Amplifier suggestions for only music: How abt Emotiva?

[hemanth.hg]

Hi All,

Currently I have a NAD C320BEE amplifier paired with Eros MKII floor standers(DIY). I'm planning to upgrade to a slightly more powerful amplifier. Initially I thought of NAD375, but some of the FMs told suggested me not to go for it as I already have a NAD and that would sound similiar, which makes sense. I'm thinking of going for Emotiva XPA 200 + UPS 1 ($499+$429 - No voltage converter hassle). I'm currently in Pittsburgh(us) and would like to buy before I move to India in 3 to 4 months time. My budget is around $1500. I know the best way would be to audition, but there are only couple of dealers nearby the place where I live.


My questions are :
1. How do you rate the Emotiva XPA 200 + UPS 1 Combo when compared to NAD 320BEE (50w x 2)?
2. Could you suggest some decent amps in the $1500 range(I like the NAD sound). I would prefer some amplifier with 100w - 150w. The amp will be only for music.
3. My music preferences are rock,pop, hiphop, classic (favourites:Metallica, Linkin park, Deepeche Mode, Coldplay,Enya)and hindi all genres.


Thanks,
Hemanth.

 

[afj]

you will need to demo the amp on your particular setup. component matching is very important.

 

[Kittu]

Hi All,

Currently I have a NAD C320BEE amplifier paired with Eros MKII floor standers(DIY).
3. My music preferences are rock,pop, hiphop, classic (favourites:Metallica, Linkin park, Deepeche Mode, Coldplay,Enya)and hindi all genres.


Thanks,
Hemanth.

Slightly off topic. How do you find those floor standers for your music preference? Specially with Rock, Heavy metal and Hip hop.

 

[hemanth.hg]

The speaker sounds good for rock, but it is average for hiphop.

 

[Shyamtanu]

<How do you rate the Emotiva XPA 200 + UPS 1 Combo when compared to NAD 320BEE (50w x 2)?>

You cannot compare even NAD 352BEE with this combo in terms of sonic presence and tonal quality. XPA-200 is not something it will show its power, music is the priority here, but when you need it, like a dynamic pass of orchestra or laid back Ghazals of Jagjit, where the voice has some small nuances which may get missed out, this combo rocks, however, USP volume control could have smaller increments of increase/decrease, but you get used to it. I never missed any bass/treble controls, and that is true quality of a preamp. I have Quad 12L2 and a Sony sub woofer crossed over at ~100 Hz. Enough for my room, but thsi amp can drive much more power hungry ones with ease for sure, never gets hot!

Regards,
Shyamtanu

 

[GeorgeO]

Hemanth

Why not look at Bryston-or Odyssey? Both should be able to work off 220V, and both are very well rated. Audiogon may throw up some good deals..

 

[srisaikat]

I had personally used Emotiva power amp, but not with their Preamp. Still I agree with evaluation of "Shyamtanu" about Emotiva. Emotiva is cold and sterile for Music. So, if Music is first preference then I have three suggestions for you,

1) MUSIC HALL A70.2 - Price $1499.00 (at musicdirect.com, amazon, Parts ConneXion - The authority on hi-fi DIY parts and components and others), I personally use it.

2) KRELL - S-300i INTEGRATED AMP - Offer price $1750 after great discount at Musicdirect.com KRELL S-300i INTEGRATED AMP at Music Direct. I missed this offer.

3) MARANTZ - PM-15S2 - Offer price $1999 after discount at MARANTZ PM-15S2 LIMITED INTEGRATED AMP at Music Direct

I firmly believe you will never regret with any of those.

Best luck

 

[asliarun]

You meant USP1, right?

I was using it for a year but found it to be a bit bright and slightly harsh. So I sold it off. It could very well have been lack of component synergy though, as most others rate this preamp fairly well. The other things I have observed with Emotiva is that
a. You always get your money's worth
b. Their high end models have far better reviews than their mid range models

At your budget, you have plenty of options.

If you are looking for lesser known manufacturers (but who are arguably better especially at the price), Odyssey as GeorgeO suggested. I don't think you will get Bryston at this price though.

You should also strongly consider the Yamaha A-S2000 which is somewhat in your budget but in a different (higher) league entirely. The A-S2000 also has a voltage selector that will make it work in the US and in India. I also don't think you will get another fully balanced topology at this build quality, refinement level, and output power level - anywhere in this price range.

Edit: Although the A-S2000 is officially listed at $2000 on Yamaha's website, most places online including Amazon and Newegg are selling it for $2000.

 

[hemanth.hg]

As I was busy with some personal work I wasn't following the forum for some time. Thanks all for the response.
I'm going to audition most of the amplifier(available locally) suggested by the FMs. As my assignment got extended, I'm even thinking of the 2nd generation of Emotiva XPA 1L(2) + XSP 1 combination.

Let me know your comments on the above.

Thanks.

 

[tableconterls]

you will need to demo the amp on your particular setup. component matching is very important.

 

[dheerajin]

Hi All,

Currently I have a NAD C320BEE amplifier paired with Eros MKII floor standers(DIY). I'm planning to upgrade to a slightly more powerful amplifier. Initially I thought of NAD375, but some of the FMs told suggested me not to go for it as I already have a NAD and that would sound similiar, which makes sense.

Hi Hemanth,

I would like to add here about NAD amps, that NAD 375 has different sound signature than other low price NAD amps. It has some attributes of masters series amps of NAD.It has clean power of 150wpc and has great soundstage. So believe your ears and have an audition first.

I am from Pune and if you are coming to India in recent while then you can have audition of of 375. I have put it on sale.

cheers
dheeraj

 

[hemanth.hg]

So finally I bought the XPA -1L monoblocks(2) and XSP-1 as there was a very good deal of 20% for e-club members(till 31st/July) and it cost me around $1750(no tax + free shipping). The XPA -lL are being sold for $550 + 20% off.
I did audition couple of other amplifier(NAD, dont remember the model), I would have taken some more audition before making the final decision, but I couldn't really resist the current emotiva deal. I felt the emotiva amps are real VFM (IMHO).
Currently I have connected the laptop to the pre-amp and using a technics bookshelf speaker, so it doesn't really make any justice for the SQ, but atleast I'm hearing more detail and it is little bit bright(probably a better speaker and speaker cable might bring down the brightness). I'm planning for getting a DAC(budget is around $500, schiit bifrost/ audio gd). I will post a detailed review once I get hold of a decent CD player /DAC.

 

[gnanasekhar]

You can also look for vintage Accuphase amplifiers.

 

[srisaikat]

So finally I bought the XPA -1L monoblocks(2) and XSP-1 as there was a very good deal of 20% for e-club members(till 31st/July) and it cost me around $1750(no tax + free shipping). The XPA -lL are being sold for $550 + 20% off.
I did audition couple of other amplifier(NAD, dont remember the model), I would have taken some more audition before making the final decision, but I couldn't really resist the current emotiva deal. I felt the emotiva amps are real VFM (IMHO).
Currently I have connected the laptop to the pre-amp and using a technics bookshelf speaker, so it doesn't really make any justice for the SQ, but atleast I'm hearing more detail and it is little bit bright(probably a better speaker and speaker cable might bring down the brightness). I'm planning for getting a DAC(budget is around $500, schiit bifrost/ audio gd). I will post a detailed review once I get hold of a decent CD player /DAC.

As your system is already sounding bright so try to use solid copper based cables. I will also suggest for Audio-gd dac as you have mentioned 2 names and I have used both. Any Sabre ESS9018 based Audio-gd DAC will be great in terms of details, transparency and silky vocals. Till now no reviewer dare to attach words like "digital harshness" or "brightness" to any Audio-gd DACs. Analogue flavour is their specialty.

 

[locopoco]

Hi Hemanth,

Congrats on your purchase....I have also bought a emotiva DAC (XDA-2) thru' my bro who is based in US.

Haaa....i am looking at XPA-2 as my next upgrade some years hence....I actually never gave much thought on the mono - blocks...your purchase has got me thinking.

Sorry, noob questions - what exactly are the difference between mono-blocks& normal power amps...i mean, in terms of music.

Another OT q - XPA-2 weighs a massive 45 odd kg....how would I get it to India...the airlines allow a single baggage of 23kg. The extra weight charges would kill me

 

[hemanth.hg]

Hi locopoco,

Refer to the link regarding monoblock:http://www.hifivision.com/amplifiers/29188-mono-block-stereo-block-difference.html

If you can't get it in your baggage you need to opt for their international shipping which will cost a lot including the custom charges. Even the XPA -1L weighs around 35 lbs each.

 

[hemanth.hg]

I have added a DAC to my system last week. As I was planning to buy a DAC where I can use it in both US and later in India, I decided to go with Emotiva Stealth-DC1, I decided to sacrifice a bit on the SQ for the flexibility it offers(multiple input, dual voltage, pre-amp) in the range of $500. Thanks to srisaikat in helping me decide on the DAC.

So my setup is Laptop ->WASAPI->Stealth DC1 ->XSP1 preamp -> XPA -1L power amp ->Technic speaker(the weakest in the setup).

Since this is my first DAC, my reviews are limited in context. I did initial burn-in of the DAC for around 100 hours but couldn't really make out any change in SQ after burning-in(probably I dont have that kind of ears or my system can't resolve that much), but I can make out a huge impovement in the SQ when compared to my NAD CD player 541BEE + NAD C320BEE.

I tried couple of high resolution songs downloaded from the Lindberg Lyd AS .: HOVEDSIDE and liked the clarity in music, even when the volume is set to 90% there isn't any hissing noise from the speakers. I like the bass and it is adequate. The highs are crisp and clear, does feel harsh at all for longer listening sessions. The soudstage is really good. I tried the following music:

1. Shankar tucker (Dhun in Raag Mishra Pilu, Dhun in Raag Mishra Pilu and couple of other)
2. Metallica (Nothing else matters,Suicide and Redemption, The Day That Never Comes)
3. Coldplay (Dont panic, spies, talk, fix you...)
4. Linkin park(Numb, victimized, castle of glass, Final Masquerade,faint...)
5. AR Rahman(many of them)
and lot of songs by Michael Jackson, Jagjith Singh, Enya, Akon, Timbaland to name

The music is more enjoyable, and couple of more instruments showing up in the songs which I have been listening from many years, feels like a layer has been covering my music all these years. I have attached a couple of pics of my music system.

Next task: To build a decent HTPC.

Currently enjoying the music, hope the upgraditis will not bite me soon.

Thanks for reading.

 

[sandeepmohan]

I would not bother with an Emotiva when you have access to British electronics.

Please audition Rega Elicit-R and Elex-R.

You can always order an Emotiva when you are back in India and try it out. Sell it if it does not work. Emotiva has a huge fan following in India and selling it won't be hard.

Moderator can delete this post because the owner has already made the purchase.

So finally I bought the XPA -1L monoblocks

Now this is a very interesting amplifier by Emotiva.

 

[Nikhil]

Hemanth, congratulations on your setup!

You really should look at a good pair of speakers eventually.
Take your time though and do things at your own pace.

From the specs I noticed that you can run your mono blocks in pure Class A configuration. Do share your thoughts on the differences you hear in Class A and Class A/B configuration. From the specs, you have plenty of power on tap! Enjoy!

 

[hemanth.hg]

Thank you Nikhil,

The speaker setup I have is just a temporary one till I return to India, back home I have Eros MK 11 DIY TS(http://www.hifivision.com/diy/2306-my-music-system.html) which is decent enough. I will compare the Class A and Class A/B configuration on the XPA-lL and will post my observations.