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khemopr
05-10-2010, 06:27 AM
Would anyone like to share their experience on the Emotiva power amps/ subwoofer, am considering their products

Ajani
05-10-2010, 06:41 AM
There are a lot of satisfied Emotiva owners on this site and others. The best advice I can give you is to try it out and return it if you don't like it...

poppachubby
05-10-2010, 06:49 AM
There are a lot of satisfied Emotiva owners on this site and others. The best advice I can give you is to try it out and return it if you don't like it...

C'mon Ajani. I wouldn't mind hearing your thoughts too. Particularily, how did your current speakers sound AFTER inserting this amp, how much did it add? How does it perform, and with different music?

To the OP if you search the forums you should come up with a few threads already about Emotiva.

Ajani
05-10-2010, 07:49 AM
C'mon Ajani. I wouldn't mind hearing your thoughts too. Particularily, how did your current speakers sound AFTER inserting this amp, how much did it add? How does it perform, and with different music?

To the OP if you search the forums you should come up with a few threads already about Emotiva.

Hmmm... I've generally just said that the Emotiva amp has made my speakers sound good for the first time (since I've been exposed to genuine hifi)...

But I suppose I can give some detail, but first some background:

My current speakers are some 3 way Technics floorstanders I bought when I was 19 as part of my first seperates system with a Technics AV receiver and 5 disc changer... At 19 that combo sounded so sweeeeet! However 10 years later, after living in Canada and being exposed to many high end products, I found that setup to sound pretty bad: recessed mids, irritating highs and loose, overpowering bass...

Anyway, I bought the Emotiva XPA-2 and dug up the old Technics speakers (from my parents' house) so I would have something to try the amp out on until I buy my Revels...

I have my Benchmark DAC1 serving as DAC and Pre in the Emotiva/Technics Setup and as DAC and headphone amp with my AKG K701 cans...

OK time for thoughts on the sound:

The Emotiva Amp has turned my 'party speakers' into a very enjoyable listen...

The bass is clean and tight, I haven't heard a bass note sound out of place no matter what I throw at it... Tracks like Bob Marley and Lauryn Hills version of 'Turn your lights down low' and Kanye West's 'Love Lockdown' tend to embarass any system with loose bass, but the Emotiva has an iron grip on the Technics' drivers...

Treble is no longer harsh and occassionally irritating.... Mids are far less recessed than before (though I'm sure that is probably just a limitation of the speakers)... So the overall sound is much much much closer to being balanced than ever before....

Detail levels are respectable and I can just about visualize a soundstage with the right tracks (a major accomplishment for these speakers)...

Noise is virtually non-existent (same as with my headphone rig) so it means that Emotiva is not adding any noise to the ultra quiet DAC1: I can turn the volume to full (no music playing) and can only hear the slightest hint of hiss with my ear directly pressed against the tweeter....

The Emotiva combo has shown no obvious preference for a particular musical genre; everything from Kenny G to Kenny Rogers, Michael Jackson to Michael Bolton, Billy Joel to Billy Ocean sounds good...

The volume control hardly passes 9 o'clock on the DAC1 and music sounds as good at low volumes as high volumes (very good for a high powered SS amp)....

The most interesting part is that I don't feel 'dissapointed' when I switch from listening to my AKG Cans to the Technics/Emotiva combo (which I experienced quite a bit with the M-Audio Active speakers I previously had)... I suspect that when I upgrade speakers, my AKGs may finally get to retire from active duty (though I must admit that they don't get used that often now)....

At $800, the Emotiva XPA-2 is an easy recommendation (considering what is has done for subpar speakers)...

poppachubby
05-10-2010, 07:57 AM
Sounds great. Does anyone here have tubes in front of their Emotiva amp?

Ajani
05-10-2010, 08:05 AM
Sounds great. Does anyone here have tubes in front of their Emotiva amp?

Not that I know of, but a tube pre with an Emotiva amp should be an excellent hybrid combo for minimal cash outlay....

Ajani
05-10-2010, 08:47 AM
PoppaC, I'd love to see you pull the trigger on an Emotiva amp (even the UPA-2), as it would be really intriguing to hear your thoughts on it with your tube pre!

poppachubby
05-10-2010, 10:06 AM
I may go Emotiva for an H/T upgrade, but no 2 channel in the near future.

Ajani
05-10-2010, 10:08 AM
I may go Emotiva for an H/T upgrade, but no 2 channel in the near future.

That would still work, as you could test out their HT amp with your pre just to see if you like the results...

pixelthis
05-10-2010, 01:36 PM
Would anyone like to share their experience on the Emotiva power amps/ subwoofer, am considering their products

Mine has 125 wpc, and that is real power, with a big honkin toroidial transformer
in the power supply.
BEST 250 BUCKS I EVER spent(except for this night in Memphis...)
The best thing you can say about any amp is that you dont notice it, just tons
and tons of clean power.
One thing you will notice if going from receiver to a real amp is the sound, I have
always known about the edge that standalone amps have, but until you listen on a day to day basis will you start to realize just how much a standard receivers amps suck.
And my receiver is new, and hardly an off brand.
Now you can do better with a more expensive amp, but most won't be able to tell the diff, frankly.
LOVELOVELOVELOVELOVELOVE mine!!!:1:

rob_a
05-10-2010, 04:04 PM
I’m sold!!!, You can't beat the quality of sound to cost! Build is heavy duty and customer service is 2nd to none. I have the UPA-2 and I think it sounds great, I cant wait to pick up an XPA-3 for my fronts and move my UPA-2 to the rears. You’re looking at an amp that should cost 2 to 3 times it retail price. Super clean, detailed, and natural sounding. Works well with almost any speaker and pre amp. take it for a test drive. If you don't like it, send it back and look for an amp that is better and let us know how much you paid :)