I didn't expect to be getting into integrated amplifiers this way. After a pleasant enough encounter with the Onix 0A30 two years ago, the prospect of spending days, let alone weeks, with integrated amplifiers in the Big Rig wasn't a total turn off, but I didn't relish it either.

Here we have three integrateds that span the price envelope from around $750 to $1,500. Of the three, I'm tempted to say that the Bryston B-60 is a flat out landmark component with all the greatness and staying power of an NAD 3020, the original Quad electrostatic, or the Linn LP-12. That's some heady company to be placed in, and I realize that with the number of incredible components we have covered lately, it may appear that MGD is stuck in the hyperbole mode and everything is making him flip his widget. We certainly don't want to get into some kind of craziness where everything that is reviewed is "the best ever. That would not do. But in this case we truly do have one integrated that is the equal of at least half of the separate combinations one can buy (the Bryston), and two integrateds that perform at a level far exceeding anything one could expect to obtain from separates (amp and preamp) at a similar price point when combined. I'll never sell this type of gear short again.

If you lack an understanding of just what an integrated amplifier is, it's little more than a preamplifier and a power amplifier in the same metal chassis. The back of the chassis has speaker terminals along with input jacks for CD players, tuners and the like. With an integrated, one no longer needs a set of interconnects to span the distance from amp to preamp, and (at least with all integrateds that I am familiar with) there is only one power cord to go to the wall. Hence, the immediate savings of the cost of one set of interconnects and one AC power cord. Two of the integrateds here have phono board options of useable vintage, though I would hesitate to use either in a system of substantial resolution. With an integrated amp lifter one has the advantage of automatic compatibility between the amp and the preamp. There is no worrying about input and output impedances, tonal mismatches or the existence of a sonic synergy between the two units - it's all built in. Most integrateds use a single power transformer to energize .the power supplies for both the preamp and power amp sections of the design, and the power supply is certainly within the same chassis and metal work as the rest of the internal circuitry. By its very nature an integrated amplifier tends to breach many of the high-end design laws and electrical traditions that we impose upon equipment we consider worthy of our time and attention. That is going to change around here.

By creating the B-60, Bryston may have caused itself, and many other manufacturers of separate audio components, many a sleepless night. There is no other way I can be more upfront and open about the whole thing, no matter how unconventional the results, or upsetting the news of this may be to some. The B-60 is not only an outstanding integrated amplifier, it also outperforms many, if not most, of the separate (amp/preamp) combinations that I have heard or am aware of. Those are big words bound to upset some who have a stake in the separates market, or who may simply have an unshakable faith in the way things have been done in the past regarding high end amps and preamps. All of which lessens not one bit the significance of this component from Bryston. Short of using a power amp in the three grand range, and a preamp costing similar dinaro, few combinations of separate amp and preamp can exceed what the B-60 is able to do alone. And so as to leave you in no doubt of the import of what I am trying to express, I would at this time put the performance of the B-60 above most of he old time BFS fave combinations. I feel that there is no doubt that the B-60 is a more accurate performer than the Musical Designs SP-2B/ PSE Studio IV combination that performed so well in the Everything's a Thousand System put together a few years back. And that's the best combo that I know of for under two thousand dollars. Adding an 0CM 55 preamp to the PSE amp would make the contest a closer one, but despite the thousand dollar advantage the separates would then have, I wouldn't bet against the Bryston. And I could go on and on. But what I'm really saying here is that it takes some big time equipment to outdo the B-60. The combinations would together have to cost in the $4,000-6,000 range, and it would have to be equipment that was synergistically matched and set-up to the nines. Randomly picked out amps and preamps costing $10,000 each would take a real beating at the hands of this minnie-might. And one can forget pairing the B-60 against the integrateds that I've seen come out of the Orient. The build quality alone of the Bryston puts it way ahead.

Build quality and set-up. It's all Bryston, from the dual trannies to each regulated voltage gain stage. Internal wiring is at a minimum, and Bryston uses quality circuit boards and internal parts all the way through. The RCA jacks are flush mounted directly to a rear panel circuit board which is in turn connected to the active gain circuitry via computer grade ribbon wire. The two transformers independently power the right and left channels, and the power supplies for the preamp and the power amplifiers are located in distinctly different sections of the chassis. The hands on inspection revealed nothing about the design that appeared intentionally compromised in order to save a buck, the twenty year warranty precludes that. And therein lies the basis for the price tag. $1,500 for the basic model, and almost $1,800 for the remote version exceeds substantially what one expects to pay for an integrated amplifier. That's where our old time preconceptions come into play.

Most 'philes wouldn't think twice about dropping three grand for a decently performing amp/preamp combo; or, if they did, at least they wouldn't consider the same as out of the realm of possibilities for a present or future system. Why then the double standard when it comes to an integrated? Maybe because most integrateds in the past have stunk sonically, and have been poorly constructed. I know that I have stayed away from them for those very reasons, and I assume a great many of you have too. But with the Bryston, and to a lesser degree the other two units reviewed here, the reasons of the past no longer hold true. At a point in time when audiophiles are looking for value and high performance in the same package, the Bryston B-60 seems to be pressing all the right buttons for the audiophile and videophile markets.

Set-up was a breeze. Four AudioQuest Sorbothane pucks were used as footers. I used a single TG Audio HSRpower cord into the AudioPrism ACFX for AC. If one so desires, one can substitute the Sidereal power cord for the TG for equally positive results. Interconnects and speaker cables for all testing were from JPS, and the speakers used were the Merlin TSM's. Set-up with a quality digital front end, this was some kind of system! I should note that for a little less money ($1,200), one can receive almost equally spectacular performance with the Speaker Art Clef loudspeakers. See the Clef review in 9/96.

Break-in time is about a week of constant use. When not in use, I activated the mute switch via the remote to keep things warmed-up. Initially the sound was overly warm and fuzzy, but I could tell that something special was going on. After a month of use, the unit was really starting to sing.

Degree of Absolute Transparency. You already know that this integrated is capable of some pretty amazing sound for its cost and size. So, instead of the usual blow-by-blow description of spectral balance, imaging, dynamic range and on, and on, let's get down to the Big Picture right off the bat. The salient sonic characteristic of the B-60 is its lack of noticeable electronic artifacts or signatures. As a result, its overall sound reminds one of a warm audio nest; a place to get comfy with the music, to experience all the joys incumbent with a good recording. Music sounds relaxed and right through it. What makes this all work is the way it retrieves detail from a recording. Many units that have the warm and comfy feel to their sound, lack the ability to accurately reproduce details. With the B-GO, details, including the leading edges of transients large and small, come across as naturally revealed and proportionate to fundamentals. Not seeming exaggerated, but still quivering with life, the B-GO allows the music to bloom dynamically and tonally. Between the sounds on the stage there is a noticeable lack of grunge and grain - the air is clear and the images are vivid.

Now, if this description of the B-60's sonics seem overly subjective, colorful and emotional in terms of its prose, remember that everything said above could have been related to you in terms of amplitude accuracy, frequency linearity, degrees of phase, and db's of noise. It's a dryer way of describing things, and certainly one that is less tolerant of creative expression, but everything that one hears can be described in terms of physical happenings, ie.; in terms of amplitude, frequency, phase and noise. A reviewer can objectively relate to another person the performance of a device in either manner, and be correct and accurate in doing so. Sometimes a frequency response aberration can best be described in terms of a deviation from a zero point, such as +2 db. But manufacturers such as Bryston long ago discovered how to design a circuit that is from all measurable aspects "perfect". Aragon can do it too, and so can RE Designs, and Krell, and PSE, and Symfonia, and SAC, and... you get my drift. Yet no one in their right mind would dare suggest that each one of these designs sound exactly the same. But they all measure perfect. Or do they? Well, not really. When the right kinds of measurements are possible, they will all measure differently too in terms of amplitude, frequency, phase and noise, but the necessary tests are not yet in place. Our ears and brains can hear those differences now without the need to invent some new test that strains the capabilities of today's comparison and measurement devices. And if the ear and brain can do that now, why withhold a colorful description of the day's events if it is an accurate one?

Back to the B-60. Negatives are strangely related to the positives that the unit displays. The warm audio nest characteristic of the amp is an indication of a wideband frequency rise, regardless of how small, in the mids and lower mids. The extreme clarity of the highs allows the B-60 to sound natural even with the micro-rise. The bass could be tighter. I know the damping factor is above 500 at 20 hz. Bass energy can run away a bit, however, when the material is bass demanding and you have decided to punch up the volume. And while I haven't had the opportunity to try such a combination, my guess is that this bass negative with a cone woofer might make the B-60 something of a perfect match for some of the smaller Maggies (don't forget the long time association of Bryston with Magneplanar).

Compared against the Symfonia Opus 8 preamp and the RE Designs amps (flow that just ain't fair), the B-60 isn't quite as harmonically full or correct. It's ridiculously close to the Symfonia/ RE Designs combo, even when price is not a consideration, but it doesn't quite resolve down to the last drop the way the best separates do. Which maybe no more than the B-60 not having the budget for the enormous power supplies that one is paying for in the best gear.

Conclusion. I think that Bryston is going to let me work with the B-6O for a while in order to put together a complete audio system based around it. I already have some speakers and some wire. About all that I need now is a digital front-end that is as good without spending $5,000 for it. My initial suggestion would have been the Audio Alchemy DTI/DDE 3.0 with CG Transforms transport, but I'm waiting to see what the New AA is going to be like. The perfect digital mate would be a box player that performed like a separate ODAP/transport system. Ideally, it would be a little upscale from the digital system we selected for the Everythings a Thousand system, though the G&D Transforms player might do the trick. The Andrew's might also work if I can get it away from the Curmudgeon. I'm scheduled for a new Transforms player and transport soon, and I'll try to get the Andrews, but in the meantime, if you are a manufacturer of something digital that might be able to keep up with the B-60 for less than a grand or two, let me know.

We invite you to experience the Bryston SST² Series amplifiers

20 Year Warranty - A Generation of Music