B&K ST 202 Amplifier Advice

ultrasoudproductions
edited May 2020 in 2 Channel Audio
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Hello Fello Polkaholics.

I have come across a B&K ST 202 amplifier. Is anyone familiar with it? Do the pictures look accurate or has there been any modifications? I am trying to get information on it and it appears to be pretty positive so far. Some claim that it is very neutral, powerful (At 200wpc in 8ohms and 300 at 4ohms) and comprable to the Adcom 555. Is this true? If so, them seems to be a bargain for the asking price of $195. I have been wanting to get a Adcom 555 since it appears to be a very nice amp. I have come across a couple of Adcoms at that price but they have been grabbed B4 I am able to. The Adcom are usually around $350 to $500. I am looking to power a set of Polk SDA 1 or a set of Polk RTA12b. Is there any positive or negative information/advice I should know?

Thanks in advance,
Post edited by ultrasoudproductions on

Comments

  • gyosa
    gyosa Posts: 675
    Get it ...
    I have an EX-442 and love it ...

    Bk
    Parasound A21 , Yamaha wxc-50 , Polk SDA 1c’s ( my first love .. ) , Kimber Kable 4TC, Sony 42” - BEDROOM

    B&K EX-442 ( it will go in my casket when I die ... ) , PS Audio 4.6 preamp ( old school , but it still jams on ... ) , Yamaha wxc-50 , Boston Acoustic voyager 7’s - POOL

    PS Audio Stellar S300 , Eversolo DMP-A8 , Yamaha wxc-50 , Kimber Kable 4vs , Salk Supercharged Song towers ( difficult choice between these and my family if I had to choose ... 😩 ) , Sony XBR-A8F 65” OLED - DEN , MAIN RIG

    Cambridge Audio 851n - sitting in the closet , for now

    Onkyo TX-nr609 , Polk atrium 7 , Boston acoustic sound ware (4) , Boston acoustic sub , B&W center , Sharp 65” TV - PATIO

    DAYENS AMPINO ( thanks Verb ! ) , KEiiD streamer ( this was only 60 bucks ?? ) , Polk atrium 8SDi’s - KID’s BEDROOM
  • sucks2beme
    sucks2beme Posts: 5,556
    The 202 is getting a bit aged. That would be the biggie.
    "The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others. But it does me no injury for my neighbour to say there are twenty gods, or no god. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg." --Thomas Jefferson
  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 49,708
    Those big blue caps aren't leaking, so it should be ok. Of course, if they have never been replaced you should plan on doing so at some point. That goes for any of those amps you're looking at.
    Political Correctness'.........defined

    "A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."


    President of Club Polk

  • gyosa wrote: »
    Get it ...
    I have an EX-442 and love it ...

    Bk

    Thank you Gyosa for the feedback.
  • sucks2beme wrote: »
    The 202 is getting a bit aged. That would be the biggie.

    Thank you sucks2beme for the feedback.
  • F1nut wrote: »
    Those big blue caps aren't leaking, so it should be ok. Of course, if they have never been replaced you should plan on doing so at some point. That goes for any of those amps you're looking at.

    Thank you F1nut for the information. I have looked at other amps through the vents, but I don't recall ever looking at the inside of an uncovered amp B4. It appears to me to be extremely clean for the age, simplistic and uncluttered. But then again I don't know what I am looking at.
  • PhotonDon
    PhotonDon Posts: 13
    Howdy, I haven't been on this site in a while so I just saw your post. I have had extensive experience with this particular amp, all good. I bought mine from Audio Advisor in 1989 when their catalog was pretty much stapled together copy paper. I think it cost just over $500. I ran it it with Vandersteens, Snells, and Magneplanars. Now, I don't pretend to have golden ears, but the amp always sounded good to me.The Mosfet magic is real, very smooth and not hyper-analytical, just how I like it. It would get a bit warm with the Maggie's 4 Ohm load but not unbearable. I ran that sucker for well over twenty years without a hiccup until one day it just quit. It was replaced but not discarded. I finally got it repaired for not much money and sold it (at about 23 years old!) for over $300. You have the power wrong though. It put out 145wpc into 8Ohms, and I think 200 into 4. Good times, good amp.
    Spending way too much on audio for over thirty years.