weeellll ... it all depends on your definition of "bass". I like my drum and bass etc with a powered subwoofer (preferably 2) where you feel the beat as opposed to hearing it regardless of volume. But it's rare that I listen to it these days... getting old! Your Mission 702e's are great budget speakers but aren't reknown for their bass extension and I suspect that whatever you drive them with you may suffer a little in that department. But less horsepower is not a good thing when you listen to rock etc so I don't think a Trends would be so good. My speakers were bought specifically to match the Trends and for the Aurum Cantus Ribbon tweeter they have, not the bass woofer which is only a 5 1/2 inch short throw. They also cost 6 times as much as the Trends to put some perspective on it and were also bought with future expansion to a grunty 70w integrated tube amp in mind as funds allow. The Trends was, for me, designed as an interim solution that was to be retired once the big tube amp I had in mind arrived in a year or so. Mind you, now I've had the Trends for a few months I am really happy with it's sound more particularly after I hooked it up to an $60 external 12v battery supply. I can't see myself wanting to spend $2-3000 on a 70w tube amp any time soon. A Transporter on the other hand.... The Trends gives me (most of) the warmth and musicality of a half decent 15-20w tube amp at a fraction of the cost. The difference is your musical choice and speakers aren't really suited to a low power amp solution. Given you arn't going to change your speakers any time soon - and really why would you? they are really pretty decent especially for the price - then I would go for a bulletproof plain vanilla second hand integrated like a Rotel RA 04, a Cambridge 540 or a NAD 320 BEE (which should be had for peanuts on ebay). Again at this end of life the subtleties aren't going to matter too much. Good cables, good interconnects and a good basic integrated and away you go. Actually as I think about it having your speakers I would hunt down a second hand NAD 320 BEE, get decent (as opposed to expensive) cabling(as to which pick up a copy of a hi fi mag and see what they recommend in your country- QED is pretty reasonable in the UK) and plan on adding a good external DAC (or modding the SB DAC) down the track. After all what goes to your amp and speakers will determine what you hear. DAC's are a whole other ball game and there is lots of info in this forum on them. My Trends TA 10.1 is, when coupled with there own dedicated 12v power supply and the right speakers, a very cheap entry into true hi fi. But you have to couple it with the right speakers for your choice of music and preferably a good DAC. If I listened to rock I would have gone for something like a Kilpsch Floorstander with twin 6.2 inch woofers and a horn. 95 db sensitivity into 8ohms. Perfect. I suspect that for your needs you may be disappointed by the Trends but almost certainly will not be by a second hand Rotel, Cambridge or NAD. Most of all enjoy your music! the SB really is something. Lastly don't make any critical judgements about your system till you have at least 50 hrs burn in up on the board. My speakers took 150hrs before they opened up their extension. I took the weekend off and left my stereo running at moderate volume playing FM radio before i listened to any real music. Hope this helps. Cheers Tricka
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