4heckssake Posted February 27, 2008 Posted February 27, 2008 Hi all, One option I have for a seconhand amp is the Musical Fidelity E100. Anyone got any thoughts on them? 4hecks.
Tony M Posted February 27, 2008 Posted February 27, 2008 Hi all,One option I have for a seconhand amp is the Musical Fidelity E100. Anyone got any thoughts on them? 4hecks.[/b] Hi 4HS I have a mint Musical Fidelity E20 pre-amp (not currently in use). I think this is closely related to the integrated you're looking at. I really liked the sound. My very subjective opinion is that it's probably less dynamic than the ME 25 it replaced but also smoother, sweeter and more "listenable". That assessment probably depends on the level of synergy in any particular system. It also incorporated quite reasonable phono stages and headphone amp. I also like the appearance of this series of MF gear, but a lot of people apparently thought the relatively plain black acrylic? fascia was a bit boring. I'd be quite pleased to stumble across a matching E30 power amp as i reckon this would be a nice little combo for a second system. Cheers Tony
4heckssake Posted February 27, 2008 Author Posted February 27, 2008 Thanks for the reply Tony. Good to hear from you. I can't find much in the way of reviews and comments from owners on review sites etc about the E100. It may not have sold in big numbers as i think they retailed for nearly $2k in Aus...about 8 -10 years ago?? Is seems that is an integrated SS amp of about 100 watts per side into 8 ohms and the E stands for ELecktra (what ever that is?), piano black fascia in this case. Apparently a very nice clear and accurate sound. Not sure about much else at this stage but i can test this one out for a few days and report back.
Chickenism Posted February 27, 2008 Posted February 27, 2008 Hey Rod, Just sent a PM before I saw this thread. I'm a fan of MF gear and the E100 would be about 10 years old. A predecessor to the highly regraded A3 series, if I'm not mistaken. Although I've not heard the E100, I'm well familiar with the later A300 which I enjoyed very much. Smooth, detailed and powerful. If you're able to try it at home, that's great...I doubt you'd be disappointed. Keep us posted. Dave
4heckssake Posted February 27, 2008 Author Posted February 27, 2008 Hey Rod,Just sent a PM before I saw this thread. I'm a fan of MF gear and the E100 would be about 10 years old. A predecessor to the highly regraded A3 series, if I'm not mistaken. Although I've not heard the E100, I'm well familiar with the later A300 which I enjoyed very much. Smooth, detailed and powerful. If you're able to try it at home, that's great...I doubt you'd be disappointed. Keep us posted. Dave[/b] ooooh, I just replied to your PM and then saw this post here....freaky!!!
Tony M Posted February 27, 2008 Posted February 27, 2008 Thanks for the reply Tony. Good to hear from you. I can't find much in the way of reviews and comments from owners on review sites etc about the E100. It may not have sold in big numbers as i think they retailed for nearly $2k in Aus...about 8 -10 years ago?? Is seems that is an integrated SS amp of about 100 watts per side into 8 ohms and the E stands for ELecktra (what ever that is?), piano black fascia in this case. Apparently a very nice clear and accurate sound. Not sure about much else at this stage but i can test this one out for a few days and report back.[/b] Gooday Rod Yep, the "E" in E20 and E30 stood for Elektra. I believe the E30 was 100wpc and I suspect the E100 was based on the E20 and E30 combined in one chassis as an integrated. Same fairly minimalist glossy black styling. I expect it will be a very nice amp. Cheers Tony
Chickenism Posted February 27, 2008 Posted February 27, 2008 ooooh, I just replied to your PM and then saw this post here....freaky!!![/b] Freaky alright...just saw this post before replying to your PM which was a reply to my PM...my head hurts...
4heckssake Posted February 27, 2008 Author Posted February 27, 2008 Well I borrowed the E100 last night, straight home, set it up with my Marantz CD63 and B & W 602 S3's, MIT interconnect and some bi-wire speaker cable that the owner lent me as well (can't recall the brand now - as big as a garden hose nearly). Played a range of CD's (Wilco, Ed Kuepper, Tex Perkins, bit of electronic stuff). Wow. What a big sound. So much different from the sound of the previous few amps in the system. 'Accurate' is an accurate description. Clear yes. Powerful yes (can't turn the volume past the 8 o'clock position in my room). There is a lot of detail. The quiet stuff seems easier to hear (I can hear the musicians breathing in hard at the end of songs and a few footsteps and guitar tweaks that have not been apparent before - and it wasn't cos i had it turned up loud). The bass is definitley bigger, better, lower and deeper. The top end is strong (almost a little brash with my speakers) and the mid range seems to be a little less obvious now...not in a bad way. I thought overall great sound but a little less involving in the music and more concentration was put into listening to the equipment. Felt a bit tired...off to bed and rest those ears.Needless to say I am impressed though. Got up early this morning (actually, make that got up normal time and then fluffed around and came into work late) and listened to Cat Power Jukebox (yes both discs). Nice. I can't help feeling though that now the amp exceeds the quality of the cd player and speakers and the next thing you know I will be wanting to upgrade those. More listening will be down over the next week. As i type this the phone rings, repair shop, my old amp is fixed after weeks of wait....grrrrr...i knew this would happen.
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