Every so often a deal comes along that leaves us with our jaws on the floor. The JBL SA550 Classic down to just £649 at Peter Tyson is one of those deals.
To put things in context, we tested the four-star amplifier at £1749 and praised its smooth and rich sound, good detail, hugely likeable presentation, and attractive retro-inspired design.
JBL SA550 Classic deal
The JBL SA550 Classic integrated amplifier blends stylish retro appeal with great build quality and, at this level, a stunning low price.
The amp feels solid to the touch, while the front panel's brushed fascia contrasts neatly with its exterior wooden panels to add an air of luxurious desirability.
Its power output is rated at 90W into 8 ohms, with the amp favouring Class G amplification and twin internal power supplies for greater efficiency.
In terms of connectivity, the JBL amp offers aux and headphone inputs at the front, while the back panel houses a set of speaker terminals, four analogue inputs (including a moving magnet phono stage for a turntable), and three digital inputs, which feed the amp’s ESS ES9038K2M DAC chip.
There's also Bluetooth connectivity with support for aptX Adaptive if you have a compatible source.
It's not like JBL is giving away a white elephant here, either. During testing, we found the SA550 Classic incredibly easy to get along with thanks to its smooth, cohesive and weighty delivery.
To quote from our review: "Thanks to the amp’s smooth nature, high frequencies never come close to sounding uncomfortable, even with particularly poor recordings."
It's capable of being a lot of fun, too. A track such as Empire State Of Mind by Jay-Z and Alicia Keys goes hard thanks to the JBL's enthusiastic reproduction of the track’s thumping bass line, and despite sounding a little fat, it still does more than enough to capture the song's propulsive energy.
We thought the JBL was a good shout at its full asking price, but now it's crashed down to £649 at Peter Tyson, we think it demands an even closer look.
More than £1000 off? Bafflingly outrageous value.
Oh, and if you fancy a source to go with your amp, you can grab the JBL CD350 Classic CD Player for £299 at Peter Tyson while you're at it.
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