soundstaging, imaging accuracy, immediacy

for the price-none

OK, you may think that I'm crazy but I just sold my Audible Illusions Modulus 3a (Stereophile Class A, blah, blah, blah) preamp and Melos amp, all tube stuff and bought this little Arcam integrated. And I could not be happier-no warm up time, no transformers humming, no worries about expensive cable and RF interference. Listening is fun again! The soundstaging is superb, rock solid images with the JM Labs speaks. This is actually a little better than with the tube gear. Bass dynamics are also better. The sound is more "hot", the tube gear softens the treble a bit and provided a softer more refined sound at the high end. I will miss that but thats it. I chose the Arcam because of all the integrated amps, it had the nicest, warm-yes- tube like sound. The Anthems might have been a good choice too but the Arcams are just a better deal all round and no more tubes means walk in and have music. Oh yes, this integrated beats any lower end seperates combo I have ever heard such as those items mentioned above and Hafler, PS Audio etc. Just my .02

Similar Products Used:

older separates like bryston pre withh BK ST 140 amp

Effortless full range delivery.
Allows 2 channel bi-wiring.

Minor channel x-talk @ 80%+ volumes
Headphone output too low.

Wow. I've had this 3 months now and am amazed at the sound quality from a £499 amp. The 75W output drives sound with ease even in the 24'x18' room its in. I agree with 7rl other reviews that its the overall tone of the sound thats most impressive, its hard to put your finger on, it just makes you want to listen to the music as opposed to listening to the sound. Definely recommended, friends can't believe the sound i get.
System: Arcam 7SE CD player
Arcam 9 Integrated amp
Custom made transmission line design speakers (Kef Base, Acoustic research mid & top, heron x-overs, bi-wired to seperate speaker channels).
QED silver spiral interconnect and speaker wire. (This is great also!)

PHONO SECTION, QUIETNESS, TIGHT BASS

I'VE HAD THE ALPHA 9 FOR ABOUT 8 MOS NOW. IT REPLACED AN ADCOM 555 PEAMP/565 AMP COMBO WHEN I GOT A PAIR OF INFINITY COMPOSITION PRELUDES THAT DIDN'T NEED THAT MUCH POWER. TO A PERSON, EVERYONE WHO'S HEARD THIS SYSTEM SAYS IT'S THE BEST SOUND THEY'VE EVER HEARD FROM A HOME STEREO AND CAN'T BELIEVE THE AMP HAS ONLY 70 WPC. THE PHONO SECTION IS WHAT REALLY SOLD ME ON THE ALPHA. I'M USING A WELL-TEMPERED TURNTABLE W/A BENZ GLIDER AND THE SOUND IS FANTASTIC. EVEN MY WIFE NOW PRFERS THE SOUND OF OUR ALBUMS OVER THE SAME ON CD. I HAVE TO SAY IT'S BEEN BULLETPROOF, TOO. I HAVE 3 YOUNG KIDS WHO ARE ALWAYS "PLAYING WITH THE BUTTONS" (I LEAVE THE SPEAKERS TURNED OFF!!)AND THE HAVE YET TO HARM IT. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED FOR THE PRICE. ONLY ONE I'VE HEARD W/A PHONO SECTION AT THE PRICE THAT COMPARES IS THE AUDIO ANALOGUE PUCCINI SE, BUT THAT HAS LESS POWER & FLEXIBILITY.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!

SYSTEM:
ALPHA 9 INT
WELL-TEMPERED CLASSIC W/ BENZ-MICRO GLIDER
CAL ICON MKII POWER BOSS
NAK ZX700
AUDIOQUEST & TARA LABS CABLES

Arcam Alpha 9 is a fantastic amplifier. However it only best if combined with Arcam Alpha 6 CD player. I can feel the detail from this combination. Arcam Alpha 9 is a bit "Under energy" if uses Marantz K I Signiture. In addition Arcam Alpha 7 also can give good strenght to Arcam Alpha 9 amplifier. The best speakers for Arcam must either AE 109 or Mission 752 Freedom. Hail to ARCAM.

Everything seems to get 5 star ratings which kind of defeats the purpose ofratings anyway. In my opinion, in terms of musicality, transparency and general
performance, the Arcam 9 loses out to both the Audiolab 8000S and Quad 77 Integrated. The Arcam 9+Marantz 63K-I pairing is not synergistic, actually,
you're trying to geting the Marantz's sheer musicality to compensate for the
shortcomings of the Arcam 9. Pair the Quad or Audiolab with the Marantz 63KI
and you'll see the true potential (and the limitations of) the Marantz 63KI.

IMHO, Arcams are good for driving power hungry boom boxes, so if you only listen
to classical,jazz, female vocals, forget about it.

I have tried the Arcam alpha 9 at home for few weeks. Although it is an easy, listenable amp, I found it unexciting and overly rounded to convey any sense of realism.
As for all the Arcam 9 users who have partnered this with AE109's (there seems to be a couple), try a classier amp like a Copland CSA-8, or -14 amps, you'll find that the AE109's have more potential than you may have realised.

I finally received my amp after 1 month on the technician bench. He changed the volume control but it was worse than before. He asked for another volume control and said it was now correct. I brought my amp home and found it was still the same.

I think there is nothing he could do, the pieces supplied from Arcam are defective. I now want to sell back my amp and find something else. I can't recommend it.

A very nice amplifier. If you find Rotel and NAD products harsh, this is the amplifier for you. Way more refined and smooth. Personally I love the 'Arcam' sound. It is a little laid back and relaxed, but the way I like it. Excellent for jazz and vocals, and good with pop and mild rock. Can't comment on classical since I am not into it. Other amps may beat it in some respects but in the long-run you will not grow tired of listening to this amp. I know I have not.

I have also experienced the sound panning to the left below a certain volume. In normal usage this should not be a problem, though it sometimes bugs me when I listen to music quietly at night (my CD player has a reasonably high output voltage). Luckily, it also has a variable output so the problem can be overcome (with minor inconvenience).

The build quality is acceptable and I actually do like the boring black plastic fascia.

For 600-700 used or otherwise (it has been discontinued) I think this amp is an excellent buy.

I have an Alpha 9 and wanted to reply to comments posted below by YC Toh as well as give my personal review of the Arcam integrated amplifier.
In YC Toh's review, he states that when an Alpha 9 integrated is matched with a Marantz 63K-I, the "Marantz's sheer musicality [will] compensate for the
shortcomings of the Arcam 9."

Unfortunately, Mr. Toh has not done his homework. With further investigation, one should find that the Alpha 9 is too good for the Marantz CD player. What Mr. Toh hears when the two are matched are, in fact, flaws from the Marantz CD player, not the Arcam Alpha 9 integrated amplifier. This often happens when people spend too much money on speakers, amplifiers and preamplifiers and not enough on the source (for purposes of this example, let us assume that money is relative to performance). An amplifier or pair of speakers that prove to be better than the source will simply accentuate the flaws in the source.

To say that a source can "compensate" for another unit further down in a hi-fi chain is silly. A source can only do one thing and that is extract information from the software and send it down-stream. If it is a poor source, as is the case of the Marantz relative to the Alpha 9, than the resulting signal sent down-stream will be poor. Trash in - trash out, as they say.

The better choice for the Marantz CD player would be the Alpha 7 integrated amplifier. A Marantz CD63K-I and an Alpha 7 integrated amplifier match-up would prove to be more enjoyable in the long-run or a better source for the Alpha 9 integrated amplifier.

As for my personal review of the Alpha 9 integrated amplifier, it is a fantastic amplifier in its own right. When one considers the price (US$999), it offers superb value for the money which is why I would give it a 5-star rating. Please note that I don't believe that the Alpha 9 integrated amplifier is the best sounding component out there; however, you would be hard-pressed to find another integrated amplifier even at twice-the-price that would out-perform the Alpha 9 in terms of pitch accuracy, musicality, etc.

I have had an Arcam Alpha 9 for about a year now and I am very happy with it. It is currently used with an Arcam Alpha 8 cd player and ProAc Tablette Signatures speakers.
The Alpha 9 is a 75 watt integrated amplifier produced in Britain with a list price just under $1,000 US. The amplifier stradles the region of the market between mid-fi and hi-fi. Although there are better sounding amplifiers available, they will generally cost significantly more than the Alpha 9 and likely have separate amplifier and pre-amp. Arcam equipment is usually described as good equipment for audiophiles on a budget, which pretty much described my situation and how I rated the unit. If you want to upgrade the Alpha 9, a separate 9P power amplifier is available to bi-amp your speakers.

The best word to describe this amplifier is musical. It doesn't have a deep slamming bass or crystal clear highs to grab your attention in a store, but it presents the entire range of music in a full, clean, and detailed manner that you can listen to for hours. Soundstaging is good, and it is one of the few budget amps where the instruments actually sound like they they do in a live performance. I can come home from a CSO concert, put a cd in the player and not be overly aware that I am listening to a recording. It is also one of the few budget amps that can handle orchestral and choral climaxes at high volumes without audible distortion.

I have listened to the Alpha 9 with a variety of speakers, most of which worked pretty well. It didn't work well with Vandersteens 2c's (much too laid back),
but matched up nicely with Hale Revolutions, VR3's, Naim Intro and Credo's and TDL speakers. There is a special synergy between the Arcam and ProAc products, as both the Tablette and Studio series of ProAc speakers sounded "right" together to my ears.

If you primarily want an amplifer to rock and roll or do home theater, look elsewhere, but if you want to listen to music, the Arcam Alpha 9 does a wonderful job.