Best Integrated, period.


Has anyone compared, Gryphon Diablo, Gamut Di150, Vitus SS101, Krell FBI, APL UA-S1 Jeff Rowland Continuum 500? Please add what you found to be best integrated.
perrew
I don't believe it to be the best out there but I currently have a Luxman class A 590 paired with Verity Parsifal Encore speakers. Ayre dac and Mac mini. Also a vintage Yamaha tuner and vintage Yamaha turntable for fun. Variety of Nordost cables.

I've been all over the map for 20 years, but with the Luxman Verity combo, I no longer look at the classified ads. I might check on occasion to see what's changing in the market, but I'm never driven to upgrade. That's me, I'm home, you have to find what sounds best to your ears and your budget.

There is no best, but there is a certain mix of fear and ego that seems to drive some audio people. It's prevalent in all passions and adds to the richness.

On another note, my parents drove 1,000 miles to visit this summer. My dad asked me to look at his new SUV. He popped the trunk and there was all the McIntosh gear I grew up listening to. It's late 70's and early 80 SS but the thought and having it is just wonderful. There is some low volume hum, but once things get going the noise seems to disappear. It's probably not worth the restoration costs to bring it to bench standards, but the system brings back great memories!
Melbguy1, have you, or any others here, heard Ypsilon's Phaethon?
Perhaps not BEST EVER, but apparently well up the performance curve by those who've heard it

http://www.ypsilonelectronics.com/product/18/phaethon.html
Fla, I wasn't aware of the Phaethon until you mentioned it. Yeah that integrated is approaching the price territory of the Vitus. I heard the top flight Ypsilon gear at the Melbourne Audio & AV show this year including the mono's, twin SET-100's, pre, dac, transport, phono stage & SUT and was impressed with warm, inviting and musically engaging sound. Though the Continuum Caliburn might have helped a bit ;)
12-06-14: Mbovaird
Have you heard it?
Well my brother owns an MF M6i and I thought that sounded cold and unmusical. Yes, the Nu-Vista 800 would be much better, you can only get so much out of a business model like theirs. Musical Fidelity remind me of the loudest kid in the class who is really just a mid-fielder. I find their pr irritating, and some of their claims outlandish to be honest. Comments like "new mega super integrated" underscore how they trade on slogans. Much of the technology they portray as their own pioneering work (with the exception of the nuvistor tubes) has been used for decades by high end companies like Boulder and Vitus. This is a very good amp, yes. But it's not in the same league as the amps I mentioned.