Review on ELAC Integrated Amplifier Silver EA101EQ G by Robert Tirona

I was surprised when I received the item. The amp is very light (weight). Not that it's an indication of quality or capability, of course it's not a measure of quality, but it was another point in the overall poor quality of the device. a bit "cheap" for the price. Not necessarily negative, but something that surprised me (I confess to liking a bit of weight) *The rubber upper seems debatable based on other people's opinions. Some people like it, others don't. Not me. Again, this reinforced my impression of an inferior, cheaper product. I can see where there could be a functional benefit, but to be honest I haven't found a use for it. It also picked up dust and dirt fairly quickly, and the material made it difficult to remove without a slightly damp cloth. also seems a bit controversial, I actually found the design quite striking and liked it (one of the reasons I bought it), the materials of the amp chassis feel solid and well thought out. * The screen is great for close-up viewing, which is not possible from long distances (like feet). I know the large screen comes at an additional cost, but I'd appreciate it if the screen had more information that's always there, rather than just providing inputs and adjustable volume. * The Bluetooth implementation was pretty good. I was able to control the basic functions of the amp (from volume to EQ and input) but the advertised auto EQ and blending features no longer work with my iPhone 11 and the app was not updated by Elac or its vendor in 3+. Years. Because of this I'm afraid there will be no more support for this unit (I also believe it has been officially discontinued but it's still supported) Sound: * I was impressed with the very impressive and wide soundstage that the amp offers . At about 6-10 feet I heard and "saw" sounds from live footage as well as from film which was incredibly wide. Impressive. The dialogue was clear and the volume.* The sound quality is abysmal. While the picture and soundstage are impressive, the rest of the feature set offers diminishing returns in terms of quality and listening pleasure. The music was flat and somber, there was no dynamic in the more "emotional" or even excited passages in my music ranging from opera, classical and jazz to pop, rock and alternative. All of this was delivered in the same way. Flat, faceless and cheerless. Like the bureaucrat in the movies Brazil or Orwell's 1984*, I found that turning off auto EQ and auto mixing resulted in a significant improvement in sound quality. There was a little more range in the bass and a lot more excitement in the highs. It was a very different amp. The one whose features I had to disable to get them. And when I got it I felt like a quarter price amp could match it (think NAD 316 BEE for less or Sprout100 for a little more, both top this amp. There are others for sure) * the movies that the amp did well , but otherwise. Wow, what a miss. Maybe you are looking for something different, you might like the BASH amplifier module. There is no doubt that there is sophistication in this amp, and it shows; Elac does not do things by halves. But in terms of sound, I think that too much thought was put into the assembly and the sound influence was neglected (which I can hardly believe, I just want to hear it). For those of you who liked it, it's great! I'm really happy for you (no sarcasm), just not for me. Not at all.