Anybody with some thoughts on Hafler amps


Recently I picked up a Hafler 9300 amp along with a Hafler 945 series pre-amp. The (used) amp and pre-amp were purchased to drive a couple of Dali Euphonia MS4's. During the first hour or so of listening, the amp seems about as musical as a brick; when performing numerous comparisons against a Denon 3805 A/V receiver, the Denon had it beat all to Hell. However, after an hour or two of continuous play, some voodoo magic begins to happen (I know the amp warms up) and the amp begins to gain some essence and hence forth the music starts to flow, not sounding starchy or flat…I guess to get to my point, has anyone else with this amp or something similar had this experience where at the beginning it’s almost intolerable, and only later something decent occurs? In addition, if anyone else is driving some Dali speakers I would be curious to hear what types of amps you have used and some of the lessons learned. Musically I’m all over the map: The Rolling Stones to Rossini, Fats Domino to the Lords of Acid. Thanks for any comments. Cheers
bulldogrumble
If you thought it sounded better after a couple of hours; leave it on for 24/36 hrs;then listen.
I used to have a Hafler DH110 I made from a kit.
I was an excellemt preamp!
For under $100 used it is hard to beat.
I used a variety of Hafler amps over the years, DH-500, Xl-600, 9500, 9505.

If you pick up a used 9500 or 9505 they are quite good, especially at the prices they bring today.

Too bad Hafler is gone. Another quality mid/upper fi brand bites the dust.

Best,

Paul :-)