It's a GREAT amplifier. Together with the GTP-600 I'm having the time of my life listining to this amplifier.

The Adcom GFA5500 is a good amp. I had one for approx. 5 days. When I compared it to a B&K EX4420 the Adcom lost. I was in disbelief so I had 3 other people listen. They all had the same reaction. So I returned the Adcom, and kept the B&K. Price? about the same Adcom $800, B&K $850. Both demos! B&K 5 year warranty. I would appreciate anyone elses results on comparing amps.

I recently aquired this unit to replace my Marantz MA-500 monoblocks. I got a killer deal ($570) so my judgement will be a bit altered. This unit did not give me the much needed improvement that I required and I would not pay $1000 for this amp. However for $600 this amp does plenty for me. Bass control is much better and I have never heard this amp strain. The distortion LEDS have never come on. Does wonders for my Studio 20's. Soon to be upgrading to a Pass Labs amp when I have the money gathered up. It wouldn't be fair to compara the Pass Labs with the adcom. 3 stars if paying retail. 4 stars with a hefty discount.

Nice amp.Got mine for $899 at one of my local shops.Controls bass very well,and has a nice sound overall.Built like a tank.I have it bi-wired to a pair of Klipsch KLF20s with audioquest midnight.I listen to many kinds of music,sometimes at very loud levels and this amp has not failed me once.Highly recommended.Considering price I give it 5 stars.

I am using a GFA 5503 to run my center (KEF 200c) and the highs on my KEF Reference 3. I am using a Parasound HCA2000 to run my bass. Adcom is a wonderful match with the KEF uni-q's. In a home theater application the Adcom has plenty of quick transient power and solid control over midrange. I have experimented with the GFA 5503 running my Model threes by itself and it seems to run out of juice only at serious listening levels below 40Hz or so. Thanks to MIT's wonderful terminator 2 wires the brightness you would assume from an Adcom/KEF marriage is remarkably inspiring when in a nicely dampened listening environment.
Spend a couple more bucks and buy a Bryston 3B (even if the twenty year warranty is somewhat of a goof)

After living for the GFA-7500 for a month I thought that the GFA-5503 would be a reasonable substitute. I couldn't have been more wrong. Although the GFA5503 is truly miracle amplifier with regards to older AAD recorded source material its ability to emphasize high frequency material, well can become quite annoying. All the vocal material on my various CD's seem to take a subordinate role to the crisp snare drums and other high frequency instruments. Although its certainly capable of excellent separation the Adcom's high frequency emphasis makes it a mixed blessing.

I've had my Adcom GFA-5500 for about two or three months now and I have to say I'm very pleased. This is my first venture into the Hi-Fi arena, but after much shopping around and a number of auditions I think the GFA-5500 is a very strong contender in this price point. For those of us who really like to crank it up loud the distortion lights are a plus (esp. for those of us who are paranoid about doing their brand new stereo damage). The system I purchased:
Adcom GFA-5500
Klipsch KLF-30's
Adcom GTP-450
Monster Cable interconnects and speaker wire (AudioQuest may have been a better choice overall to mellow out the Klipsch's)

The current weak link in the system is my CD player. After spending $2600 on the speakers, amp, and pre-amp I figured I'd save a few bucks and use my PlayStation as my CD player until I bought a DVD player this summer.

If you want a good amp for a low price, look no further (*chuckle* ok, the Merantz MA-700's deserve to be looked at, but I did decide on the Adcom unit in the end). I give the amp four stars simply because this is my first Hi-Fi system and I don't think I'm qualified to make that call. On the other hand, over the last two years I've only made two purchases I've been truly happy with: my Seagate Barracuda and my stereo.

-Mike

I've listened to this amp drive a number of different pairs of speakers and I just don't like it. It doesn't sound natural. It's very clear, but it's so punchy that I can't stand to listen to it for more than a few minutes. I like punchy bass in some forms of music, but it seems that different voices are somehow put out of proportion by this amplifier. I've noticed that all the rhythmic voices are too loud and punchy. I'd much rather have a Classe or even a nice Denon.

Good amp with lots of reserve power. The sound is good, but it runs too hot. I have 3 of them and next winter I won't need a heater.

I recently purchased an Adcom GFA 5500 amplifier and an Adcom GFP 450 preamplifier. I would have completely happy with my old Sherwood 50 watt/channel receiver, but I accompanied a friend of mine to a high end audio store for kicks. There, I had the chance to hear an Adcom amplifier push a pair of B&W speakers. I had never heard anything so crystal clear in my life! I was sold. Not on the B&W's, (I had just bought a pair of Acoustic Research 308HO's) but on the amplifier. After going home and listening to my old system again, I knew I had to upgrade. I have listened to other amplifiers, but nothing grabbed me like the Adcom/B&W combination. Two weeks later, I returned to the store and slapped down the plastic. After listening to my new amp/preamp in my cramped home (maybe 200watts/channel is to much for my living room), I knew I had made the right decision. I almost don't need my powered sub anymore! Now, all I need to do is save up for a good pair of B&W's.
My system:
Adcom GFA 5500
Adcom GTP 450
Sony CD player
Acoustic Research 308 HO, bookshelf speaker
Cerwin Vega 150watt powered subwoofer