Very musical and powerful amplifier.

Signal noise rate is behind modern similar amplifiers. I own the din-connector-version which calls for special interlinks

Altough it recently broke down because of instable power supply (0 ohm) , I have enjoyed every minute I have listened to the equipment. ( I can't hardly wait for the moment it will be fixed again)
I bought this Amplifier second hand in combination with the Quad 34 pre-amplifier and the famous fm4 tuner. The previous owner went to Australia and had to sell it together with a pair of B&W 802 mk II. I bought the Quad equipment for only $325, which is a bargain compaired to average prices for similar equipment in Holland. Unfortunately I didn't buy the B&W's. The asking price was only $500,- and they appeared to be in mint condition, sniff!

The Power amp was built in 1985 and is the upgraded version from the 405. It's a 100watts per channel amplifier with a special design which gives it Class A characteristics (this is called current dumping in Quad terms. In my opinion the Amplifier delivers high end power, that means not just thumping and pumping, but a very smooth complete soundstage. Compared to modern amp's it's slower and sounds rather warm (typically british I would say).
It's not the optimal thing to play Metallica or Underworld on, which I do actually, but the sound is always controlled and the power supply seems endless with no trace of distortion. I use it in combination with B&W 602-S2's and and 11-year old Philips CD-player. Sometimes I feel that there could be more detail in the higher frequencies of the spectrum, I wonder what a better CD-player will do.

I might surprise you, but I mainly play electronic music on it, varying from Aphex Twin, Black Dog, Plaid, Kraftwerk, Morcheeba, Moby to sometimes more natural music like Radiohead, Grandaddy, Eels and sometimes some classical stuff (Craig Armstrong, Satie, Tjaikovsky etc.)

I don't know what prices are in the States or in Great Britain, but in Holland Quad is much sought after and therefore quite expensive.

I could recommend this equipment to everyone. It 'll fit nice into your bedroom since it's the size of a midi-set.
For this price ( let's suppose you could buy it for $250) it's very hard to buy something that is able to deliver high end soundquality and is constructed to last forever.

Compared simililar priced amplifier (Nad 300, Rotel 931, Marantz Pm 4000 etc.) it's far more powerful and even sounds better. For real Death Metal fan's I would recommend something completely different, buy a PA-amplifier.

Similar Products Used:

Rotel Pre and Power Amplifier