I have to admit that after putting a Conrad Johnson DAC in the chain of my Adcom system I gained new respect for my 5400. The gfp450 I'm using is the weak link now but I won't do anything about it since it's a second system. Also, the 5400 is driving Dynaudio Audience 60's and not breaking a sweat. It didn't impress as being above average strength but with a more efficient speaker.....All in all, for the price the Adcom is at it's hard to beat. I wonder how much more they would be if Adcom added some more clarity?