Recently I found a Yamaha CX-630 pre amp at a thrift store for $10.00, it was AS-IS, but seemed to be fine as it powered up and all the function lights worked. After a few days I hooked it up with my Audio Research VS-110 amp and was simply amazed how good it is in pure direct mode. It has dirt in the gain pot that I will be cleaning out later today. That said, I was looking for a Cheap & Cheerful summer system to drive my Magnepan 2.5’s, so I found a Yamaha MX-630 amp to mate with the thrift store find and bought it for $245.00 shopped to me. I’ve always liked the Yamaha Natural Sound receivers, so I guess it’s no surprise that their separates are also outstanding. Japanese made Yamaha seem to use high quality innards and are a step above mid-fi to my ears.
The MX-630 is 125wpc @ 8ohms and I believe 200 @ 4ohms, which will drive my Maggie’s nicely and with authority. I will report back in a few weeks with pics and listening impressions.
