TNT-Audio has published a review of the positively German Abacus Rieder 60-120B power amp (EUR 790) and 6-2RC preamp (EUR 660). Reviewer Maarten van Casteren thought the power amp was a good value but exhibited a certain amount of listener fatigue:
This is not to say that it is without flaws, and the most serious problem is a slight tendency to induce fatigue after a few hours of listening. Some people are more concerned with this than others, but for me this is important. On the other hand, I don’t think there are many power amps in this price range that do much better in this respect, and if they do you pay for it with a less engaging sound.
Maarten’s take on the preamp was less positive, describing it as “somewhat restrained, choked even.” His conclusion?
I’m more impressed with the power amp than with the preamp. Not that there’s anything deeply wrong with the pre: it actually works very well and sounds about as good as you would expect at the price, but the power amp simply is better value.
Read the entire review, then check out the manufacturer’s comments at the end. I’m not sure what Abacus’ Karl-Heinz Sonder is trying to say, but it would certainly be easier to figure out if a real translater was involved.
Great site – appreciate the updates and highlights – was wondering if you were considering a review of the review sites – you seem to be an authority on who is doing what and I, for one of many, have found many new and enjoyable sites from browsing your site.
Regardless – keep up the great work and thank you!
Thanks for the kind words, Nunh. I’m not planning a “review of the review sites,” but it’s an interesting idea. I’ll consider it!