TESTED: Krell S-300i Integrated Amplifier

Powerhouse

Krell is a company I don’t ordinarily associate with blue-plate audio values. I had to continually remind myself that the S-300i is only a $2500 amp; yet I was comparing it to amps twice the price and more. What blew me away was the balance Krell has struck between the sonic expectations of traditional audiophiles and a new generation of hobbyists whose priorities also include modern functionality and features. Choosing an integrated amp just got a whole lot more complicated. But remember to bend your knees.

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KRELL UNCOVERED

The S-300i is a smooth operator from a company that knows the territory. Its functions and configurability illustrate Krell’s crossover expertise in home cinema and the high end. Fit and finish are stunning-. Wholly designed in Orange, CT, and built in China to Krell’s specifications, the casework is seamless; edges and trim are smoothly rounded. Borrowing some of its styling cues and ergonomics from the S-1000 controller, the richly polished aluminum front panel houses buttons with hermetically sealed push-button switches that engage with a reassuring click. The machined aluminum volume/navigation wheel generates just the right amount of feedback to the hand. It also accesses the S-300i’s control menus, which can be viewed on the unit’s front-panel display. The menu system controls such functions as balance, input trim, input naming, and muting level. Krell also gets the adjustably illuminated display just right-—readable by human beings, not eagles. The rear panel includes three RCA line-level inputs, a balanced XLR input, and an iPod/iPhone interface (a cable is supplied) that taps audio from the fully differential output. Unfortunately the interface does not export the iPod’s metadata to the front-panel display—an oversight in my view. Naturally there’s a theater pass-through mode. External control systems such as AMX and Crestron touchscreens haven’t been forgotten either—the S-300i provides 3.5mm jacks for IR input and 12-volt trigger input and output, as well as an RS232 connector. High-quality speaker cable terminals complete this well-equipped package. A full-function remote is provided.

No shortage of clout in the power department, either. The S-300i combines a fully balanced discrete Class A preamplifier circuit controlled by an R-2R resistor-ladder volume control and a discrete output stage rated rated at 150 watts per channel into 8 ohms and 300 watts per channel into 4 ohms. Its circuit borrows the Current Mode technology used in Krell’s top-of-the-line Evolution amps and preamps. Krell touts its massive 750VA toroidal transformer and 38,000 microfarads of capacitance as among the more potent ever incorporated into an integrated amplifier.  –Neil Gader

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SPECS & PRICING

Krell S-300i integrated amplifier

Power Output:150Wpc into 8 ohms, 300Wpc into 4 ohms
Inputs:Three RCA, one XLR (all line inputs)
Dimensions:17.25” x 4.20” x 17.50”
Weight:43 lbs.
Price:$2500

Krell Industries, Inc.

45 Connair Road
Orange, CT 06477
(203) 799-9954
www.krellonline.com

Associated Equipment

Sota Cosmos Series III turntable; SME V pick-up arm; Ortofon 2M Black, Benz Glider Wood cartridge; JR Transrotor Phono II; Esoteric X-05, Sony DVP-9000ES; ATC SCM20-2, Sonics Amerigo, Paradigm Monitor 9, Tara Labs Omega, Synergistic Tesla Apex, Nordost Baldur, Kimber Kable BiFocal XL; Synergistic Tesla, Wireworld Silver Electra & Kimber Palladian power cords; Synergistic Tesla Power Cell