New Rega Brio for 2017

Then the Brio is not the product that you are wanting. You really need only a better phono preamp. Rega makes a unit called the Fono MM, which will work nicely there and cost less. A more affordable unit is available called the Fono Mini A2D, and they also offer the even better Aria: http://www.rega.co.uk/phono-stages.html
-Bill

 

Thanks Bill, that has put me on the right track.
I think the Aria might be a little too much money, I have since been looking at the Graham Slee Era Gold V and the Pro-Ject Tube Box DS as alternatives.
Roundabout the £400-£500 range.

 

I have the Rega Elex-R and LS50 combo and it sounds fantastic. Having spent the weekend at the Bristol Hi-Fi show I was surprised at how warm my combo sounds compared to a lot of the Bristol demonstrations, many of which seemed bright or unnaturally toppy to me. Don't forget about the new KEF LS50 wireless also!

 

That's also pretty typical of trade shows. New equipment, not burned in (particularly in the case of affordable hi-fi brands). They load up the stuff for the show and go.
Expensive and cost no object high end cannot afford that. No demo instead of bad demo. Generally they bring seasoned and good sounding gear. Not every time though.

 

Total audiophile newbie here so any help would be greatly appreciated...

I'm really interested by the new Brio and should be getting my hands on one pretty soon. I plan on mainly using headphones with it, but I'm on the lookout for bookshelf speakers to hook to it. I'm looking for a good fit, nothing too cheap or too overkill, something to make the most of the Brio. Would you guys have any suggestions?

 

Rega RX1. Rega plays nice with Rega; it's synchronicity.

 

Listen to what you can locally. Any hi-fi speaker (with only one or two exceptions in the history of hifi...) can be driven to reasonable levels by the Brio. There is no substitute for hands on experience and you'll want to consider brands available to you locally, as opposed to an assortment of wild, useless suggestions by the interweb entangled masses.
-Bill

 

I'd love to but I live in the middle of nowhere. It's 500 miles to the nearest decent AV shop I read that the Brio can be tricky to pair with speakers, hence my search for proven parings.

 

Maybe look for a used set of Rega RS1. There should be no issues with that combination and you won't break the bank. If you aren't totally satisfied or want to upgrade later you won't be too invested in the speakers, and if they are used you won't lose much on depreciation. Are you placing them on book shelves or thinking about stands?

 

Welcome to the forum.
Brio is not even close to being tricky paired with speakers that it is most likely to be paired with. A great match (IMO) for very low money are ELACs B6 bookshelves and F5 towers of Andrew Jones' Debit line. The unify series is too hard to drive but if you listen to wispy music without real full range demands the amp will drive them.
Maggies need not apply or any old MLs. Newer MLs like the previous model Electromotion are a good overall match. Nothing that really dips below 4 ohms with weird phase angles or reactive loads (even though the amp is reported to drive as low as 1.7 ohms).

You can go wrong with trying the ELAC s, can order them on Amazon and send them back if you don't like the results.
As others also mentioned, old RS1s are also great, but lighter on bass.
Make sure that you buy the latest Brio, it's a significant step up from the -R (IME).
Good luck!

 

Had a good listen to the new Brio on the weekend. Sounded pretty fine, although the dealer put the hard sell on by demoing it with a UK first press of DSOTM. He's offered to allow me to bring my Elac B6s in to listen with so I'll be doing that as soon as time allows.

 

Would any of you that have heard or own the Brio past and present model agree that it has a 'British' sound? Meaning it has lots of PRAT but lacking perhaps in fine detail? This was said to me in another forum comparing the sound of Rega gear vs American gear like that of Emotiva for instance that has more of a 'straight wire and gain' approach. This statement says to me that the Rega and or other British gear would be more fun to listen to but maybe is less 'Purist' in design and sound. Any thoughts?

 

The current Brio has oodles of fine detail. More extended and linear than the R model, quieter, with better separation between details. That's what I get here using ELAC and Rega RX3 speakers. A class act IMO that no amp in the category matches. Read WhatHIFI s review closely. I couldn't says it any better. Ultimately, visit a dealer and listen to one. Do it on your own speakers or close to it.
No one in their right mind should be disappointed. Good luck and remember to have fun! Remember, that's what it's all about.

I've only heard one Emotiva product and that was a multichannel amp. Good value for money but it didn't boil me over sonically. Based on this experience I doubt that it would be any more 'straight wire with gain' than Rega.

 

Agree. They've not topped the 'clamshell' designs, in my opinion.

 

None of the high end is purist. It's all voiced to meet specific preferences. With tone controls removed to ensure you 'trade up' for that bass tone you want. Or even further up to get that top end 'sparkle'.

 

Does your dealer feel like he's doing you a favour allowing you to bring your speakers in? How much of what you hear is going to be amp and how much is going to be the dealer's room?

Take the amp home.

 

No he was pretty cool with it - agreed that it was a good idea.

Taking it home is a bridge too far though I'm afraid - it's the only one he has and it's proving popular - although I agree that would be ideal.

 

The better scenario is to buy it, try it at home and return it if you don't like it. Arrange for this in advance. I have a Brio R and there was no way I was going to return it. I like it that much. Thank you Goldprint Audio.

 

Just wait until your dealer is willing to let you take it for a spin. If that day never comes find a different dealer.

 

I live on a very small island with very few Rega dealers.....

Besides I'm in rented accomodation, and won't be here for too much longer.... If it take my TT and speakers in (I know that a listening room is an idealised environment) I won't be missing too much - who knows what my next place is going to look and sound like?

 

Rega need to get out there, as it's the most expensive city on earth (apparently).

 

Do the buttons and the new volume controll feel better than the old model? =)

 

Yes, very solid and positive, especially the volume knob. I doubt that you'll be fiddling with it much, that's why the amp offers RC.

 

It's not as bad as it's made out... And what those assessments take into account is that I pay about 1/4 of what the Brits do in income tax

 

Update - LS50s bought & currently wired up to my nad d3020. Keen to upgrade the amp. I'm thinking of auditioning the new brio & the new nad c338 for £600, has a chromecast and dac built in plus a phono stage and should have no problems with power. Almost sounds too good to be true from nad: brio plus a network streamer like a bluesound node 2 would set me back £1k... any thoughts?
NAD's new C338 stereo amplifier has Chromecast built in