Rega Brio vs Rega Elex-R Integrated Amplifier - Overview and Comparison

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Mike from Hudson Valley HiFi discusses the differences between Rega Brio and Elex-R integrated amplifiers. This is purely a specs and features comparison not a sound comparison. These two amplifiers are very close to each other in voicing where their differences heavily lie in their specs.
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[@toucan221]

Nice comparison I enjoyed this and good videography

[@timothyfreeseha4056]

A lot of comments about the look of the Brio/ Elexr. I have to admitt im not a huge fan of the silver buttons on the Elexr. Otherwise, i really like the simplicity of its design. As for heat, i have my Elexr out in the open, and i learned that it will not get quite as warm if some distance is put between it and whatever surface it is placed on. And finally, i did not think either Rega amp a good value proposition in North America . However, after eight years of flawless performance i feel it has paid for itself & then some, and i have come to love it even more over time.

[@LoweredSaturn]

Would've been nice to hear your comparison of the power supplies.

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Elex has larger filtering capacitors and a larger toroid transformer. They are very similar by design but requiring more power everything is beefier

[@Yogurt1974]

Hi and thank you for your advice. I am really interested in buying one of them, but the budget drives me to Brio. My first source is a Rega P6 with Elys II. So, is the Brio's phono stage really better than elex r? And, I need to put the amp in living closed bookshelf, can the heat make problems in your opinion? Thx a lot

[@Voelkerwanderung]

No, the phono stage from the elex r is bette than the Brio´s.

[@ebenezerjebaraj]

Thanks for the great review. How does Elex-R sounds compare to Naim Nait 5Si?

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Thanks for watching. Rega is a bit more vibrant and punchy while Naim is more of a flat neutral tone. Which is better is subjective but from a build quality stand both are very well made products.

[@ebenezerjebaraj]

Thanks for your response. It helps👍

[@buksi3761]

Thanks! I own Brio and I'm happy

[@goutomdutta586]

Hi, thanks for your detailed description. I like to know something from you. Is the treble of the Elex-r rolled-off? I like good bass punch and sparkling treble (but not fatigue) . I am thinking to pair it with a Triangle bro3 bookshelf speaker. Need your thoughts. TIA

[@pogglefishii6807]

The Brio puts out 65w into 6Ω according to Rega’s website.

[@justonemoregshock]

Is it the best amp in the world or is it the best fking amp in the world? As you can clearly see I'm a bit puzzled on that one.. Signed by a proud owner of Rega Elex-R :)

[@thomasberry4486]

Obviously good enough to spam the same post on multiple videos.

[@justonemoregshock]

@@thomasberry4486 Karen, is that you? 🤣

[@tehanalyzer217]

The new Brio replace the brio-R. When will the new Elex coming to replace the Elex-R?

[@99boardwalk]

Hi! would the Elex R be a good match for a Focal Chora 826? thanks!!

[@melchior-chr.v.brincken8006]

Focal is over the top bright. Perfect with a tube amp, but Meh with everything else. Though Rega sounds very warm, it is not tube amp rolled off - which would be perfect with Focal. I have a THE FISHER 800c tube amp and a Rega IO.

[@99boardwalk]

@@melchior-chr.v.brincken8006 Thank you very much for the response! It sounds amazing, after a first period of time of a little brightness, the Chora and Rega ended up sounding like a FUN microscope into music.

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Keep in mind Focal like many speakers have a fairly long break in period and the highs may round out a bit

[@christophermorabito1245]

Thoughts on pairing with the P3esr?

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Either amp will pair well with a Planar 3. The Elex-R will give you better results thanks to the better phono stage. If your primary source is turntable I'd highly advise you upgrade to the Elex-R. Keep in mind if your plans are MC cart eventually you would need an external phono preamp with either of these since they are MM only. Amp-Speaker is more of a symmetry that needs to be obtained; sources should simply be on point in terms of quality with the rest of the system.

[@michaelgreco8614]

I have the brio with p3esr in my small office and it’s a perfect match. I’ve tried many amps with my p3s up to 3x the price of the brio and the brio to me is as enjoyable a sound I have heard. Makes me want to jump to elex for more of that sonic signature

[@anonmouse956]

Does the Brio have the noise floor problems people talk about?

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Noise floor problems? News to me

[@-x21-]

My brio has a slight hum though the left speaker when idle. It isn't too loud but it is there when close to the speaker.

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Switch your amp to an input that has a shorting plug in it and see if the noise goes away. These amps are not prone to high noise floor, they are prone to crosstalk through poor grounding of sources. It is a difficult compromise having an earth ground for your amp or not which can itself introduce more noise.

[@tehanalyzer217]

Mine is dead silence when no music is pipe in. I think you need to purchase a mains noise filter. Mains current is noisy nowadays.

[@derekbland1038]

Hi iv been around hifi in the uk Cambridge Since 1978 ,, and seen a lot of the conception of brands , A&R Now . Arcam. Quad. Meridian. ORIGINAL Audiolab.. Mission.. [Cyrus] & More ,...and indeed the first Roy Gandy Rega Planar , 1 . in my own opinion , i can never help but think , that Rega NEED to improve the Quality of the Faceplates they look Tacky and spoil the product , Please ! show the Remotes as Well . thats Important , Also . Thanks

[@tehanalyzer217]

Agreed....i also own the new rega Brio. The red prespec is so " cheaply made" The power switch is intall to near the plastic face plate. If you have longer nails, in no time you will scratch the faceplate. Same applies to the tiny selection switch. The Brio input layout is too cramp, best if got budget is to get the elex-R. More spacious connection.

[@Habitual_Liar]

Would have been helpful to here the sound differences.

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

So you can "hear" the difference recording on my phone and played back through your speakers? 🤣

[@Habitual_Liar]

@@HudsonValleyHiFI let me clarify. It would have been helpful for you to describe the differences in sound between the two amps. Not just the feature differences.

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

I believe we touch on that there is not much of a sonic difference, more a power difference.

[@raymoore8435]

1:32 Sound wise there is a distinct difference !

[@zyghom]

I love my Elex-R. One issue though: if you connect RCA to input 2, it leaks to input 1 ;-( Probably phono input is so sensitive. So I moved my RCA to input 5 (actually from input 3 it is ok already)

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Crosstalk is an interesting one with Elex-R. Just speculation but maybe something to do with the non earth grounded chassis? Makes sense that it would bleed into the more sensitive phono input. Thanks for commenting, please don't forget to subscribe.

[@zyghom]

@@HudsonValleyHiFI I do NOT use turntable so apparently I did NOT ground my amp. For my DAC that I use with Elex-R I don't need grounding.

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Yes, if a turntable was in phono input 1 I doubt you would get the cross talk. I'll try this on my floor model 👍

[@zyghom]

@@HudsonValleyHiFI great, let me know please ;)

[@johnsweda2999]

@@zyghom you should sort out the RCA input anyway on all inputs not being used not just phono but only inputs not outputs!!!

[@RyanBedlack]

Damn too bad the Elex-R doesn't have a headphone output. Kind of a dealbreaker for me at least

[@mennotimpo8746]

Hello Ryan, what I have seen in other yt video’s about the Elex-R is that you can use the tape out (rec out) to connect a headphone-amplifier 😎🤠 also nice you can chose the headphone-amp at your own taste/budget. So, the Elex-R still could be the amp for you!

[@felixlaboy1453]

Hey ? Are you In NY

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Cornwall, NY

[@felixlaboy1453]

@@HudsonValleyHiFI awesome I’m in poughkeesie. Maybe you can help my find and put together a small setup.

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Absolutely, can call or text 845-219-1730 anytime

[@felixlaboy1453]

@@HudsonValleyHiFI Thank you very much. There so much out there it’s so confusing.

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

It's quite nice to be able to demo various pieces of equipment and hear the different symmetry that items like amps and speakers have especially. Happy to help in any way we can.

[@romainmarchese9935]

REGA amplifiers are very good but please try to make us look nicer, it's very austere ..

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

I believe the words you were looking for is "subtle British appearance". Look at Linn, Naim, very similar.

[@spinetingler-007]

The back of the Brio is too crowded.

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Ok... Does it matter?

[@spinetingler-007]

The power cord is right next to the input jacks and there's no shielding of any kind on the inside. @@HudsonValleyHiFI

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Do you hear line noise on your inputs? I have one and do not

[@fuckinellitsraymo]

The Elex-r is brighter and leaner sounding than the warm cloudy sound of the Brio.

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Hmm, which speakers were you comparing on? Warm and cloudy is an interesting description of the Brio.

[@fuckinellitsraymo]

@@HudsonValleyHiFI Dali Oberon 5s and Q accoustics 3050is

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Thank you. Always nice to hear recommended pairings.

[@tess6499]

@@HudsonValleyHiFI are the b&w cm5s2 a good pairing for the brío? And a Better sound then a C356bee? Thanks

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

B&W tend to be inefficient which needs a good bit of power. I do not deal in the brand but would think they should meld well. Not a big fan of the class D NAD amps with switching power supplies. Seems like a reliability disaster in the future and does not hit hard on the low end.

[@WyreForestBiker]

What a waste of time!!... Waiting to hear opinion of the difference in SOUND.. And you basically read out the spec sheet!..

[@HudsonValleyHiFI]

Did you miss the statement that the two amps share similar tone and sound signature but the Elex-R with it's more powerful amp provides a bit more bottom end response? Thanks anyway for watching...

[@zyghom]

I will disagree with your statement if I may, especially if you read the title of this video ;-)

[@threecats8219]

Constructive criticism. Your narration going from very quiet to loud constantly is irritating, besides being difficult to hear the quiet parts.