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Classe Cap-101 vs. Plinius 8100

Hello everyone,
I have my second Portal Panache coming in the mail tomorrow. The first unit I had made a loud buzzing noise through the speakers and headphones, even when there was not one thing connected to it. I tried it at another house that just put new dedicated power lines to each room and it still made the buzz. I have had four other amps (NAD, Yamaha, Kenwood, Creek) in this house with no buzz, so I am fairly sure it is the Panache. So if it does it again...I will be looking at the Classe Cap-101 or the Plinius 8100. I have listened to Classe components before, and have heard the cap-151 a few times. But I have never heard the plinius, and wont be able to listen to one.

So if anyone has any comments on these two units I would much appreciate it.
rtilbury
scpetscott
47 posts
 
I have owned many integrateds. I am a poor r so I can't afford good separates. But I enjoyed the 8100. It was better than electrocompaniet e-c3, musical fidelity and linn amps i owned. Worked good with my maggies. I purchased an 8200 which had more midrange magic. you may be able to find an 8200 for not too much more money.
routeman21
78 posts
 
I purchased a used Portal Panache on Ebay. It is a wonderful sounding amp that is being used in my bedroom system. I have had no problems with it however I use a 3 to 2 prong adaptor connected to the power cord & outlet to eliminate minor but annoying hum thru the speakers. Also, I thought the heat dissipating fins were quite warm but after contacting Joe at Portal he assured me everything was fine.

I'm not one who has a habit of comparing many different brands of integrated amps. The Panache replaced Rotel separates. I can't think of anything else I'd rather be listening to at this time. Hope your second one works better.
rtilbury OP
36 posts
 
I recieved my second Panache and the buzzing is about 100 times better than before, but still there. I can't hear it from my listening seat though, and the buzz can only be heard from about 1-1.5 feet from the speakers. It can be heard slightly through the headphones too. I will be keeping it this time though as it does not annoy me as the other one did. I tried a monster power conditioning unit and it did not help one bit.

I tried a cheater plug on my last unit with no fix, but I will try it again on this unit to see what happens.

As for the sound of the amp, I really love it. Smooth detailed and powerful, the seperation is really amazing. It is a pleasure to listen to.
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