Which High Current Amp?????

[VE4CAN]

Starting all over with new toys and I need an opinion...

Normally I read and study subject to death before I buy,,,
I simply don't have the time to do this now, so I'm soliciting from the knowledge base that's out there..

So far I only have my main/front speakers which are Axiom M80 v2 and rated at 400 Watts....
They are 4 ohm impedance and may require a AV surround home theater amp that can supply high enough current to those fronts without me calling the fire department..
The installation will be a 5.1 set up...
The speakers are bi-ampable with 4 terminals on the back..
I could try some crazy hookup using a 7.1 amp's center connections..
That might work for surround sound but 2 channel stereo will surely suck:nono:
The room is 12 x 12
I enjoy listening to loud :7: but I won't use the speaker max. capacity
No brand loyalties with me and I hoping for under $1200 for the amp...
Might have to go for more...

Any recommendations????

[Mr Peabody]

In your budget www.emotiva.com

If more in the budget you need Krell or your home boys Bryston. If hooking up to a receiver for preamp though the Emotiva would do the job very well..

[VE4CAN]

In your budget www.emotiva.com (http://www.emotiva.com)

If more in the budget you need Krell or your home boys Bryston. If hooking up to a receiver for preamp though the Emotiva would do the job very well..

Thanks for the info
Ya maybe separates would the way to go...
I like the power supplies on the Emotiva..
A XPA-5: at $800 plus shipping is definitely a worthy considering...
I should be shopping for a pre amp

.

[Ajani]

In your budget www.emotiva.com

If more in the budget you need Krell or your home boys Bryston. If hooking up to a receiver for preamp though the Emotiva would do the job very well..

I'll 2nd the Emotiva suggestion... For good quality and high power at a low price, they are pretty much in a class of their own...

[Mr Peabody]

If your Onkyo won't push the speakers I doubt if any mass market receiver will. If the Onkyo has preamp outputs for the surround channels you can use your receiver for preamp. Or, if you had to buy another receiver with pre outs it may be cheaper than a separate preamp. Emotiva does have a A/V preamp, two I believe. Yamaha receivers are pretty good about offering preamp outputs. If budget allows down the road Rotel's A/V preamp starts at a reasonable price as separates go. Onkyo's is reasonable as well. I'd lean toward Rotel for overall performance but that's my bias, I've never compared them. The Marantz A/V 8003 has been around long enough you might find a deal but it still may be a bit more cost than the other two.

[blackraven]

Buy a new Onkyo 807 AVR ($648 at amazon) with all the bells and whistles with preamp out's and then buy an Emotiva UPA2 for $300 and use it to drive your front speakers. That should keep you within your budget.

Or go with the Onkyo 707 ($523 at amazon) and the Emotiva XPA 2 for $800.

Or how about an XPA-3 for $550

[Ajani]

How about going all Emotiva?

UMC-1 $700
UPA-5 $550
Total $1250 (just $50 over your initial amp budget - and you get both a 5 channel amp and a processor)

[blackraven]

How about going all Emotiva?

UMC-1 $700
UPA-5 $550
Total $1250 (just $50 over your initial amp budget - and you get both a 5 channel amp and a processor)

Does the UMC-1 have all the up to date HT gagets Ajani? I'm not familiar with it. If it does, then that's the way to go for sure.

[Ajani]

UMC-1 FEATURES:



•Twin CirrusŪ 32 bit dual core DSP’s
•Decoding support for Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital EX, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby Digital True HD, Dolby PLIIx, DTS, DTSES, DTS HD, DTS Master Audio, DTS Neo 6, SPDIF, PCM 8 channel (note: some audio formats are only supported via HDMI)
•Multi-channel Dolby Volume
•Genesis/STŪ Torino high performance scaling engine - featuring a full implementation of the Faroudja DCDi™ image processing suite
•Intuitive, full color graphical OSD with adjustable transparency presented over live video, including HDMI
•Emo-Q™ automatic multi-channel room correction and loudspeaker setup. Calibrated measurement microphone included.
•Quadruple bass manager with independently selectable high and low pass frequencies from 40hz – 250hz, in 5 or 10Hz increments (depending on frequency)
•Selectable 12db or 24db per octave high pass and low pass filters by channel groupings
•Independent 11-band graphic EQ with global bass and treble controls by channel groupings
•Balanced subwoofer output
•All legacy video inputs can be scaled and output over HDMI at up to 1080p
•1080p/24 fps video support
•Video pass-through mode with 12 bit compatibility
•HDMI sources can be format converted to component video up to 1080i (subject to Macrovision™ guidelines)
•HDMI 1.3a Deep Color compliant
•All inputs are assignable and feature input labeling, selectable decode modes, selectable triggers, etc.
•0.5dB level trims on all channels
•High voltage, low impedance main analog outputs for uncompromised dynamic headroom
CONNECTIVITY:

•5 - HDMI inputs and 1 HDMI output.
•3- composite video inputs (RCA)
•3 - S-video inputs (S-video mini DIN)
•3 - component video inputs (RCA)
•1 - component video output (RCA)
•4 - stereo analog audio inputs (RCA)
•1 - 7.1 analog input set (RCA)
•1 - 7.1 analog output set (RCA)
•4 - coaxial digital inputs, (RCA)
•3 - optical digital inputs (Toslink)
•1- coax digital audio output (RCA)
•1- optical digital audio output (Toslink)
•1 - Stereo or 2 channel analog multi channel mix down output for fixed level monitoring (RCA)
•1- stereo analog variable and independent Zone 2 output (RCA)
•1 - stereo analog fixed level record output (RCA)
•High performance AM/FM tuner with 24 FM and 6 AM presets
•3 - assignable trigger outputs Movie/Music/Amp (3.5mm mini)
•1- IR input (3.5mm mini)
•1 - IR output (3.5mm mini)
•1. Microphone input (3.5mm stereo mini)
•1- USB data input (for software upgrades only)
•Size: 17” W x 3 7/8” H x 13” D

http://emotiva.com/umc1.shtm

[manlystanley]

I agree with the Emotiva suggestions. I'm very pleased with my XPA-2. There a re great company.

Concerning the UMC-1, has there been any reviews on this device yet? I know that they have had firmware upgrades. It's a very complex device and I'm sure that there will be lots of bugs to shake out. I'd suggest waiting a bit and seeing how things shake out.

For example look at this thread: http://emotivalounge.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=preamps&action=display&thread=10499


Best Regards,
Stan

[TheHills44060]

The usual solid state amp suspects should drive those Axioms just fine without breaking your bank Rotel, Adcom, Parasound, Odyssey...etc.

Just wanted to be a voice of reason around here and mention something other than Emotiva.

[VE4CAN]

The usual solid state amp suspects should drive those Axioms just fine without breaking your bank Rotel, Adcom, Parasound, Odyssey...etc.

Just wanted to be a voice of reason around here and mention something other than Emotiva.


And thank you very much for your help, and to also everyone else giving me feedback on this thread....
This sure helps by cutting down on my learning curve....:thumbsup:

As another possible scenario:

Those 4 ohm front speakers are bi-ampable with 4 terminals and have joining connecting links on the back...
I could take the links out and split the load into 4 independent 8 ohm loads....
Then, I have the option of using a suitable standalone A/V receiver amp that has a second zone capability and bi-amp those speakers to the amp's front L/R output terminals and the amp's 2nd zone L/R output terminals...

I think that might work......
What do you think?????


Keep the info and ideas coming good people I sure appreciate the help I'm getting....:biggrin5: :biggrin5:

.

[Ajani]

The usual solid state amp suspects should drive those Axioms just fine without breaking your bank Rotel, Adcom, Parasound, Odyssey...etc.

Just wanted to be a voice of reason around here and mention something other than Emotiva.

So does that make the Emotiva suggestions unreasonable then?

And sure any of those other amps would do just fine (but they all cost quite a bit more than a comparable Emotiva model)...

[TheHills44060]

So does that make the Emotiva suggestions unreasonable then?

And sure any of those other amps would do just fine (but they all cost quite a bit more than a comparable Emotiva model)...
I just thought we owed it to this guy to give him some other real reasonable options within his budget. When this site gets renamed to EmotivaReview.com (it might as well be) then of course i'll make sure to recommend nothing but Emotiva like most of the people around here.

[VE4CAN]

The usual solid state amp suspects should drive those Axioms just fine without breaking your bank Rotel, Adcom, Parasound, Odyssey...etc.

Just wanted to be a voice of reason around here and mention something other than Emotiva.


So does that make the Emotiva suggestions unreasonable then?

And sure any of those other amps would do just fine (but they all cost quite a bit more than a comparable Emotiva model)...



I just thought we owed it to this guy to give him some other real reasonable options within his budget. When this site gets renamed to EmotivaReview.com (it might as well be) then of course i'll make sure to recommend nothing but Emotiva like most of the people around here.

THANKS TO BOTH OF YOU
Everything cool with me...
I want as much input as possible...
Everybody will an opinion...
And with all the smart minds out there I get to learn, and choose the most suitable idea to meet my situation..

What do think of my idea in post #12??????

.

.

[Mr Peabody]

Biamping with the receiver won't be as good as an external amp but it may do better than just a single connection.

[blackraven]

I'd like to throw in B&K amps. They have a warmer darker sound. I'm partial to warmer sounding amps or systems.

[VE4CAN]

I'd like to throw in B&K amps. They have a warmer darker sound. I'm partial to warmer sounding amps or systems.

Thanks for the feedback


Biamping with the receiver won't be as good as an external amp

Hmmmmm OK I maybe missing something on that...
Feel free to fill me in on this?????

If the AVR amp has the driving power in the power supply to power the output to the speaker; It should be about the same as the external amp of equivalent size IMO....
All things being equal of course...

Believe me I would like to have separates, but sadly all of the cheaper AVR amps don't have the necessary pre-outs to drive a 5.1 external amp..
You have to go with the flagships, and then why bother with the external amp...

However, say for instance you use:
A Denon AVR-4310CI 7.1-CHANNEL MULTI-ZONE Home Theater Receiver for $1300.00 gets me a max. of 130 watts per channel at .05THD...
And if you Bi-amp the speaker to amp , the effective audio power is now 260 watts max. available going to the left and right speakers....
And it comes with a ton of software and features built in...

The same holds true for Onkyo, Pionner,Kenwood and Yamaha AVR's...

[U]This just my thinking at this time...
.
...

[Ajani]

I just thought we owed it to this guy to give him some other real reasonable options within his budget. When this site gets renamed to EmotivaReview.com (it might as well be) then of course i'll make sure to recommend nothing but Emotiva like most of the people around here.

It's quite reasonable to suggest other options to the OP than Emotiva... But you make it sound as if everyone here is on the Emotiva payroll or some crazed Emotiva fanboy.... The brand gets suggested alot because a lot of members on this site have purchased and had good results with Emotiva gear... A very broad product range, very good quality and exceptionally low prices (by HiFi standards) makes Emotiva and easy recommendation... also many of the Emotiva owners have or had Adcom, Rotel, Parasound, NAD and/or other midlevel gear and found the Emotiva to be better or at least of the same quality for half the price (or less).... so it might seem like some kind of crazy Emotiva cult, but there is a legitimate reason why the brand is pushed so heavily...

And no-one would suggest that you need to recommend nothing but Emotiva or even recommend Emotiva at all (especially since you haven't tried their products)...

[Mr Peabody]

A receiver's power supply is doubtfully the size of a good stand alone power amp and the receiver has to power 5 to 7 channels depending on set up with a single power supply. A stand alone amp should have more output devices and better quality parts than a receiver.

More importantly your 4 ohm speakers hunger for more than watts, they will require current. So if you go with a receiver I would encourage either Onkyo or Integra who to my knowledge leads in current output in mass market brands.

[pixelthis]

I have an Emotiva (125wpc) and am using an Integra (slightly upgraded Onkyo) as a
preamp.
I had the occasion to hook up a pair of my friends M80S', and didn't like the sound
that much, just my two cents.
FOUR OHMS isnt as big a deal as it used to be, however your amp might run a bit warm,
and there might be a 4/8 ohm switch in the back.:1:

[GregLee]

Buy a new Onkyo 807 AVR ($648 at amazon) with all the bells and whistles with preamp out's ...
Or, for the receiver part, a new Pioneer vsx-1120-k AVR ($749 at Amazon or elsewhere) with 9.1 preamp outs, HDMI 1.4a (for 3D), front height/wide speakers (alternative to back surrounds).

[Hyfi]

odyssey stratos extreme and never look back