The stereo amplifier is the beating heart of your hi-fi separates system. At What Hi-Fi?, we have been testing them ever since 1976, and our experienced review team has collectively tested hundreds of integrated amplifiers, priced anywhere from £200 all the way up to £30,000.
You don't have to spend thousands to get a good stereo amplifier, though. In fact, you don't need to spend very much at all to get a truly great integrated amplifier these days.
Right now, there are three superb amps that I can recommend to you at three different price points. These three five-star amps are tried and tested products we constantly recommend. They deliver outstanding sound-per-pound value, and work with a variety of partnering speakers and sources at their respective price levels.
So if you are building a hi-fi separates system and are looking for a budget, mid-priced or premium amplifier, then look no further than this trio of top choices.
Budget: Rotel A8
Our budget amplifier pick at the moment is unequivocally the Rotel A8.
Yes, its styling is quite functional, but at this entry-level price point, Rotel has focused its efforts entirely on the performance of the A8. Still, the amplifier itself is well-built and all controls are nicely engineered and feel satisfying in use.
Unlike the long-running Marantz PM6007 that used to hold the fort as our budget favourite for many years, this Rotel doesn't have any digital inputs. We don't find this to be an issue, as we usually find that the DAC in your music streamer, CD player or even laptop will be on par (or even better) with any digital module fitted in a budget amp. The A8's three line-level RCA and a pair of phono inputs are enough to connect your turntable, streamer and CD player.
The Rotel A8 really shows its mettle with its sound quality, and outshines all of its rivals, which include five-star options from Marantz, Rega and Cambridge Audio. This 30W per channel amp has a fine sense of drive, control and sure-footed agility with rhythms, along with punchy bass.
We find its dynamic ability to be “unusually expressive” at this level, handling large, orchestral dynamic shifts and the subtler shadings in vocal nuance with a great deal of composure and skill. It sounds organised and controlled at moments where its rivals struggle to stay coherent.
The rival Marantz PM6007 offers a larger and more spacious soundstage, but Rotel counters with better detail resolution and digs into subtleties with greater insight. We find it is considerably more articulate and textured when it comes to the lower frequencies than any alternative we have tested.
It simply sounds more authentic and handles music with a calmness that we tend to hear with much pricier amplifiers. We say in our review: “This is an amplifier that just fades into the background, letting the recording and the other components in the system step into the limelight.”
The Rotel A8 works well with similarly budget-friendly partnering equipment, and such is its talent that it will quite likely be the last component in your budget system that will need updating. While a natural set-up would be include the Wharfedale Diamond 12.1 speakers, a Rega Planar 1 turntable, Cambridge MXN10 streamer and/or Marantz CD6007, we tried the A8 in a more premium system involving the KEF LS50 Meta speakers, Rega Planar 3 and Arcam CD5 (these being double the A8's price) and found that the composed Rotel amp more than held its own.
Unassuming, but hugely capable with whatever you pair it with, this pleasingly capable Rotel A8 will reward you greatly at this budget price.
Mid-price: Arcam A15
For a serious step above the budget A8, we have to go with the Award-winning Arcam A15. This burly, sturdy unit boasts 80W per channel (into 8 ohms), an ESS ES9018 DAC chip and offers a generous specification sheet that includes multiple digital and analogue connections.
Optical and coaxial inputs sit alongside RCA line-level and moving-magnet phono inputs. It even has two-way Bluetooth aptX Adaptive codec support, so you can stream songs from your smartphone to the unit as well as play songs back wirelessly on connected Bluetooth headphones. Neat.
Sound-wise, the Arcam 15 is a powerful, precise and poised performer. It's a terrifically open and authoritative sound, and offers excellent grip and composure when confronted with complex musical arrangements. There is punch and drama, but the A15 is also nimble and delicate when it needs to be.
We say in our review: “This Arcam is insightful, tracking the music’s multitude of instrumental strands with skill. Dynamic nuances are conveyed with finesse and we love the way it renders instrumental textures with such delicacy.”
Its stereo imaging is expansive and stable, while its tonal neutrality, combined with clarity and precision, delivers a commanding and involving listening experience that wows us every time we listen to it.
The A15's phono and headphones stages are of good quality too, delivering a dynamically expressive sound that is clear, dynamic and, most of all, enjoyably musical.
The Arcam A15 has fought off many rivals at this price point (and even higher) that we've heard so far, and we would expect anyone buying at this level to take some care with partnering to get the best out of this integrated amplifier. The superb Cyrus CDi, PMC Prodigy 5 floorstanding speakers and Cambridge Audio CXN100 streamer are great options to suit the Arcam A15's commanding presentation.
The A15 is a terrific all-rounder and has a useful array of features to suit everyone – we would highly recommend it as a mid-price option.
Premium: Naim Nait XS3
Now, if you have both the inclination and bank balance to set your sights higher for your hi-fi separates, we can't recommend the Naim Nait XS3 amplifier enough.
Originally released in 2019 and a mainstay of our best stereo amplifiers guide, this Naim integrated has the distinction of winning five What Hi-Fi? Awards in a row and earning a Hall of Fame 2024 entry for its talents – it's even one of our trusty reference amplifiers in our test rooms.
So what's the fuss all about? Naim's amplifier pedigree is legendary, and its engineers have taken obsessive care with the components, circuitry and power stages for this XS3 integrated, including a completely new (and very good, indeed) phono stage.
Once again, the focus is on absolute sound quality so digital inputs have been forsaken for analogue line level and phono inputs. Naim recommends an outboard DAC at this level (or an appropriately talented CD player or streamer with a great DAC integrated).
This Nait XS3 is quite simply a supremely natural, musical performer. There are bigger, more impressive-sounding alternatives – such as the muscular Roksan Blak or the spacious Cambridge Audio EXA100 – but the more dynamically expressive and rhythmically capable Naim gets the intent behind every song across.
Its ability to knit together musical strands in a cohesive manner is unmatched at this level. It's an insightful, agile and enthusiastic performer, balancing bombastic punch and finesse and emotion in equal measure. Voices are beautifully nuanced and emotive – you can hear the personalities behind every word and every note.
The phono stage in the Nait XS3 deserves special mention. Built-in phono stages don't always sound the best, but this one delivers a detailed, punchy and lively performance.
We said in our original review that this Naim amp delivers “a musical and emotionally absorbing performance” – and its greatest strength is the ability to get you fully involved with the songs being played. Its “fit and forget” nature convinces you to pay less attention to any critical analysis when listening and simply enjoy the music instead.
It is, of course, part of our reference system. We have used so many different components with this Naim amp, and it has never faltered. Pair it with equally highly talented components, such as the Rega Planar 8 turntable, Epos ES14N speakers and Naim's own Uniti Atom HE streamer at the bare minimum, and you're in for a treat.
This is an amplifier that gets straight to the heart of the music – and that's the mark of a truly great piece of hi-fi. If your budget stretches this high, this Naim is the one to get.
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