Best Of

Let me start by saying that this was not brought on by wanting to improve on my existing A2



1+ amp's performance which is stellar. This was strictly a decision based on my need/want to downsize & what better place to start with than with a 71lb (net) behemoth, (88 lb shipped). A definite back breaker. Ideally, I was looking for a unit under 20lb & also a much smaller physical size. Not a deal breaker but that was my goal.

With a budget of $3-$4K & wanting to buy new the initial search began. I started looking into class D from various companies & in particular amps with the new GanFet technology. I almost pulled the trigger on a Orchard Audio Stereo Ultra 2.5 amp that fit the bill nicely, receives pretty much all glowing reviews & was budget friendly. However, the deal killer was its 1yr warranty. I would expect at least a 3yr warranty from any company that has confidence in its products. If I moved up to their higher end lineup, they came with a 3yr warranty but were not budget friendly. The other issue was to try to find a company that had an in-home trial period with a decent return policy. That was a tough one. Most had a 10-15% restocking fee policy. I could live with that, but it could add up if I tried multiple amps & had to return them. The search continued.

Now enter Benchmark. I always knew about them but never really gave them any consideration. I decided to pull up their website to check them out. I was pleasantly surprised that the AHB2 fit the bill nicely at 12.5lbs net wt & 16lb shipped & fit the budget. I called & spoke w/ Rory about my needs & after a 45min conversation I decided to give the AHB2 a try. Rory said I wouldn't be disappointed. A 30 day in-home trial, no restocking fee, only return shipping if I were to send it back. Very nice.

I received it in 2 days, unboxed it & sat it directly on top of the A21+ which made it easy peezy to switch back & forth for comparison. Nothing else changed except adding in the AHB2. Cables & front end remained the same. Having everything for quite some time I was very familiar with the system's sound signature.

Got 'er all hooked up & ready to rock & roll. Having no idea what to expect I started my first listening session with some smooth jazz from Diana Krall, Nora Jones, Chris Botti just to name a few.

Did you ever have one of those AH-Ha, Holy Sheet moments? Well this was certainly one of them. I know it was my initial impressions but nonetheless everything had more air, a richer fuller sound, a vastly expanded soundstage & imaging. I found it to be very musically transparent & able to reveal subtleties in the music that I didn't pick up on with the A21+. I am very, very familiar with these artists & songs & my doubts were put to rest as my listening continued.

Yes I know, I know you can't come to that conclusion so quickly but I beg to differ on this one. There wasn't a shadow of a doubt that the AHB2 was a different animal all together. And as the days & weeks went by things became quite evident that the AHB2 was going to be a keeper. It just presented music in ways that the A21+ just didn't reveal in my system all the years I had it. That's my story & I'm sticking to it.