Results 1 to 15 of 15
  1. #1
    Forum Regular
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    5

    Smile Classe CA 100 Power Amp

    Hello everyone,

    Am new in this forum and would like to seek some advise from any existing owner
    of the above Classe Power amp.I bought a used unit 2 years ago and has been
    enjoying this amp's performance on music. The only thing I found lacking is the
    bass.The amp is driving my Klispch RF7 speakers and I must admit they are easy
    to drive no doubt coz of it's high sensitivity of 102db into 8ohms.

    It is because of this that I found the bass lacking.Recently I have eyed another used
    unit in a second hand dealer and thought of buying it to bridged them into monoblocks
    to drive my Klipsch. Any one out there who is having this setup would appreciate some
    feedback on its performance.

    Thanks alot

    Leon

  2. #2
    I took a headstart... basite's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Mortsel, Antwerp, Belgium, Europe, Earth
    Posts
    3,056
    Hi, Welcome to AR

    when you auditioned the speakers, did they lack bass too? it's often that high efficiency speakers don't have much bass, so that could be a reason.
    Also, did you play around with speaker placement? I barely had any bass until I moved my speakers, so try that too...

    Keep them spinning,
    Bert.
    Life is music!

    Mcintosh MA6400 Integrated
    Double Advent speakers
    Thiel CS2.3's
    *DIY Lenco L75 TT
    * SME 3012 S2
    * Rega RB-301
    *Denon DL-103 in midas body
    *Denon DL-304
    *Graham slee elevator EXP & revelation
    *Lehmann audio black cube SE
    Marantz CD5001 OSE
    MIT AVt 2 IC's
    Sonic link Black earth IC's
    Siltech MXT New york IC's
    Kimber 4VS speakercable
    Furutech powercord and plugs.

    I'm a happy 20 year old...

  3. #3
    Class of the clown GMichael's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    Anywhere but here...
    Posts
    13,243
    I like the amp you are using more than your speakers.
    WARNING! - The Surgeon General has determined that, time spent listening to music is not deducted from one's lifespan.

  4. #4
    Old Audiophile SAEA501's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2005
    Posts
    73
    I absolutely agree with these guys. The problem is not your power amp. You need to go speaker shopping. You have a great amplifier.

  5. #5
    Forum Regular
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    5
    Ah Gmichael I guess I have made the right choice of acquiring the CA100 for music.Basically I am into HT that's the reason I bought the Klipsch, a dual role speaker.
    But musically it's also a good way for me to go.Maybe if I bought the other unit then
    perhaps I should get the bass I need. I choose not link a sub it maybe too boomy for my
    taste.

  6. #6
    Class of the clown GMichael's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    Anywhere but here...
    Posts
    13,243
    Quote Originally Posted by Leon Liew
    Ah Gmichael I guess I have made the right choice of acquiring the CA100 for music.Basically I am into HT that's the reason I bought the Klipsch, a dual role speaker.
    But musically it's also a good way for me to go.Maybe if I bought the other unit then
    perhaps I should get the bass I need. I choose not link a sub it maybe too boomy for my
    taste.
    Don't count out the sub too fast. They can be boomy if not set up to their fullest. But once calibrated in correctly, they can sound very good, even for music. And they can not be done without for HT IMO.
    There are many threads about subs and how to match them with your system here. Try the search for subs, and/or BFD. Then post whatever questions you have left.

    Do you have a pre-amp or AVR to proccess in 5.1 or 7.1?
    WARNING! - The Surgeon General has determined that, time spent listening to music is not deducted from one's lifespan.

  7. #7
    AR Newbie Registered Member
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    1
    Hello everyone,
    I'm new in this site.
    I have discovered this site because a friend adviced me to visit it.
    I find it very interesting because we can all share opinions, experiences and ask for advice.
    To the point regarding your bass problem.
    I would first try to change the speaker cables before spending a lot of money.
    Good luck.
    Andrea

  8. #8
    Class of the clown GMichael's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    Anywhere but here...
    Posts
    13,243
    Quote Originally Posted by andrea pignanelli
    Hello everyone,
    I'm new in this site.
    I have discovered this site because a friend adviced me to visit it.
    I find it very interesting because we can all share opinions, experiences and ask for advice.
    To the point regarding your bass problem.
    I would first try to change the speaker cables before spending a lot of money.
    Good luck.
    Andrea
    Hi Andrea,

    Welcome to AR.
    WARNING! - The Surgeon General has determined that, time spent listening to music is not deducted from one's lifespan.

  9. #9
    Man of the People Forums Moderator bobsticks's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2005
    Location
    down there
    Posts
    6,852
    Welcome to both Leon and Andrea. Good to have you both with us.

    Leon, I share the opinion of the group that contends that your amp outclasses your speakers, but I think we need to ask a few questions before we all go crazy and have you buying new amps and speakers and the lot.

    First off, can we assume from your profile that you're running an Onkyo AV with the signal going to the external amps from the pre-outs? If so, great. Both Onkyo and Classe make topnotch products and have the potential to sound fantastic. My concern comes from how you're utilizing the Pioneer player. Are you running analog through the Audio Note DAC and if so how are you transporting digital signals to the receiver for surround?

    Here's the big one. Scroll through your players menu and see if you're running your setup with "speakers small" or with "speakers large". While "speakers small" is sometimes considered optimal for HT use it won't work in your circumstances. That setting uses the receivers internal crossovers to send the lowend signal to the subwoofer, meaning despite the fact that you have towers you may not be sending them a complete signal. You may be sending bass frequencies to a nonexistent component.

    If the above doen't work as a solution, you can try a variety of tweaks including Andrea's suggestion of new cables. Even before that I would suggest that you take some time and play with speaker location. My experience with Klipsch is that the closer you move them to the walls the more bass you'll get, albeit a bit muddied.

    Ultimately, you may want to reconsider your opinions on subs. I have a Paradigm Servo 15 in a condo in the heart of the city. It has the capacity to be an overwhelming beast but because I have taken the time (and gotten some knowledge from the characters around here) to learn how to use it, it has become an appropriate tool within my system. You might be very happy with some of the subs from REL or HSU as they are generally considered to be musical and not muddy.

    Good luck and keep us informed.

  10. #10
    I took a headstart... basite's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Mortsel, Antwerp, Belgium, Europe, Earth
    Posts
    3,056
    wait a second...

    your onkyo isn't sending the LFE straight to a sub isn't it? if so, set the bass output that it comes from both the main speakers as well as the sub (which you don't have, so set the bass output to main speakers somehow...)

    Keep them spinning,
    Bert.
    Life is music!

    Mcintosh MA6400 Integrated
    Double Advent speakers
    Thiel CS2.3's
    *DIY Lenco L75 TT
    * SME 3012 S2
    * Rega RB-301
    *Denon DL-103 in midas body
    *Denon DL-304
    *Graham slee elevator EXP & revelation
    *Lehmann audio black cube SE
    Marantz CD5001 OSE
    MIT AVt 2 IC's
    Sonic link Black earth IC's
    Siltech MXT New york IC's
    Kimber 4VS speakercable
    Furutech powercord and plugs.

    I'm a happy 20 year old...

  11. #11
    Forum Regular
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    5
    Hi to all again sorry for the late update.

    Here's mysetup in detail. On my HT side the Onkyo TXDS 676 A/V amp is connected
    to a Forte FT1 HT 5 channel Power amp via the A/V amp pre-out.A Klipsch sub RSW12
    is linked thru the A/V amp's LFE output.The RF7 speakers are set to 'small' so that the
    sub take care of the bass totally.My Pioneer DV-969 DVD player is basically performing it's role for movies only.

    On the music side my setup is as follows.Classe Pre-amp CP35 and CA100 Power amp
    Marantz CD17 MKIII, Audio Note DAC 1x Signature.The only thing is that I do not connect
    the sub for music that's the reason why bass is lacking.

    My speakers are placed 2 feet away from the wall and straight instead of toed in.The sub
    is in line with the speakers and placed on the right. As the sub is a dual firing model, the
    rear woofer being active and the front woofer being passive.As regards to HT the bass
    is well defined and not boomy as the sub takes up most of the LFE as the front speakers
    are set to small.

    It is more on my music side of the setup.As I've mentioned the bass is lacking.This past
    week have been considering upgrading to a Class A Power amp.

    Any feedback will be appreciated guys and thanks for all the advice.

  12. #12
    Forum Regular
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    5
    Oh one more thing my system are wired by Monster Cables from speakers cables to interconnects plus a range of powercords.

  13. #13
    Audio Hobbyist Since 1969 Glen B's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2001
    Location
    New York
    Posts
    517
    Quote Originally Posted by Leon Liew
    Hi to all again sorry for the late update.

    Here's mysetup in detail. On my HT side the Onkyo TXDS 676 A/V amp is connected
    to a Forte FT1 HT 5 channel Power amp via the A/V amp pre-out.A Klipsch sub RSW12
    is linked thru the A/V amp's LFE output.The RF7 speakers are set to 'small' so that the
    sub take care of the bass totally.My Pioneer DV-969 DVD player is basically performing it's role for movies only.

    On the music side my setup is as follows.Classe Pre-amp CP35 and CA100 Power amp
    Marantz CD17 MKIII, Audio Note DAC 1x Signature.The only thing is that I do not connect
    the sub for music that's the reason why bass is lacking.

    My speakers are placed 2 feet away from the wall and straight instead of toed in.The sub
    is in line with the speakers and placed on the right. As the sub is a dual firing model, the
    rear woofer being active and the front woofer being passive.As regards to HT the bass
    is well defined and not boomy as the sub takes up most of the LFE as the front speakers
    are set to small.

    It is more on my music side of the setup.As I've mentioned the bass is lacking.This past
    week have been considering upgrading to a Class A Power amp.

    Any feedback will be appreciated guys and thanks for all the advice.
    In your first post you said you were enjoying the CA-100 with music so why are you thinking of upgrading to a "class A" amp ? If it is to cure your problem of lacking bass, that's not a benefit you will get going from a class AB amp to one that operates in class A. I own and have owned a number of different Classé components including the CP-35. Its a decent preamp but IMO somewhat on the lean side, at least compared to its bigger siblings. I believe this is a contributory factor to your dissatisfaction with your system's bass and If you buy another amp and keep this preamp in your system, you will still have this bottleneck. Try a CP-47.5, CP-50 or CP-60; you will find that those models have deeper more extended bass, better detail, resolution and transparency.
    Last edited by Glen B; 12-10-2007 at 07:58 AM.

  14. #14
    Forum Regular
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    5
    Hi GlenB,

    So a pre-amp does play an important role I guess am not aware of this.Thanks for
    your info.Along I thought the power amp is the main thing.

  15. #15
    Audio Hobbyist Since 1969 Glen B's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2001
    Location
    New York
    Posts
    517
    Quote Originally Posted by Leon Liew
    Hi GlenB,

    So a pre-amp does play an important role I guess am not aware of this.Thanks for
    your info.Along I thought the power amp is the main thing.
    Source, preamp, speakers, cables (although some may disagree with the latter and that's fine) all play an important role to varying degrees. Careful component selection and synergy between them is important to achieve an end result you like. Classé amps though not the final word in bass performance are not normally found lacking in the bass department.

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •