After watching this over and over again to assess your comments on the performance and sound quality, I believe both of you really like this amp! I went ahead and ordered one. Thanks for the fine review!
I found that it took about 30 hours of run-in for this amp to settle. After two weeks of daily listening, I was impressed with its 3D imaging, ability to render fine details, expansive soundstage, and good tonal quality. However, in my system, I just wasn't being drawn into the music enough. I have limited mobility, so I wasn't able to experiment with different combinations of gear. But I believe the 280 would be great with the right combination of associated components.
@vinylvagrants4829 it's not to my taste in my setup. Like I said, it didn't draw me into the music. I already sent it back. Some people seem to really like it. You might like it.
Interesting riff again chaps, always enjoyable. One of my favourite live albums is Tom Petty live at the Fillmore. Might be because I just like the music! Any how keep up the good work😊
Interesting as my 1972 Sugden A21 drove my Linn Saras (2nd hand but likely 1983) very well. I don't play amazingly loud - also when I first bought the Saras reputation meant I cautiously drove them very quietly with the Sugden, even at low levels they sounded great!
Always a pleasure to watch you guys, thanks! I'm very glad you chose to review this as the tech is very interesting to me. Those newer FET's used in a class D config are the basis of some very high end designs and I was particularly interested as several reviewer's have rated these new designs very highly and many have spoken about 'tube like' qualities. Did you find that with this design? I was particularly interested in AGD Audion monoblocks based on class D with these FET's, which look fantastic and apparently display tube like qualities. I've ended up with a Tube/solid state hybrid McIntosh MA252 for that tube like sound married with A/B power, but I'd still love to hear the AGD's and this Hi-Fi Rose product was also something else I'd like to hear, although it may be a backwards step for me now. On a selfish level, I'd love to hear you test Hi Fi Roses top end streamer the RA130. I'm using the little Musical Fidelity Mx Stream as a stop gap till I can afford a more 'Top end' solution, and the RA130 is my current wish to feed the TT2 and M Scaler for my 'end game' system (almost there, just need the streamer and a better USB cable) :) Loved this review and I'm delighted that you guys covered it!
I had a good look at this in a hifi shop last month. It is build like a tank, all the knobs and switches are metal and have a beautiful feel. It just feels so solid. I could not afford it though and it had no means to connect a headphone amp so I bought the Exposure 3510
Another great live recording is 'Alice in Chains' for MTV Unplugged. Recorded in 1996 at the Majestic Theater, in New York. Sounds wonderful on my very modest setup. Thanks for the Riffs.
Hi Guys, Lee from Australia. It would be interesting for you if you could get a Spec M99 integrated amp for review as it is possibly one of the best D class products available. I have one and it matches my Borresen X2 speakers very nicely.. It sounds like a valve amp. Keep up the great work.
That's really interesting, I just posted a question asking about 'Valve like qualities' as several people using Class D with these newer FET's are claiming valve like liquidity, warmth and soundstage. The Spec M99 goes on my list of products to watch! It very plain for my system (which looks like a tardis), but I'd live with that if the sound is there!
As a DALI Rubicon 2 owner, I'm obviously hoping there's a DALI Rubikore review in the works. What model by the way? (2, 6, 8, or the MTM Cinema?) And finally, I struggle to think of any other RUclips hifi reviews that I enjoy more. You chaps always bring a smile to my face. Keep up the good work.
Thank you for your ongoing work and excellent reviews. You guys are great fun as well. Could you please review a Lavardin integrated amplifier? Thanks, again....
Everyone is doing cartwheels about this. I can get one in Bangkok but they've tacked about $1k USD premium onto the asking price, and that's probably a bit more than I could live with myself for setting on fire instead of waiting.
Have you guys heard of Clef Audio ? they build a budget amp from Thailand . Approx £1500 called The Soloist 50. I’m sure Peach Tree Audio are the only UK stockist?
Given it's Class D, would this complement my Magnepan 3.6Rs? I have a Krell KSA100 MK1 presently, and I am considering a more modern alternative. I too own a HiFi Rose RS130 streamer and think the obvious synergy might be a bonus 🤔
I've not heard the KSA100 mk1 but I reviewed the mk2 a few years back. If similar, then it should sound tonally slightly harsher, more propulsive and generally more 'characterful' than the Rose. The RA280 by comparison is more analytical but has lots of detail and grip - and is hugely powerful with brilliant current drive. I'd suggest you borrow one from a dealer if you can, to see if you like the end result.
Hey chaps. This looks like a nice piece of kit. I just tested a Yamaha AS1200 which I really liked but it is huge!This looks like it would be worth a look too. Any thoughts on how different the sound signature will be when compared to the Yamaha? Any thoughts on speaker matching for the Rose?
Cool. Did you guys find you needed to let it warm up for a while? Like 1 hr before listening? I just picked up one and it feels a little soft to me. Is there a break in period that it needs….?
Yes... we run in all our amps and switch them on a good hour prior to listening. Definitely best practice. You posted this a few days ago... how is it doing now? Mike
I too like live recordings but i am aware the artist or artists are at the mercy of the sound engineer and the quality of the PA system , i am led to believe some ' live recordings ' are sometimes enhanced / overdubbed in the studio thus rendering the recording not totally live
Thanks chaps Another enjoyable riff with midget references to boot. Hope Hugh Masekala is a stonking recording - Stimela being the demo track of demo tracks. Although if i hear Nils Lofgren Keith Don't Go one more time I shall scream 😂
Does it get hot when driven hard or is no wasted energy the benefit of class D? HiFi Rose really does things well. It looks like a very nice piece of kit like their pre-amps. Who knows what the longevity is gonna be like tho of this technology. I mean for the money. We use a yank tank of an A/B solid state made in 1974 250w into 8ohm 350w into 4ohm that's still chugging along fine as of last night anyway. How's about a Riff doing an HiFi quiz in your local pub? That would be a bit of fun aye😃
@@owenoneill5955 it is a very sad state of affairs, 9 people made redundant on Friday, some who had been there for decades. New range is waaaay overpriced and people just are not buying.
GAN FETs seem to be the current hi-fi forum raves for this still developing technology. I use a NAD M33 which is class D and I don't recognise your generic description of the class D sound. I also auditioned PMC active twenty5i speakers recently which use class D amps and these certainly didn't sound anything like you describe. Maybe this is another example of audiophile snobbishness? Anyway as usual a highly entertaining riff, looking forward to the next one- maybe the Salvador Dali's? Hope you'll be wearing the appropriate moustaches. Cheers.
I've been reviewing Class D amps - from budget to super-fi - for 20 plus years and stand by my comments. I must have tried over 100 products from an early Sony TA-N88B to the latest Mola-Mola Makua/Kaluga. To my ears, Class D amps tend to sound slightly opaque and slow and/or not tuneful in the bass. Not every one sounds this way, but many tend to, and the breed isn't famous for musicality. This is a generalisation, and doesn't apply to absolutely everything I've auditioned though - with the Hi-Fi Rose RA280 being an interesting case in point. By the way, anyone who has followed me during my 30-year hi-fi writing career, will know that I'm the last person who could be called a snob - in hi-fi terms at least! Many of my contemporaries in the industry run high end kit that costs more than my house, while I'm currently using a Rega Aethos amp and an assortment of old, used and/or restored kit that costs less than some people's interconnects. I have however reviewed a lot of very high end stuff, especially during my time at Hi-Fi News from 2014 to 2019, but on and off since 1995 - so I know that market pretty well. Thanks for your comments, and we will indeed be doing the 'Salvadors' soon - another annoying 'Mike joke', that - and also a certain NAD M33. So keep your peepers peeled! 🙂
@playbackvintagehifihunter9669 the way they market the product is very confusing. I know what a line stage preamplifier is and an AV receiver, but this is really difficult to comprehend. Just seems to be a very poorly marketed product as one uses it
@@asrarul12 Assuming everyone has perfect acoustics in their room. If every car head unit had the same output level, there'd be no need for a gain control.
A midget and a drunk in one episode? I think I saw a midget and a drunk outside a train station once.Am I allowed to say that? That's alot of attenuation on those tone controls. Thanks again guys.
The high end AGD amps which put the amp in a valve and look like valve amps sound like valve amps yet run GAN fets. There are many more. I have a thing about Rose amps their more expensive amps look like Nagra replica's at 10th of the price which I find annoying..I know people like them..Maybe I'm just grumpy in my old age 🙂
Shells are not important. New amplification technology is more important. If you change the shell to another one, you won't see it as a copy. But technology can't be copied. Is Nagra a new amplification technology??
Sorry - we are such petrol heads. Understand it's not everyones cuppa, but we are who we are I'm afraid (a couple of sad old gits, before someone says it!) Mike
@@Hi-FiRiff ...well, I've viewed 50cc motorcycles and like cars, think you can do better in your analogies. The animal kingdom for instance... woolley low end - like a field of Herwicks slightly edgy - like the presence of a newly introduced kitten impactful - like the horn of a charging rhinoceros Now that's diversification. Cheers.
Riffing off Hans Beekhuyzen? Tut tut....Certainly, I was "paying attention at the back" today. Referring to the amp, there is often a case for placing too much emphasis on power. Maybe, this is why Hi-Fi Rose are under-selling this statistic. Perhaps they have experience of the "male compensation" factors that drove those patronising Lasky's salesmen of yesteryear.
This amplifier has a lot in common with Mike's old Capri... there's not much under the bonnet! Class D amplifiers, along with streamers, will be occupying landfill sites en masse in the very near future. Are prospective hi-fi purchasers blinded by technological "advancement"? Isn't it cheaper to manufacture Class D amplifiers? Class AB amps with their large transformers and heatsinks are heavier than Class D amps and more expensive to ship/transport. I suppose there's a market for them, but I don't consider them hi-fi....
Many amps in this price range don't have a dac. The problem is, if you bundle one in then it is either a budget one, or you may already own a nice external dac making the inbuilt one redundant. Personally I like that they have focused on one thing only... Just to make a good amp. Mike
@@Hi-FiRiff For £3000, I'd expect it to have a great DAC. Units around £300 usually have a good one. This would have been better as a straight power amp, but I don't think it would be better than an Adcom GFA-555 II that you can get for €500.
@@TE5LA-GAMING The RA280 surprised me by being quite 'old school', as I expected it to have everything except the kitchen sink. When I spoke to the Hi-Fi Rose team in Seoul, South Korea a couple of weeks ago, they said this amp is for audiophiles who will likely already have a DAC or streamer.
Love the banter. Thank you for reviewing of something I wouldn't normally consider.
You two are the best hifi show on the boobtube! Always entertaining! Cheers lads from Cape Breton!
It's a joy watching your videos!
After watching this over and over again to assess your comments on the performance and sound quality, I believe both of you really like this amp! I went ahead and ordered one. Thanks for the fine review!
would love to hear what you think of it also
I found that it took about 30 hours of run-in for this amp to settle. After two weeks of daily listening, I was impressed with its 3D imaging, ability to render fine details, expansive soundstage, and good tonal quality. However, in my system, I just wasn't being drawn into the music enough. I have limited mobility, so I wasn't able to experiment with different combinations of gear. But I believe the 280 would be great with the right combination of associated components.
Yes, what do you think?
@vinylvagrants4829 it's not to my taste in my setup. Like I said, it didn't draw me into the music. I already sent it back. Some people seem to really like it. You might like it.
Can I ask the outcome?
Interesting riff again chaps, always enjoyable. One of my favourite live albums is Tom Petty live at the Fillmore. Might be because I just like the music! Any how keep up the good work😊
Neil Diamonds original Hot August Night is a tremendous live album especially side 4 of the vinyl
Love these guys. Like a real male version of Hinge and Bracket. And the cars! I had a MG Midget 1275 and (several) TR5s. So, contemperaneous!
I like tone controls but I like the tone defeat button even more.
Interesting as my 1972 Sugden A21 drove my Linn Saras (2nd hand but likely 1983) very well. I don't play amazingly loud - also when I first bought the Saras reputation meant I cautiously drove them very quietly with the Sugden, even at low levels they sounded great!
Always a pleasure to watch you guys, thanks!
I'm very glad you chose to review this as the tech is very interesting to me. Those newer FET's used in a class D config are the basis of some very high end designs and I was particularly interested as several reviewer's have rated these new designs very highly and many have spoken about 'tube like' qualities. Did you find that with this design?
I was particularly interested in AGD Audion monoblocks based on class D with these FET's, which look fantastic and apparently display tube like qualities. I've ended up with a Tube/solid state hybrid McIntosh MA252 for that tube like sound married with A/B power, but I'd still love to hear the AGD's and this Hi-Fi Rose product was also something else I'd like to hear, although it may be a backwards step for me now.
On a selfish level, I'd love to hear you test Hi Fi Roses top end streamer the RA130. I'm using the little Musical Fidelity Mx Stream as a stop gap till I can afford a more 'Top end' solution, and the RA130 is my current wish to feed the TT2 and M Scaler for my 'end game' system (almost there, just need the streamer and a better USB cable) :)
Loved this review and I'm delighted that you guys covered it!
I had a good look at this in a hifi shop last month. It is build like a tank, all the knobs and switches are metal and have a beautiful feel. It just feels so solid.
I could not afford it though and it had no means to connect a headphone amp so I bought the Exposure 3510
Oh and definitely Nagra references going on with the Rose styling.
Very good and fun rewiew , very interesting , ❤ as usual ..., thanks
David, if you're hot why not put your winter coat on with your jumper 😂. Another good one guys.
Huge review fellas. Had to put my Nan down to get 1/5th the cash to buy the amp but will still watch the channel with intent x
Still laughing!
Mike
Also missing a record/fixed line level out for recorders or digitizing analogue sources like connecting to a ADC and your pc.
Another great live recording is 'Alice in Chains' for MTV Unplugged. Recorded in 1996 at the Majestic Theater, in New York. Sounds wonderful on my very modest setup. Thanks for the Riffs.
Hi Guys, Lee from Australia. It would be interesting for you if you could get a Spec M99 integrated amp for review as it is possibly one of the best D class products available. I have one and it matches my Borresen X2 speakers very nicely.. It sounds like a valve amp. Keep up the great work.
That's really interesting, I just posted a question asking about 'Valve like qualities' as several people using Class D with these newer FET's are claiming valve like liquidity, warmth and soundstage. The Spec M99 goes on my list of products to watch! It very plain for my system (which looks like a tardis), but I'd live with that if the sound is there!
Crikey! That thing is definitely dressed as a large bottle of marmite :-)
As a DALI Rubicon 2 owner, I'm obviously hoping there's a DALI Rubikore review in the works. What model by the way? (2, 6, 8, or the MTM Cinema?) And finally, I struggle to think of any other RUclips hifi reviews that I enjoy more. You chaps always bring a smile to my face. Keep up the good work.
Rubikore 2 in my system as we speak... spoiler alert... I am loving them so much!
Mike
Thank you for your ongoing work and excellent reviews. You guys are great fun as well. Could you please review a Lavardin integrated amplifier? Thanks, again....
Thank you ❤️
@MrVinylista
Mike
Just made Enhciladas, beer...was about to watch a film.....Riff lads are back!
Thanks and enjoying all your reviews - Any chance in reviewing the Hegel H190V amplifier- Best wishes & Regards
How would You compared this to an Exposure 3510 for a Harbeth SHL5+ XD?
I love the Exposure amps... they are right up my street. But you would need a couple of monoblocks to match the Rose's power!
Mike
GaN FETs may switch faster, but are they as reliable as Silicon (yet) ?
Is there a headphone socket or at least a line out to allow you to use a headphone amplifier?
Will this unit work well with a Magnapan LRS+?
Now there's a cool speaker! The answer is yes.
Wow, 86 Fahrenheit. So hot 😂 Try visiting the Southern U.S. 86 is a cool day.
How about a riff on the Hifi Rose RS130 streaming transport? It is packed with novel tech and sounds fantastic.
Just asked for the same thing! I'd love to hear what they think of that...
Hopefully after the upcoming Hi-Fi shows, the nice people at Henley Audio will lend us one
Mike
Everyone is doing cartwheels about this. I can get one in Bangkok but they've tacked about $1k USD premium onto the asking price, and that's probably a bit more than I could live with myself for setting on fire instead of waiting.
Tell Dave his Madri is actually the exact recipe to 1990’s Carling Black Label. True story.
I heard that it was Coors Light with a bit of extra hop extract added?
@@MrVinylista Real Craft Ale is where I got my info from lol
No way!!! that's brilliant.
Mike
Have you guys heard of Clef Audio ? they build a budget amp from Thailand . Approx £1500 called The Soloist 50. I’m sure Peach Tree Audio are the only UK stockist?
@mrvinylista ?
Given it's Class D, would this complement my Magnepan 3.6Rs? I have a Krell KSA100 MK1 presently, and I am considering a more modern alternative. I too own a HiFi Rose RS130 streamer and think the obvious synergy might be a bonus 🤔
Stay w AB, Maggie's ❤ current 😮
I've not heard the KSA100 mk1 but I reviewed the mk2 a few years back. If similar, then it should sound tonally slightly harsher, more propulsive and generally more 'characterful' than the Rose.
The RA280 by comparison is more analytical but has lots of detail and grip - and is hugely powerful with brilliant current drive. I'd suggest you borrow one from a dealer if you can, to see if you like the end result.
Looking forward to the cabin sauna special. Maximum knob feel.
HiFi Riff "Hot n Sweaty Socket Edition"😃
@@EddyTeetree Oh God, please no!
It looks different 😊
Hey chaps. This looks like a nice piece of kit. I just tested a Yamaha AS1200 which I really liked but it is huge!This looks like it would be worth a look too. Any thoughts on how different the sound signature will be when compared to the Yamaha? Any thoughts on speaker matching for the Rose?
Why not discuss the Naim Supernait 3 in this amplifier range?
Yes indeed... would love one for review
Mike
Afternoon gents
Afternoon, KJ.
Great channel. No this is this thread best ever with more air and space lol
Cool. Did you guys find you needed to let it warm up for a while? Like 1 hr before listening? I just picked up one and it feels a little soft to me. Is there a break in period that it needs….?
Yes... we run in all our amps and switch them on a good hour prior to listening.
Definitely best practice.
You posted this a few days ago... how is it doing now?
Mike
Smashy and nicey 😊
Not 'arf, great mate!
😂
I too like live recordings but i am aware the artist or artists are at the mercy of the sound engineer and the quality
of the PA system , i am led to believe some ' live recordings ' are sometimes enhanced / overdubbed in the studio
thus rendering the recording not totally live
great riff, made me laugh too, you should do a riff on your cars as another channel! got to be more laughs and stories to be told with your cars?
It's funny you should say that - we have been considering it.
David has enough for a couple of seasons!
Mike
Bruce Springsteen Live from Dublin is a superb live album. Check out Further On Up The Road. Great track to demo gear too.
2006? I'll give it a go, thank you .
Mike
Dave does love a good socket 😂
@@Ricky-cl5bu We can't blame the guy.🙂
Thanks chaps Another enjoyable riff with midget references to boot. Hope Hugh Masekala is a stonking recording - Stimela being the demo track of demo tracks. Although if i hear Nils Lofgren Keith Don't Go one more time I shall scream 😂
Agree completely.
Any other recommendations?
Mike
Does it get hot when driven hard or is no wasted energy the benefit of class D? HiFi Rose really does things well. It looks like a very nice piece of kit like their pre-amps. Who knows what the longevity is gonna be like tho of this technology. I mean for the money. We use a yank tank of an A/B solid state made in 1974 250w into 8ohm 350w into 4ohm that's still chugging along fine as of last night anyway. How's about a Riff doing an HiFi quiz in your local pub? That would be a bit of fun aye😃
No - it ran very cool in my system.
Hi-Fi quiz... there's a thought... just don't invite David
Mike
Perfect timing chaps.....Just about to buy either the RA280 Rose or the Atoll 300, Lost all faith in Naim.
whats naim done?
@@jdekong3945 for one their seperates have become insanely expensive. Like the new 200 range.
@@jdekong3945 Sold out to the bean counters and 2 pieces packed up on me. Still have 3 Naim systems but won't be buying any more.
@@owenoneill5955 it is a very sad state of affairs, 9 people made redundant on Friday, some who had been there for decades. New range is waaaay overpriced and people just are not buying.
@@owenoneill5955 you have been mugged off enough. Overpriced.
GAN FETs seem to be the current hi-fi forum raves for this still developing technology. I use a NAD M33 which is class D and I don't recognise your generic description of the class D sound. I also auditioned PMC active twenty5i speakers recently which use class D amps and these certainly didn't sound anything like you describe. Maybe this is another example of audiophile snobbishness? Anyway as usual a highly entertaining riff, looking forward to the next one- maybe the Salvador Dali's? Hope you'll be wearing the appropriate moustaches. Cheers.
I've been reviewing Class D amps - from budget to super-fi - for 20 plus years and stand by my comments. I must have tried over 100 products from an early Sony TA-N88B to the latest Mola-Mola Makua/Kaluga. To my ears, Class D amps tend to sound slightly opaque and slow and/or not tuneful in the bass. Not every one sounds this way, but many tend to, and the breed isn't famous for musicality. This is a generalisation, and doesn't apply to absolutely everything I've auditioned though - with the Hi-Fi Rose RA280 being an interesting case in point.
By the way, anyone who has followed me during my 30-year hi-fi writing career, will know that I'm the last person who could be called a snob - in hi-fi terms at least! Many of my contemporaries in the industry run high end kit that costs more than my house, while I'm currently using a Rega Aethos amp and an assortment of old, used and/or restored kit that costs less than some people's interconnects. I have however reviewed a lot of very high end stuff, especially during my time at Hi-Fi News from 2014 to 2019, but on and off since 1995 - so I know that market pretty well.
Thanks for your comments, and we will indeed be doing the 'Salvadors' soon - another annoying 'Mike joke', that - and also a certain NAD M33. So keep your peepers peeled! 🙂
What is the point of this component?
🙄
@@analogueman5364 🎂👏🎁🛺🙌😁🥰😍😂😩😩😩😏🤬🎷🎷👍👍👍🙏🎂😀📺😡🥹🤣😏😎
To power passive speakers, which it appears to do well because it has power to spare.
@playbackvintagehifihunter9669 I don't understand how this fits and into a hi-fi system.
@playbackvintagehifihunter9669 the way they market the product is very confusing. I know what a line stage preamplifier is and an AV receiver, but this is really difficult to comprehend. Just seems to be a very poorly marketed product as one uses it
Tone controls are useful to match an amp with speakers with minor tweaking. Otherwise, tonal controls aren't needed in today's amps.
@@asrarul12 Assuming everyone has perfect acoustics in their room. If every car head unit had the same output level, there'd be no need for a gain control.
A midget and a drunk in one episode? I think I saw a midget and a drunk outside a train station once.Am I allowed to say that? That's alot of attenuation on those tone controls. Thanks again guys.
evening folks
Evening squire.
The high end AGD amps which put the amp in a valve and look like valve amps sound like valve amps yet run GAN fets. There are many more. I have a thing about Rose amps their more expensive amps look like Nagra replica's at 10th of the price which I find annoying..I know people like them..Maybe I'm just grumpy in my old age 🙂
Aren't we all
Mike
Shells are not important. New amplification technology is more important. If you change the shell to another one, you won't see it as a copy. But technology can't be copied. Is Nagra a new amplification technology??
It would suit being silver
exists in silver and very nice pics on their webpage
The car analogies are getting a bit frequent, aren't they? Found myself fast forwarding a few times during this one.
Sorry - we are such petrol heads. Understand it's not everyones cuppa, but we are who we are I'm afraid (a couple of sad old gits, before someone says it!)
Mike
...and long may it last. My mild observation doesn't detract from your excellence in things fidelity.
We chat about 50cc motorcycles in today's release! :-)
Diversification.
Mike
@@Hi-FiRiff great! I'll give it a view when I'm back from Ascot which is an excellent day out thus far.
@@Hi-FiRiff ...well, I've viewed 50cc motorcycles and like cars, think you can do better in your analogies. The animal kingdom for instance...
woolley low end - like a field of Herwicks
slightly edgy - like the presence of a newly introduced kitten
impactful - like the horn of a charging rhinoceros
Now that's diversification.
Cheers.
Riffing off Hans Beekhuyzen? Tut tut....Certainly, I was "paying attention at the back" today. Referring to the amp, there is often a case for placing too much emphasis on power. Maybe, this is why Hi-Fi Rose are under-selling this statistic. Perhaps they have experience of the "male compensation" factors that drove those patronising Lasky's salesmen of yesteryear.
Tone controls really turn me off amps
Agree - at least these can be turned off
Mike
Don't care how good it is, no way could I live with an amp displaying such facia disfigurement.
@@lazgrillo6982 not to mention, you could buy a great preamp and power amp for 1/3rd the price that would be better.
Ooh - harsh. Or maybe I'm old!
Mike
Not nearly steampunk enough.
This amplifier has a lot in common with Mike's old Capri... there's not much under the bonnet! Class D amplifiers, along with streamers, will be occupying landfill sites en masse in the very near future. Are prospective hi-fi purchasers blinded by technological "advancement"? Isn't it cheaper to manufacture Class D amplifiers? Class AB amps with their large transformers and heatsinks are heavier than Class D amps and more expensive to ship/transport. I suppose there's a market for them, but I don't consider them hi-fi....
Lot's of people would agree.... however the Rose went back yesterday and I am missing it.
Mike
My Class D Primare i35 has been terrific, and it doesn't weigh a ton.
Was gonna watch your channel but 10 seconds in, a pro Trump grift ad came on for a Trump Train for sale. Really?
Gonna be rough 4 years for you isn’t it? 😂😂😂😂
No digital inputs makes this useless. 3 Grand is a joke.
Many amps in this price range don't have a dac.
The problem is, if you bundle one in then it is either a budget one, or you may already own a nice external dac making the inbuilt one redundant.
Personally I like that they have focused on one thing only... Just to make a good amp.
Mike
@@Hi-FiRiff For £3000, I'd expect it to have a great DAC. Units around £300 usually have a good one. This would have been better as a straight power amp, but I don't think it would be better than an Adcom GFA-555 II that you can get for €500.
@@TE5LA-GAMING The RA280 surprised me by being quite 'old school', as I expected it to have everything except the kitchen sink.
When I spoke to the Hi-Fi Rose team in Seoul, South Korea a couple of weeks ago, they said this amp is for audiophiles who will likely already have a DAC or streamer.
I'm really missing it actually.
All that grunt is quite addictive.
Mike