New Line of Bryston Amps

According to Mono & Stereo Bryston will announce at the upcoming CES the new SST3 amps. Curious to see what the price increase will be.

 

I'll be interested to see what they come out with. For awhile now, I've been contemplating buying a power amp or two from them as an upgrade and replacement for what I currently use, and will wait to consider the new models. I'll probably choose new speakers first and then determine whether or not Bryston will have an appropriate synergistic product to drive them.

 

I just purchased a 2.5SST2 about 5 months ago. It's resulted in a great match w/my older Aerial 6's. According to James Tanner at Bryston they are working on a upgrade program for the SST2's. Price for the new line will be about 10% more. If you go to Audio Circle the Bryston forum has pictures of the new SST3's.

 

bryston aren't the big value they were 10 years ago and more, so the heat is on them for sure regarding the 3 lineup.

if they can play with the big boy boutique stuff...you know, stuff in the 15-20k range and up, then bryston's gonna be really batting 1000.

if not, bryston's gonna have some angry people on their hands.

i know i'm biased, but i'd say that bryston's gonna come out smelling like a rose. these canucks ain't stupid, ya know?

 

I heard from a few people who have heard the new cube series that the sound is smoother, which I take to mean warmer. If so, this will make Bryston more appealing to many people. But I'd prefer the old honest sound.

motorcycledave...Glad to see you post here again.

 

I heard the new 7 Cubed monos this weekend at a friend's place and it was interesting as I used to own 7B SST Squared. His speakers are the Bryston Model T's with the outboard crossovers. The Cubed amps sound not so much smoother/warmer as they sound like they have rolled off the top end a bit. Outside of that, they were very much like the Squared series in that compared to the big boys MotorcityDave referred to, they still exhibit the same issues noted in the Fremer Stereophile review : smeared detail, small soundstage with little depth and less bass control than you'd think they'd have. We got to compare them to my friend's Esoteric A-02 and frankly, they didn't compare. The Cubed amps are already starting to show up on the resale sites and that can't be good considering the amps are the Bryston flagship product. I think the hype has been pumped up but you'll notice there haven't been any professional reviews as you would expect there might be by now to coincide with the launch.

D.D.

 

I currently have an 2.5SST2 matched up w/a CJ ET-3SE and a Linn TT. If the new Bryston is on the warm side it may be too much for my system.

 

I got to hear my first Bryston gear two weeks ago at a headphone meet. It was the BHA-1 headphone amp. I wasn't sure what to expect from the amp. Didn't know if the sound was going to be bright, heavily SS, smooth, or what. Turns out the sound is very good. Nicely smooth without being mushy. And to me that is good SS sound. The amp was paired with a Jolida Glass FX Tube DAC. A DAC that I have never heard before. So it's difficult to know how much of the smoothness was due to the amp and how much was due to the DAC. But what I heard made it clear that the amp was in the category of headphone amps that I like. I'm in the market for a good SS headphone amp. And the Bryston is on the list now. I don't know where in the Bryston house style of sound the BHA-1 fits compared to their other gear, but I like it. The sound was smooth, but I didn't consider it overly warm.

 

I also only had one experience hearing a piece of Bryston gear. It was 7 or 8 years ago at a stereo shop, and was a Bryston CD player. I remember listening to a Yes cd I had brought on a system using the Rega Apollo CD player and Epos speakers, and really liking the sound. I then asked if I could sample it on a more expensive system, which I only remember consisted of the Bryston CD player and I think some middle range B&W speakers, probably the CM range. I know it's not a fair comparison as not all components were equal, I just remember being very unimpressed with the more expensive Bryston-led system and preferring the sound and musicality of the more 'budget' system of Rega and Epos.

 

The Bryston BCD-1. I owned one of those for about a year and a half. I thought it was a pretty good-sounding player at the time. Traded it in when they announced that they were discontinuing it because they couldn't get the particular Phillips drives they were using in it anymore. I see they're getting ready to do another CD player.

D.D.

 

Yes that was the model. If I remember I think at the time it sold for somewhere in the $2000-$2500 range. I thought the Rega for much less money compared favorably.

 

definitely food for thought, which leads me to think that i might be better off just keeping my 4bsst (not sst2) amp....the problem is, is that the 11 out of 10 stuff is gonna cost. a lot.

when i say big boy stuff, i mean accuphase, mcintosh mc452 and up, fm acoustics, soulution, mbl, vitus, boulder, most of the pass labs line...etc, etc.

i am a bit surprised at the appearance on the used market so quickly. as well as no reviews yet, but that could be bryston holding back product from the mags for some odd reason. possibly that stereophile review of the 7bsst2...i still feel that was kind of a shoddy review, but we can't always agree on equipment, especially high end audio

if thehorse gets out of the barn, then bryston might be in trouble...

anyway, we'll see what happens...it's gonna get interesting that's for sure.

 

I can't see replacing my 4BSST anytime soon. 10 years in, it's been a workhorse and is just unbelievably musical in my setup. I may just have to look for a used one to keep as a backup.

 

i've had my 4bsst for 9 years. it definitely is a workhorse. i auditioned a pass labs x350.5, and yes it does sound better to me than the bryston. however, it is much more expensive than what i paid for the 4bsst. also, the bryston runs much cooler and doesn't draw as much from the line, causing the meters to spin like a top.

the point is, is that can you do better than a 4bsst? maybe so, but you can do a lot worse. a lot. and imo, you'll have to spend $$$$$ to better it on the overall. also, the 4bsst is a steal on the used market, especially ones that have say, 10 years left on the warranty.

 

Where did you see this? Will it be a CD player or just a Transport?

 

One-box CD player - Redbook dedicated. Thread about it in Audiocircle.

D.D.

 

I agree, I could probably do better but I am not sure the ROI is worth it. Especially since the Bryston fits so well in my system. I think I just saw a used one for sale for $998.

 

exactly, but what's roi?

anyway, the 4bsst/bp6 pre combo is pretty damn musical, imo. again, there's better but usually at a higher cost. it's just too bad that bryston is not the stone cold value it once was. $998? that's a damn good deal. especially if there's more than 5 years of warranty left and if it was well taken care of...

as far as the 3 cubed series is concerned, the faceplates are a bit odd looking, imo. the way to get around this is by buying the pro versions which look exactly like the early sst faceplates. i didn't even care all that much for the consumer c-series/sst2 faceplates. also, by buying from a pro audio dealer, you'll get a bigger discount than from a hi-fi dealer. which is why i bought my 4bsst from a pro audio dealer...so it's a win-win situation. but first and foremost is if i like the sound...if not, the deal is off.

 

Return On Investment

 

oh ok, lol. thanks.

it depends on which brand you buy...for example, the accuphase stuff is way too expensive here in the usa compared to europe and the far east. so much so that people are buying from internet dealers like pricejapan and audio cubes. therefore, even if you buy from a domestic dealer with a healthy 30 percent discount, you're gonna lose your shirt on the used market. accuphase is 3 times the price here than in japan, and is the highest price in the entire world if i'm not mistaken. i've done the math on taxes, customs, shipping,and other fees by importing yourself and i know damn well it's nothing more than greed by the distributor,imo. his prices are absolutely not justified at all. is it sour grapes on my end? you damn betcha. i want an accuphase amp, the p-7300, but i'm not paying 30k usd list to have 1. screw that.

on the other side of the coin are the bigger mcintoshes, which compared to accuphase, are quite less expensive...domestically, that is. and the macs have great resale value, as well as great looks and pretty good sound over all...but at least the mc452 on up...the smaller amps aren't quite as good, they're just ok, imo.

 

I am looking at getting the 4B3 second hand and glad I found this thread. What else would one recommend in the $3-4K range if not the Bryston? I am running a pair of Vandersteen 3A sigs in a fairly large (but dampened) room.

Also, does anyone know if the warranty will cross over into other countries? They changed their terms and conditions and require an authorized seller original receipt but also added a line about country of origin. Does this mean they will only fix in a repair shop where I live? Or if the original amp came from Canada and I live in the USA then the deal is off?

Bryston Limited: Warranty »

"As of 2006-02-22 Bryston will only warranty Bryston products purchased through authorized Bryston dealers. Bryston products with a date code of 0608 or higher (date code format is “yyww”, where “yy” is the two least significant digits of the year and “ww” is the week of the year) must be accompanied by a copy of the bill-of-sale from a Bryston authorized dealer to qualify for warranty service. The warranty is transferable from the original owner to a subsequent owner as long as a copy of the bill-of-sale from the original authorized Bryston dealer accompanies the re-sale. The copy of the bill of sale to any subsequent owner need ONLY include the Name of the Bryston Authorized Dealer and the Model and Serial number of the Bryston product. The warranty will only be honoured in the country of the original purchase unless otherwise pre-authorized by Bryston."

 

I bought my 4BSST2 just as the "cubed" started to ship to dealers. The "squared" became a discontinued model and I was able to negotiate a great deal on a display model that a dealer had. It came with the full 20 years, new box and packing and Bryston was able to supply the original quality control checkout sheet. The dealer is in Canada and I live in the USA. Bryston assured me there would never be an issue getting service from the nearest certified location and if I wanted it done at the factory that would never be an issue either. I spoke to the Bryston Service person about 4 times with various questions. Everyone at Bryston was friendly and willing to answer every question I had. Bryston has got to be one of the finest consumer oriented companies it this industry.

 

Awesome! Thanks...I know they are reasonable people but the text speaks for itself.

 

I know I will not go for an Accuphase. A Mac or a Bryston is a possibility ...

 

I just secured a used 4B3 and should have it arrive by end of week (used for a few months). Really looking forward to seeing how this works with my Vandersteen 3A Signatures. It will be replacing a 20 year old Conrad Johnson MF2300a which isn't a slouch by any means. It is rare I get the chance to own the latest model of anything. All my research points to this amp as something I can grow into moving forward as I want to change from single unbalanced to fully balanced as well. Will give a full report and a few pics when I finally get everything wired up.