculine sub. It's cheap but it's not in stock.

To my knowledge, Sonus Faber products (especially the midrange and high end ones) matches nicely with McIntosh, Accuphase and Primare, but all those brands are probably out of your price-range.

What does the dealer where you are purchasing the SFs recommend? Usually the dealers have a pretty good idea of what matches well. Of course, you are limited to whatever the brands are that the dealer sells.

Don't forget Classe, BTW.

Pick some amp that has high current and is not too warm and laid back.

was pleasantly surprised that Primare and Cremona Auditor combination. sounds much more transparent and 3D compare to McIntosh and Cremona Auditor.

I am driving SF Concertino's and a SF Domus center with a Cambridge Audio Azur 640R. I also have an HSU sub. The sound is sweeeet.

Gotta try that then, got an extra pair of concertinos and thinking i should put it in my office

I would strongly recommend Primare matched with your Concertinos. I have extensive first hand experience with the combination and IMO it had perfect synergy. I used arcam and bryston as well but always enjoyed the primare the most. The Primare A30.2 amp has a retail of your budget so you would have to either break the piggy bank open or try to find a used/demo unit.

Primare's CD players are also excellent but with the least expensive model being $1300 I cannot recommend that wih regards to your overall budget. Good luck!

I agree here. Also, the build quality on the Primare CD players seem to be really lacking. Their other electronic equipment is really top notch in this regard, but at 1300 to 2100 dollars for a CD player I expect a transport that doesn't look and feel like the DVD drive in my PC...

I noticed no difference in sound quality between Primare CD player and McIntosh ones. Seriously I do not feel that a good CD player (or preamp and cable) would make as much difference as speakers or amplifiers.

I don't want to take this thread off topic but I have always felt that the source unit can have a tremendous effect on overall sound quality. I have upgraded my player 3 times in the last 2 years and noticed a significant difference in SQ between each unit.

I do not buy into the need for high-priced wire and cables. And really, a good amplifier should not effect SQ at all. In theory, an amp should only be amplifying the source signal...not adding any noticeable sound characteristics, right? We all know this is rarely, if ever, the truth but it always makes me chuckle when I read a review of some mega-dollar amp and there is an endless amount of industry adjectives abut the "sound" of the amp...smooth, liquid, open, sweet, dynamic, detailed, airy, blah, blah, blah... sounds more like its coloring the overall sound not merely amplifying it!

IMO speakers will be the defining part of the equation in sound quality with source units and the preamp closely behind. And as always, everyones ears hear it all differently.

Off topic it is. IMHO, the speaker is the definitive component that determines your sound output, with the AMP closely behind due to its pairing with the speakers. The reason I say this is because all speakers have certain frequency and phase responses and impedance that peaks/troughs at different frequencies. And the ability of an amplifier to output the required current/voltages at those frequencies is crucial of the overall output. For example, if the speaker has a huge impedance at 1500Hz and the amplifier's current output troughs at that frequency, then chances are your system's frequency response will take a nose dive around 1500Hz. This is why amplifier matching with speakers is the most crucial step in the sound system (and room treatment).

In terms of source unit, CD players with decent DAC should be outputting very similar quality analog signals if not identical. I am fairly confident in this because I am very familiar with the design process of the DAC used in those players. The biggest variant is the output stage inside the CD player after the DAC, which involves some sort of amplifications that could distort DAC outputs.

But vinyl is a different story because it is purely analog thus the signal path will see a lot of variants and the preamp is acting as first stage amplifier for the phono input. Otherwise preamp should be a simple switch (thus the move towards integrated amps). Just my $0.02.

BTW, OP, there's a pair of Primare I20 integrated amp and CD player on Audiogon for about $800 USD.

I limited experience with Sonus is that their speakers sound better with a little juice behind. I would be cautious with anything less than 50 watts tube power.