B&K audio components any good?

[jleon92f]

Hi, My son can get a B&K power amp 200.7 series or something like that. and the Ref 50II preamp. are these any good. He asked me and I have not really heard of them.

Thanks for any help or information on.

John.

 

[RossW]

B&K made (makes?) pretty nice stuff. If he can get them for a good price I say go for it. One caveat is that if the preamp is anything like the preamp section of my AVR307 it will be a NIGHTMARE to fix if anything goes wrong so make sure it is 100% functional.

 

[Omair]

I have tried some B&K amps and a friend of mine has the B&K m200 sonata monoblocks. I can't say that we're impressed with the them. In my limited experience I find them to lack certain definition to tonal quality that I'm able to pick up with other amps, like Aragon MKII's, or the Acurus a140.

Again, this is from my limited experience, so I'll let the more wizened AK'rs chime in.

 

[jleon92f]

B&K made (makes?) pretty nice stuff. If he can get them for a good price I say go for it. One caveat is that if the preamp is anything like the preamp section of my AVR307 it will be a NIGHTMARE to fix if anything goes wrong so make sure it is 100% functional.

I have tried some B&K amps and a friend of mine has the B&K m200 sonata monoblocks. I can't say that we're impressed with the them. In my limited experience I find them to lack certain definition to tonal quality that I'm able to pick up with other amps, like Aragon MKII's, or the Acurus a140.

Again, this is from my limited experience, so I'll let the more wizened AK'rs chime in.

Thanks guys I will let him know to make sure they work well or to his liking.

Thanks,
John.

 

[hatrack71]

I sure do like my B&K stuff. I basically have a whole 7.1 B&K separates theater- Reference 30, ST-260 (bridged), 2140, ST-140 mono blocks, and an ST-1400. I have been wanting to set it up with my Heritage Klipsch speakers and take it for a spin but space is not a luxury I have right now.

 

[gearhound]

I ran B&K components (Pro 5 pre-amp & ST-140 amplifier) for 20 years (1988-2008), without a single problem.
The great majority of the time with a pair of little but VERY power-hungry B&W DM-12 speakers.
The B&k set-up did NOT give me the last ounce of detail, nor the tightest bass on the planet.
What B&K did give me in spades was a VERY smooth-n'-spacious sound, more akin to a tube amp, than say a solid-state amp like an NAD or ADCOM.

Steve

 

[2chanman]

jleon92f:

Are you aware that B&K went belly up a few months ago? I have heard also that another company has bought the name since then, but who knows what kind of factory service will be available, if any.

 

[jleon92f]

jleon92f:

Are you aware that B&K went belly up a few months ago? I have heard also that another company has bought the name since then, but who knows what kind of factory service will be available, if any.

No, I did not know that. I will let my son know.

Thanks,
John.

 

[MJWPicMan]

Hi, My son can get a B&K power amp 200.7 series or something like that. and the Ref 50II preamp. are these any good. He asked me and I have not really heard of them.

Thanks for any help or information on.

John.

My experience with B&K is pretty much on par with the other replies. Pretty well built and dependable. Not the best definition or clarity, but a nice warm sound. Not high end, but better than say Adcom. Not a bad place to start.

 

[Glen B]

B&K is not "belly up." The company was acquired by ATI (Amplifier Technologies Inc) -- a good company -- and is currently up and running.

http://www.bkcomp.com/

http://www.ati-amp.com/index.html

In the '90s I owned a B&K Sonata MC-101 (same as the PRO10MC but with tone controls). This was a very well built preamp, with high quality parts, outboard power supply, and very good MM/MC phono stage. The MC-101 offered a true glimpse of high end performance that was quite grain-free, smooth and detailed, IMO competing well with preamps in the under $1,500 range. I recall that the amps like the ST-140 and M-200, got good magazine reviews. The newer amps like the 200.7 may be a different animal soundwise from the older models.

 

[thedelihaus]

I found the earlier stereo-centric stuff to be great- later stuff was aimed more towards home theater, and was great for that application.

The earlier stuff had what was considered a very warm and what would be considered "tube-like" in presentation.

The ST-140 was a Stereophile delight- despite being a bit soft in the bass, and soft in detail.

However, move up to the ST-202 or the ST-202+ (a higher class A biased version) and the bass is far from soft- the amp is tighter, clearer, more robust, more powerful.

Go to the top models, the EX-442 or the monobloc version of the 442, the M-200s, and you get even more clarity and bass control but retain that warm smooth presentation that won over quite a few audiophiles.

Here's Sam Tellig's (of Stereophile) opinion of the top of the line models:

"...The B&Ks have this see-through quality... The sound is smooth and sweet. There is a total absence of grain in the treble.

They (also) have what the British critics like to call SLAM (or now referred to as PRAT)- good timing, tightness, rhythm in the bass... the B&Ks "let go of the music..."

Sam Tellig, STEREOPHILE



I pair my B&K EX-442 Sonata with a PSE preamplifier- an amplifier that's predominantly neutral but with a slight lean towards the analytical/detailed sound.

The end result for me is a very ideal match- all that beloved warmth that audiophiles feel gives a presentation considered "musical" with (via the pre-amp) a cleanly presented, refined and accurate level of detail, without ever becoming harsh or grating, and absolutely no fatigue.

Thiel speakers, as dictated by Jim Thiel himself, mate well with B&K amps. And Vandersteen used to run the 2Cs on PSE gear, by the way.


The later home theater stuff remains quality gear and of high quality but it is a different animal than the earlier for-stereo designed kit.

Note that the pre-amps get much more complex than the earlier stereo-only models, and the amps changed somewhat too- some folk argue not as good, but that may amount to nothing more than audio forum banter- they still hold their value well.

 

[jleon92f]

I found the earlier stereo-centric stuff to be great- later stuff was aimed more towards home theater, and was great for that application.

The earlier stuff had what was considered a very warm and what would be considered "tube-like" in presentation.

The ST-140 was a Stereophile delight- despite being a bit soft in the bass, and soft in detail.

However, move up to the ST-202 or the ST-202+ (a higher class A biased version) and the bass is far from soft- the amp is tighter, clearer, more robust, more powerful.

Go to the top models, the EX-442 or the monobloc version of the 442, the M-200s, and you get even more clarity and bass control but retain that warm smooth presentation that won over quite a few audiophiles.

Here's Sam Tellig's (of Stereophile) opinion of the top of the line models:

"...The B&Ks have this see-through quality... The sound is smooth and sweet. There is a total absence of grain in the treble.

They (also) have what the British critics like to call SLAM (or now referred to as PRAT)- good timing, tightness, rhythm in the bass... the B&Ks "let go of the music..."

Sam Tellig, STEREOPHILE



I pair my B&K EX-442 Sonata with a PSE preamplifier- an amplifier that's predominantly neutral but with a slight lean towards the analytical/detailed sound.

The end result for me is a very ideal match- all that beloved warmth that audiophiles feel gives a presentation considered "musical" with (via the pre-amp) a cleanly presented, refined and accurate level of detail, without ever becoming harsh or grating, and absolutely no fatigue.

Thiel speakers, as dictated by Jim Thiel himself, mate well with B&K amps. And Vandersteen used to run the 2Cs on PSE gear, by the way.


The later home theater stuff remains quality gear and of high quality but it is a different animal than the earlier for-stereo designed kit.

Note that the pre-amps get much more complex than the earlier stereo-only models, and the amps changed somewhat too- some folk argue not as good, but that may amount to nothing more than audio forum banter- they still hold their value well.

Hi, Thanks for the reply,both my sons live in MA. Fall River and Dartmouth. I told him to sign up on AK, and read some stuff.:scratch2:
He worked for "Tweeter" for a while.

Thanks,
John.