Detailed & Smooth

What a great integrated amp! I am coming from separates and this has totally exceeded my expectations. Top end detail and midrange is just as smooth as butter. Bass is clean, forceful and accurate on my Bowers & Wilkins speakers. If you're looking for an integrated amp to connect to a set of speakers up to 3-4k this is it. I doubt there's a better integrated under 1k. Period.

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Great Amp

I think this amplifier is excellent. Pairs very nicely with my ELAC UB5s. Sound is balanced, honest and doesn't fatigue. Great phono stage (with Ortofon Blue) Usable, well built remote. Multiple SPDIF inputs. No USB, but solved with external usb to SPDIF.

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Exceptional Integrated Amplifier

The Arcam SA10 is a solidly built device that screams quality (the online pictures don't do it justice). Once unboxed, give the SA10 a chance to warm up overnight in standby mode before passing judgement. I learned the aforementioned the hard way and was left with an evening of initial disappointment. Where I heard significant potential in my initial listen, I found that the low-end just wasn't on the same plane and was significantly recessed from that of the mid-range and highs. This experience left me immediately seeking other options (Yamaha SA series, Cambridge Audio CXA61, Audiolab 6000A, and Arcam SA20) to replace it. Through some encouragement to have patience from another review regarding another amplifier and the potential that was posed by the SA10 during my initial listening session, I turned the SA10 on the next morning to be awoken by a much differant experience. After several more hours of putting the SA10 through its paces with my Sonus Faber Venere 2.0 bookshelf speakers, I couldn't believe the overall musicality of this amplifier. The SA10 is truly underrated and under reviewed. I highly encourage those interested in the SA10 to pull the trigger and leverage the 60 day audition period ($10) to hear it for yourself. I believe that if you have a little bit of patience, you will be pleasantly surprised with the overall performance of this amplifier and will likely question why you should spend more. Good luck!

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Arcam SA10

Excellent quality, excellent sound. Power is not found until more than halfway on the volume knob, but when it picks up, it doesn't stop.

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FINE TUNED ACOUSTIC ACCURACY

This one is being used strictly as a preamp, driving some Linn monoblocks for a distributed room system; so not a typical stereo setup. Still, the Arcam made an immediate difference over a higher price predecessor, especially in the dynamic definition: the individual characteristics of the instruments were immediately more distinct, their levels and envelopes defined and clear enough to beautifully articulate the tails of the source from the tails of the reverb, natural or induced. Playing "Concerts A Deux Violes Esgales" by Sainte-Colombe the SA10 is more than able to clearly distinguish between the timbres of the two Viols. It doesn't seem to have any difficulties untangling the electronic intricacies of the Biosphere/Deathprod "Stator" either. The result is a believable, emphatically present soundstage. As for the build, the Arcam is a tank: solid, heavy and -- for those who like the sound of solenoids dutifully clicking and clacking away -- features a set of controls that communicate clearly by touch and by sound. The ins and outs are more than I need for this application, but they are also more than enough for anyone planning to use the SA10 as a control center/DAC. The volume/data knob is finely stepped, facilitating absolute control over playback levels -- especially effective at lower volumes. The enclosure finish and nomenclature detail are excellent: the SA10 is designed and built to remarkably high audiophile standards at such a reasonable price.

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