Well, I got one of the newest units off of Audiogon today and I can say that this integrated is a significant step above my stock Unico, at least within my setup. Comparing the two, the Unico seems too exaggerated in its tonal balance and overall less refined; the Bel Canto seems so clean and clear, and this is only after its been powered for 24 hours. Apparently its supposed to sound its best after being on for 100 hours straight. Other significant improvements in my system once I put the S300iu in place are soundstaging and overall image focus, which now seem to be much clearer. I'm trying to simplify my system as much as possible for now (until I save up enough for a Bel Canto DAC 3 and REF 1000 monos), which is why I jumped on the S300iu: I got rid of the need for my Bel Canto DAC 2, my Waveterminal U24 soundcard and the Stereovox HDXV I used to connect them. Noise in my system is now basically nonexistent, as everything is coming from the S300iu, the D-A conversion, the preamp stage and the amplifier stage. One thing that really stands out to me compared to the Unico is that this amplifier sounds so tight, its has a sense of PRAT that I never really realized was missing before with my Unico. I'm using this amplifier now with Ohm Walsh 2's with the Ohm Walsh 100 Series III drivers and Zu Libtec cables, and I could not be happier with my system now. I'm planning on selling my Unico and DAC 2 very soon, this amp is that good. I can't even imagine what the DAC 3/ Reference 1000 monos combination would sound like.
