Cambridge Audio 840A

[chedmaster]

I cannot wait to get my hands on this

Looks like a really serious bit of kit!

see here

Anyone else considering it?

Any ideas on price?

 

[Knyght_byte]

im guessing its aimed somewhere around the Arcam A90/MF A3.5 price range......give or take a few quid anyhow.....

specs seem pretty reasonable......shame they went the gadget route tho and used displays, bass/treble controls etc.....woulda been nice to see them chuck out a top end amp with a purists feel to it......i like CA budget amps, the one i had for a while was very nice (shame it got blown up by lightening, but hey, thanx to that strike i ended up with a 5.1 receiver and now look where i am...LOL)

they gone to the point of effectively (as they put it) making it a pre amp and power amp in one box (not as in an integrated but true separation other than the one box bit)......then spoil it with the bass/treble stuff....hmm....if it doesnt impact on the sound quality then kudos to them.......if this had been coming out in january and 7oaks sold it i woulda put it on my list for the demo.......sadly, a month and £1,500 to late, so my interest is only curiosity...lol

 

[Markie Boy]

Already been released here in Australia. An excellent amp. Sells for AU$2200 over here.

 

[cheechy]

Any reviews available on it yet and how does it compare at its pricepoint? Again I'm looking at Muscial Fidelity and hope I can hold out if this amp is good......

 

[Ed Selley]

The review process is about to begin- we shall see how we do.

 

[cheechy]

What's the situation in regard to availability in the UK?

 

[gerbilly]

I have listened to most of their amps and cd players as well as surround amps costing up to £300 and I have been badly let down compared to the rave reviews. I now think there may be a bit of bias due to the advertising budget of Richer Sounds.
I for one would stick with a name who is used to selling products at this price range.

Anyone else think Cyrrus make the ugliest CD players and amps around, or is it just me?

 

[cheechy]

not the prettiest no but I suspect that the budget assigned to the case design and build may not be the major driver.

Before I spend around 1k on an amp I want to make sure I'm getting the most for my money - its as simple as that

 

[cheechy]

What's the situation in regard to availability in the UK?

Still looking for an answer on this one if someone can help?

 

[Ed Selley]

Apparently it is now due in Richer Sounds presently.

 

[cheechy]

Emailed RS last week and got an answer - basically Ed what you've said is pretty much news to them

Dated 1/03/06:

"Unfortunately I am unaware of a release date for the 840 range"

On the basis of this answer I went out and bought an A3.5 Musical Fidelity.

 

[scooter3]

There's a review of this amp in the April issue of What Hi Fi? It's £750

 

[Prowse]

There's a review of this amp in the April issue of What Hi Fi? It's £750

Yep, and from what I (briefly) read, they only thought it was OK, not great. 4-out-of-5 stars. The problem when you start getting into amps with higher output is keeping the imaging and detail. Shame, 'cos it looks great on paper.

Personally I think Cambridge should concentrate on the cheaper end of the market and leave the mid-range stuff to Arcam etc. I'd love CA to bring out Azur 640R receiver with the ability to use 640 grade stereo power-amps.

 

[Knyght_byte]

as i said above, the problem is they went to the trouble of building a dual mono amp, only to crowd it out with lots of pointless extras........they start off purist then end up crowd pleaser.......silly to my mind.....

i'm sure it sounds very good, but no doubt has more weak points than an equivelant Arcam or Primare.......mebbe it doesnt, i havnt heard it myself yet, is it a Richer Sounds only product? or they gonna let other shops stock it? if 7oaks do i might pop in for a listen one day.....