best sounding integrated for under 2500.00


just getting back into audio. want this to be my last purchase. like smooth warm sounding equipment as i listen to alot of metal and rock from the 80s. this can sound harsh on alot of equipment. been researching for months and im getting more confused by the minute. i thought creek destiny or krell 300 might do the trick. any other suggestions. powering psb stratus golds.
vikingnick
I've heard the Atoll IN200 as well as a combo of one of their seperate preamps and amps, and they both sounded amazing, and completely caught me off guard. I was really surprised because I prefer tube gear, I personally have Audio Valve Baby Baldur monoblocks with their Eclipse preamps, and while the Atoll didn't measure up to these, it was still enjoyable to listen to and very musical while costing a fraction of the price. So for the price I would highly recommend it. Actually as I'm starting to get into analog more I'm considering Atoll's p200 phono preamp to start off with. I'd demo thier integrated amp first if you can you you can make sure it has good synergy with your system (last time I upgraded my speakers I made the mistake of not listening to them in my system and then spent more than twice as much upgrading my preamp and amps to the Audio Valve ones I have not to get the speakers to where I wanted, and actually significantly better than they sounded at the dealers house).

Anyway out of the other recommendations that have been made while I didn't prefer the Audio Research VSi60 in my rig, I know a lot of people who do like it a lot so if you can afford the extra you should consider it. The other integrated amp besides the Atoll that I would recommend is the Cary Audio SLI-80. Like the Audio Research VSi60 the Cary Audio SLI-80 has also received great reviews, it has a bit more power and also retails at a two thirds of the price of the VSi60, so it is much closer to your original budget. I've listened to both of them and definitely prefer the Cary over the Audio Research. I also prefer the Cary over the Atoll.

If you do end up with the Atoll, make sure to invest in a good power cord for it because Atoll responds really well to good power cords. Hope this helped and good luck.
I did a side by side with Bel Canto S300I, Musical Fidelity A5 and NAD 375BEE through Dynaudio Focus 220s, and for Hard Rock and Jazz, the NAD was easily the winner. The warmth of the Musical Fidelity sounded best with Classical.

Good luck
I'll 2nd/3rd the Yamaha AS-2000. Very powerful, neutral, spatial & smooth, plus a very nice phono stage. For a bit of tube musicality, the PrimaLuna Prologue series r very well built & emotionally satisfying. They also allow either EL34s or KT88s and an added phono board so you maintain flexibility in speaker/mood matching. I appreciate the versatility each offers
over the long run.