very reliable, low-cost amp

though it's good, there are better alternatives for around the same money

I bought a Creek 4330 R (original model) and a Decware Zen 84C that had been upgraded at the factory to a Select—both at about the same time. Both were used, purchased through audiogon, both dated from about the same year, both were in good condition, and they were both in a similar price range, so I feel they make a good comparison, though it is important to disclose that I am comparing the original Creek (not the Mk2) and that both are used. As it happens, the upgraded Zen was being auctioned by the maker (presumably a trade-in), so I got the lifetime warranty with it. (Btw, the upgraded Zen doesn’t have all the features of a new Zen Select, such as front input jacks, so I guess I’d have to call it a hybrid-Select, but I think the sound would be the same.) I listen mostly to classical music. Advantages: The Creek is undoubtedly a good amp and I am very happy with it for my second system. But there is absolutely no question in my mind that the Decware is a lot better. The Creek has some non-musical advantages, such as a remote control with mute and volume control (though for what little it does control, it is a very pricey addition). It is a very reliable solid-state amp, with a good sound, and (imho) well worth the money. The Creek seems quite a solid unit, but the Zen, while minimalist, is extremely solid and gives confidence that it probably will really last the next 50 years. The most striking advantage of the Decware is its soundstage. It really is possible to hear where the different instruments (even just voice and piano) stand in relation to each other. This in turn adds both detail and depth, allows you to hear how the components of a piece of music come together, and makes the entire listening experience more “alive”—more vital and exciting. Even solo piano, I find, sounds better on the Decware: I find I can hear the whole instrument, with its decays and resonance, better. As for voice, this is another of the Zen’s special strengths: it conveys voice as though the singer were really in the room with you. Disadvantages: By comparison, the sound of the Creek is relatively garbled. Because the Zen separates instruments so well, the Creek sounds (by comparison) as though it were conveying a wall of sound—it doesn’t have the same degree of depth and separation. The Creek does sound beautiful, but the Decware has a vitality, a sense of presence, and an “aliveness” that the Creek lacks. There are some disadvantages to the Zen, however. First, it is a tube amp, and the tubes do have to be replaced. I personally hate having to fiddle with the music hardware (I’m basically interested in the music), but the tubes are easy to find on the web, they’re cheap, and replacing them is as simple as pulling out the old ones and pushing in the new ones—done in a few seconds. So I find I don’t mind this disadvantage at all. (For people interested in such things, the tubes offer the opportunity of changing the sound some by replacing with different tubes.) More serious is the low power of the Zen: this amp will not drive many speakers adequately; it requires speakers with high efficiency. (There is a list of recommended speakers on the Decware website.) I’m currently using some Klipsch speakers (kg 4.5), which are not optimal. Maybe the best compliment I can give the Zen is to say that I like it so much I’ve decided to shell out the money for some new speakers that will be optimally matched to it, even though they mightn’t be a good match for other amplifiers: basically, I’ve decided the Zen is good enough that I’m now happy to design my system around it. I’ve pretty much decided to buy a pair of Parker 95 speakers ($650), which were designed specifically for the Zen by a different company (which is also small and web-based—there’s a link to this and other speaker companies on Decware’s site, which you can find through google or another search engine). In sum, the Creek is a really good mainstream product for the money, but the Zen is a truly superb “indie” amp, which brings you to a whole higher order of music reproduction, if you’re willing to step out of the commercial mainstream. Buying from Decware is a bit of a leap in the dark (it’s a web-sales company), but the company’s customer-support is terrific: it’s easy to speak to the owner-designer (Steve Deckert), who is a great guy and always gives extremely honest advice—even to the point of steering you toward products (such as the Parker speakers) that compete with his own.

Similar Products Used:

Decware zen select

Vocal reproduction is exceptionally good.

At this price, I honestly am unable to say.

I am extremely pleased with this amp and haven't heard anything that compares with it at this price. This is my first trip on the rungs of high end audio and I am in no way disappointed with the 4330mk2. There is a depth and resolution to my recordings that is all new to me.

Very open and neutral sounding, generates detail like you''ve never heard. Bass is punchy, but well controlled.

Fussy with CD sources, could do with gold plated RCA ports, and color coded inputs would help. Takes a good 20 minutes of warm up before the sound opens up.

The 4330 Mk II is the most open sounding integrated I''ve heard at this price. It''s great with vocals and instruments and holds it''s own in the bass regions. Not being able to delve in deep as some rock amps can, this one gives a tight punchy bass which is enough to bring the music life. This amp work wonders with vocals and choral works - the soundstage is big and well defined and details are impeccable. This is one of the best sounding amps I''ve heard at this price in a long while. Definitely worth and audition.

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Arcam Alpha 3, Rotel 971MkII, Marantz PM4200, Arcam DiVA A65, Rega Brio

Beautiful, detailed sound. Solid construction.

None

This is a great sounding unit! Like many of the reviewers, I''m rediscovering my music collection. Such detail from this little amplifier, I''ve been missing so much. Construction of this unit is very solid: metal faceplate and chassis. It''s tiny, but quite heavy. A great deal for less than $600.00!

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Yamaha, Onkyo, Proton receivers and integrated amplifiers.

Sound...

None

I’m writing about the new Creek 4330 MK2 integrated amp. The unit is small. Two and a half inches tall sixteen and a half wide nine back. My Nakamichi Dragon could eat two for lunch and still be hungry. As for sound its one of the most transparent,open integrates I’ve ever heard. I highly recommend this integrated amp.. I also highly recommend Audiowaves for the best prices on any hi end audio.

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Mclntosh,Cambridge Audio,Luxman,Mass market junk.

Sound. The sound is wonderful!

None. This IS high end with a economy sticker price!

I must agree with most of the reviews that this little black box does what so many others fail at;making great sound! I bought the 4330 with out remtoe. I have it paired with a pair of Paradigm Mini Monitors and a Cambridge D300 CD player and a B&K tuner. It''s true, I hear details I never heard before. I owned Rotel, Parasound, Adcom and these are all great in their own right but the Creek just sounds more musical. I love it. This is a true 5 star unit!

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Rotel, Adom, Parasound.

Simplicity, Great Price, straightforward good sound, a lot of punch for 40W

Remote control =$100, 40W will do a lot but it won't do everything

Just purchased this amp with system including: Arcam 7se CD player, ProAc Tablette 2000 Signature speakers, Kimber silver streak interconnects and Naim speaker cable. After a lot of auditioning and about three weeks of non-stop listening I can strongly reccomend this diminutive integrated as a great value. While I listened to integrated amplifiers from NAD, Arcam, and SUGDEN some of which cost twice as much and all of which had more power I ended up buying the Creek because of it's simple and flawless performance(for $500). Some of the other amplifiers would play louder or look prettier but none significantly bettered the Creek's honest and uncluttered sound. The only way I can describe the sound is that it is almost like the amp is not there. I am sure there are amplifiers that are more transparent or detailed but not for anywhere near this price. This amp made it easy to choose a CD player as their individual nuances were not obscured in any way. The Tablette Signatures are a great match and will play plenty loud in most rooms. This does bring up a potential problem with the amp, it has no gain in the pre-amp (a big part of it's superior sound) and is only rated (conservatively) at 40WPC. It must be matched with the right equipment to sound it's best and play loudly. I did a lot of listening and made sure that this amp would play loud enough in my environment, in three weeks I have never wanted it to do more and I like loud music. If you have or are buying a system that will work with this amplifier it is a must listen.

Very smooth but open, warm for SS, Good with Klipsch KG4.

Plastic knobs and embarassing remote, but you won't care.

The moment I turned it on I was very pleased. After a week of major listening, I still could find nothing to complain about. I got an NAD in the mail and wanted to like it since it was almost $200 less. It sounded very harsh with my horns and got more harsh as the volume rose. The Creek is smooth and clear at plenty of volume, and we're talking SS, not tube standards. I put the NAD back in the box after only a few minutes. I listened to the Jolida at the shop with my speakers and became even more pleased with the Creek. The Jolida ($1100 tube integrated) was surely even smoother, but did not seem noticably more accurate. I didn't realize that I like it pretty loud until the salesman pointed out that I was listening to the Jolida at 12 o'clock (I'd need more than the 50 watts). $500 won't buy the 25 watt entry Jolida with the cheap Chinese tubes. The Creek rarely gets to 11 and sounds the same past 2.

This is all, of course, in the opinion of my humble and uneducated ears. To me the Creek sounds like an amp should: the music is just there. My well recorded CD's sound amazing, live and acoustic ones the best.

You can't lose with a 30 day audition from Audio Advisor. Money back if you need to return it and odds are you'll keep it. There's a good possibility that it will rival anything under $1000 or more with your speakers.

P.S. I found a barely used 5250 for the same money and returned the 4330. Sound is similar. The 10 watt increase in current is noticable but not really needed. Changing the source with the remote and having hookups for a second pair of speakers is nice. But it's definitely not twice the amp for twice the money....makes the 4330 look like even more of a bargain.

Similar Products Used:

NAD C340, Jolida 502b, Marantz $250 ?

design.

none.

If you have bright speakers or a sharp sounding cd player
this is not for you. If your willing to balance your system
with just the right speakers,cdp and cabel, THE RESULTS ARE PROFOUND.

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many

Coherent, smooth, very detailed, extended bass, pre-amp output. Well priced. Excellent build quality.

It's own worst enemy - it just doesn't look as though it's as good as it is.

Prior to purchase system consisted of Klipsch KG 5.5 speakers, Denon DCD1015 CD player and Anthem Integrated One. The Denon finally gave up the ghost and the Anthem was chewing up valves - I liked to leave it on all the time. The sound from this setup was good without being outstanding. Probably the previous Copland had a nicer sound but valves were expensive and required installation expertise. Imaging with the Anthem wasn't the best and bass was very soft (no - don't blame the Klipsch!) The Denon was subsequently replaced by the Pioneer DVD535 and the decision was made to replace the previous valve amplifiers with a suitable transister version. I heard several highly priced and reveiwed amplifiers including the Cyrus range, a Krell integrated (very impressive but not with horns!), Musical Fidelity and others including the Creek 4330. While some of the others might have gone louder or looked more expensive they all sounded like a piece of hi-fi equipment. Compared with it's competition, the Creek was magical and well priced so I took it home for a trial. I didn't believe that replacing an amplifier would achieve such great results. The imaging was superb with very smooth extended bass and shimmering highs. The Creek won the day and has now been purchased in the form of the new 4330 Mk 2 version. The most remarkable aspect of the Creek is the ability to create atmosphere, particularly with cafe style jazz and acoustic blues. Roy Gaines on 'I Got the T-Bone Walker Blues' is sensational. I also like what the Creek does to Brian Wilson 'Live at the Roxy' where you really feel like one of the audience. The pre-amp output is a great idea. I'm running a custom Hafler style matrix decoder with a custom stereo power amp driving a pair of Atoms at the rear in the sound room. The rear channels provide great surround effects during movies - but can be switched out of circuit easily. The Creek is very quiet in operation. The Klipsch loudspeakers, being very sensitive, can be cruel to less than perfectly designed amplifiers. Many an amplifier has ended up back in the box and out the door when they have exhibited noise and unsavoury behaviour. All in all a cleverly designed amplifier that is more a musical instrument than a piece of hi-fi equipment. P.S. Buy the Mk 2 version if you can. It has speaker protection and other technical improvements. I have heard both the Mk 1 and the Mk 2 versions. I believe the Mk 2 sounds faster and more coherent especially in the mids and highs.

Similar Products Used:

Copland CTA401 (preowned), Anthem Integrated One.