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Arcam A25
The ARCAM A25 is the best sounding, and most feature rich of our Radia Integrated amplifiers. The visual luxurious highlights hint towards the more luxurious musical experience that it offers.
This is achieved with a 5th generation Class G amplifier design. You can expect the best sound quality and dynamics from what has always been a better sounding, and more efficient Class of amplifier. New components and materials have been painstakingly analysed and reviewed to ensure uncompromising sound performance.
The rich feature set includes a USB-C input for your laptop, be it PC, MAC or Raspberry Pie! This augments a Bluetooth solution that includes Qualcomm AptX Adaptive technology with 24-bit HD audio to ensure the best sound quality no matter what you are playing. It can also connect to Bluetooth headphones so your listening experience can continue sensitively after dark.
Like any ARCAM integrated amplifier, we pay particular attention to the built in phono stage to ensure your records sound as lush and engaging as possible.
- ARCAM Class G amplification - for ultra-low distortion
- 100W per channel (8Ω) - powers loudspeakers effortlessly.
- Bluetooth with aptX™ Adaptive Technology - for the best sound with the most convenience
- Specially selected components and materials - to deliver on sound quality
- Wired or Wireless Headphones - connect your headphones for quiet listening with, or without wires
- All new Radia design - Purposeful yet playful
- MM phono stage - ready for Turntables
- Hi-Res Digital Audio Inputs - with the addition of USB-C for ultra Hi-Res audio
- Plastic Free Packaging - for easy disposal of natural materials
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Arcam A25 — compact Class G amplifier with surprising headroom
The Arcam A25 pairs a slim, high-quality chassis with a notably musical sound and impressive engineering. Bench measurements and listening reports praise its low-noise, high-resolution DAC performance and near-reference SNR/SINAD, delivering clean, detailed playback for digital sources (Audioholics). Class G topology supplies punchy dynamics and extra headroom that translate to authoritative bass and effortless transients in real rooms (Dennis Burger, Mark Gusew).
Connectivity is modern and generous—USB-C (DSD), coax/optical, aptX Adaptive/AAC Bluetooth, MM phono and a headphone out—making the A25 a flexible centerpiece for compact systems. Its styling and build suit shelf or credenza placement. Recommended for listeners who want lively, refined imaging, strong dynamics and a well-specified integrated amp that punches above its size and price.
Pros
- Exceptionally low noise and distortion on digital sources—near-100dB SINAD and excellent SNR—supports revealing, low‑noise playback.
- Class G amplifier topology delivers strong dynamics and generous headroom, with measured dynamic power beyond rated figures for confident speaker driving.
- Musical, refined tonal balance with wide imaging and convincing soundstage—detailed yet engaging presentation across genres.
- Modern, well‑specified connectivity and internals — ESS ES9280A Pro DAC, USB‑C with DSD support, aptX Adaptive/AAC Bluetooth, MM phono and headphone output — making it a versatile hub for compact systems.
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Cons
- Preamp (pre‑out) has low drive and clips at about 1Vrms, limiting use as a standalone preamp or as a feed to many external power amps.
- Onboard MM phono is serviceable for casual vinyl listeners but shows limited low‑frequency headroom and rising distortion at higher cartridge outputs—serious vinyl fans may prefer an external phono stage.
- Wireless workflow caveats: Bluetooth input has a conservative default volume cap and the amp lacks built‑in network streaming, so wireless/streaming users may prefer pairing with a dedicated streamer.
Sound Quality
91/100
Dynamics
91/100
Multiple reviewers praised the A25's punch, control and headroom (SoundStage Solo: 'punchy, dynamic... oodles of current on reserve'; StereoNET: 'impresses with its dynamic capabilities'), and Audioholics' bench showed strong dynamic power (155W into 8Ω, 260W into 4Ω) with headroom above rated power. A few comments that very ballistic material can sound slightly relaxed (Ed Selley) are minor and generally solvable with speaker matching, so dynamics are rated very highly.
Soundstage Imaging
91/100
Soundstage and imaging are frequently praised: SoundStage Solo notes 'pinpoint precision' and excellent imaging movement, StereoNET reports broad, wide staging and convincing depth, and Audiophilepure highlights the amp's ability to 'sort all the sound molecules'. These consistent endorsements support a high score for imaging and spatial presentation.
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Build Quality
88/100
The A25's slimline chassis, solid finish, toroidal transformer and quality controls earned praise (SoundStage Solo, Pursuit Perfect System, StereoNET) and the unit runs warm but not hot. Minor issues: Audioholics reported audible component 'singing' at near full power on the test bench, which keeps this from a top-tier build rating despite generally strong construction and fit/finish.
Features Connectivity
95/100
Very well featured for the price: built-in high-quality ESS DAC (ES9280A Pro noted by StereoNET), USB-C (with DSD support), optical/coax digital inputs, MM phono stage, Bluetooth 5.2 with aptX Adaptive/AAC, a headphone output, preamp output, and remote control. The combination of a quality internal DAC, phono stage, modern USB-C and wireless codecs pushes this into the top tier of feature sets for its class (capped at the schema maximum).
Value for Money
90/100
Across reviews the A25 is repeatedly described as impressive and good value at ~£1,499/$1,499 (Pursuit Perfect System: 'impressive under £1500'; Audiophilepure and StereoNET praise its performance-for-price). Reviewers call it a compelling, well-judged package for its cost, supporting a justified-premium value score rather than bargain or reference-level value.
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