Hafler DH-500 Amplifiers
Hafler DH-500 Amplifiers
USER REVIEWS
[Sep 03, 2018]
kai
Strength:
I bought this amp 8/24/1984 along with the DH-110 Pre-amp. It has given me trouble free service for 34 years and still going strong. It’s my entertainment system and it works daily. Tremendous headroom and definitely has the punch for Reggae and Soca genres. Weakness:
No weeknesses for performance or reliability. Trouble free for over 34 years. It was an excellent investment and is still paying dividends. Price Paid: 1200
Purchased: New
Model Year: 1984
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[Apr 01, 2015]
Steven Level
AudioPhile
The Hafler DH-500 amp is still rated as one of the top ten amplifiers ever designed to this day.
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[Oct 17, 2009]
mohan
Audio Enthusiast
i just brought the hafler dh 500 power amp and hafler 110 pre amp, the sound is mind blowing,very smooth and very detailed music the bass is very tight,it has tremendous power,rated at 255 watts per channel,even on quarter volume it is very loud and clear,over all a fantastic amp which i paid around 350 dollars in mumbai,India,worth every penny i spend,it is as good as the nakamichi amp II i had 11 years back,nowadays amp has no quality i brought a nad c372 new amplifier which is 150 watts per channel but sounds rubbish in front of hafler, i just need to upgrade my speakers currently i am using wharfdale 9.1 tower speaker but i plan to buy kef 105 reference II which should be a good match for my hafler, any body getting a hafler in the second hand shop must just grab it |
[Mar 12, 2009]
J Hasty
Audio Enthusiast
I have a DH-500 powering a pair of SpeakerLab 30's downstairs and I have a P-500 powering a pair of A/D/S 1290's in the front room. I also have a DH-200 powering a pair of Sonab 14's in my bedroom.
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[Sep 12, 2008]
odraude
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Quiet, Non-fatigue listening, solid bass, outstanding highs, super sweet even in low volumes even driving hard to drive speakers.
Weakness:
none after the upgrade Purchased the amp used and after testing I immediately have the 20,000uF Caps replaced with 2-23,000uF 100V Sprague. Replaced the fuse holder, upgraded with Hexford bridge, gold phono jacks, 4-100uf/100V blackgates, 2-2uF Solens caps, and new upgrade power cord. $267 later (includes labor cost), the results are:
Similar Products Used: Acurus, Onkyo, Bryston, Adcom, Outlaw, Yamaha MX-1 and CX-2, Numerous Haflers, PSE, Aragon, Nakamichi, Phase Linear, Apt Holman, Polk SDAs and LSi Series |
[Sep 12, 2008]
ed
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Outstanding highs and lows, dead quiet, and non-fatigueing. Sonically better sounding in low volumes even with speakers that are hard to drive.
Weakness:
Nothing after the upgrade Purchased the amp used and after testing I immediately have the 20,000uF Caps replaced with 2-23,000uF 100V Sprague. Replaced the fuse holder, upgraded with Hexford bridge, gold phono jacks, 4-100uf/100V blackgates, 2-2uF Solens caps, and new upgrade power cord. $267 later (includes labor cost), the results are:
Similar Products Used: Bryston, Adcom, Outlaw, Numerous Haflers, Acurus, Yamaha MX-1, Yamaha CX-2, Professional Systems Engineering Studio One/Two, Aragon, Nakamichi, Onkyo, Polk Audio SDAs and LSi Series, Velodyne and Klipsch subs. |
[Jun 10, 2008]
Hal2000
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Clean power and reliability.
Weakness:
Heavy
I was driving Huge ESS AMT3 Rock Monitors With an old Marantz 2270 receiver and thought i had great sound. When a good party took out the Marantz, I went to get the Hafler 500 unheard, on reputation alone. Well, my old speakers have opened up like never before. Bass is tight and controlled at any volume. No music i can throw at it can faze this amp. not Loud Rap or my best classical SACDs at full volume. My wife almost divorced me while testing. Shows the limits of your speakers, and thankfully, mine are very high. Feeding it SACDs and Mp3s through a Lexicon preamp now. Have experimented with output fuses, and am protected to 6 amperes now. It can put out 30 amps per channel! This is loud, clear, unrestrained, and built like a tank.. the power supply is the size of a large grapefruit. Best piece of equipment I've ever bought. This piece stays. I would love to put this old relic up against any pricey boutique amp and a/b them with revealing speakers. Instant high end for me at pauper prices. Wish I had three more for my home theater. |
[Mar 11, 2008]
userme
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
power.
Weakness:
challenge of finding room for 2 dh-500s and a third center channel amp for home theatre setup.
i recently purchased a rotel rb-985 (100x5) based on positive reviews and personal experience with a rotel rb-980bx (120wx2). i was hoping to downsize my system which had consisted of 2 hafler dh-500s and a yet to be deteremined center channel amp. i hooked up the rb-985 and it sounded thin, tinny. i thought maybe my system settings had gotten messed up. maybe the dvd and/or preamp were set for small front speakers and/or applying a cutoff.
Customer Service N/A Similar Products Used: rotel |
[Sep 06, 2004]
BoogWar
AudioPhile
Strength:
Transparent, excellent sound staging, REALLY POWERFUL, good dampening factor, truly a classic amp.
Weakness:
Weight I was once a P.A. system owner/operator in Kingston, Jamaica. We do P.A. a little differently down here. Systems (we call them "machines" or "sounds") with 100 KW capability are not unheard of, with driver elements numbering in the 100's. I ran my DH-500 on six bass bins loaded with (if I remember correctly) 15" 2245 JBL Woofers. The power of this amp left nothing to the imagination. Superb. Rocked my clients for three years without a hiccup. Supremely musical, transparent amp. There is a sound locally called "Crystal" that uses nothing but these amps. I think he has about 20 of them. Real class act, this amp. Similar Products Used: BGW 500 Classic, Crown Microtech, Sansui BA 5000 |
[Jan 04, 2004]
macinjeep
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Excellent power.Rugged MOSFET output stage. Extremely high quality sound rivaling the best available today. Affordable and available in the used marketplace.Can be modified to perform at levels competing with the best amps on the market today.
Weakness:
Its dated looks may not suit those with the highest tastes concerned with outward appearance.(But then those types aren't really concerned with the way things sound and thats what matters.) I previously owned a Hafler DH200 in stock form. I wanted a more powerful amp and the DH500 was a logical choice for several reasons. It's sound qualities and reliability in original form are well noted. It also makes a great foundation for modification as was my intent. I chose Musical Concepts to tweak this amp.The original circuit boards were replaced with their PA3B design and the original power supply caps were upgraded. I went on faith that these mods would perform as advertised. Simply put, this amplifier will hold its own with many of todays well respected high end 2 channel amps costing 3000.00 dollars and more, much more. In a listening comparison at a local hifi shop my modified old Hafler exibited performance characteristics that outshined in every way two new high end pieces priced at 3500.00 and 5000.00 respectively. I had great respect for my Musical Concepts modified Hafler from that day forward. I have since upgraded the power cord, installed Cardas copper binding posts and BlackGate caps on the circuit boards. Including purchase price I have about 1200.00 invested in the amp. Why by old and upgrade? Value and performance with unmatched bang for the buck. If your a hobbyist and audio enthusiast like me its always gratifying to hear your personal achievments after the soldering iron cools off. I built a tube preamp kit for this reason. There are many ways to describe the sound of this amplifier. Really though there is no specific "sound" because it is so very transparent. I hear the music and nothing but the music with no added artifacts, ie brightness, harshness, muddiness etc. The soundstage is dead silent with instrument details and subtilties clearly and effortlessly placed before me.Cymbals are crisp with resonance in the air around them. Vocals are lifelike with breathing and 3 dimensional presence that captivates. Bass is solid, tight , thick front to back.You hear and feel individual notes. When I'm in my listening room the electronics and the speakers disappear. I feel as though the live performance is right before me with each musician placed in perfect position on stage. I love listening to music and with the careful selection of quality components(without spending a fortune) it becomes absolutely pleasurable to sit down and listen to those favorite recordings over and over and over again. I urge you if considering picking up one of these or modifying the one you have to chek out www.musicalconcepts.com . Everything I hoped their modifications would do for my amp delivered. Excellent products and great service...The old fashioned kind, unlike what you get from the mass merchandisers. My system consists of: Transcendent Sound tube preamp. NAD C541i hdcd cd player Hafler 500 Musical Concepts modified Amp. THIEL 2.4 speakers(AMAZING) Straightwire interconnects Tara Labs speaker cables Similar Products Used: NAD,Mcintosh,Marantz,Classe |