Help reqd. : Movie & Stereo setup (power amp)

[cmsajith]

I am having an Onkyo receiver HTR320 paired with Space TWR-6 towers / Center / Onkyo surrounds / Onkyo Sub. I am planning to buy Norge Concerto series for music and plan to use the same towers. Following are my doubts :

- How is it possible to connect the same towers to two amps?

- Can I use the Norge as a power amp for front L/R (while connecting the analog out from HTPC) and the remaining through the onkyo amp. My amp is 5.1. If this is possible, i can connect the side surrounds to the front L/R-in of the amp and rear surrounds to the surrounds-in of the amp, thereby i can get a 7.1 setup through htpc. Also the onkyo amp can deliver more continuous power since the fronts are run by a separate amp. Suggestions welcome..

- If i use the setup mentioned above using the norge amp, whether the movies' front L/R will sound better than the onkyo amp? whether the movies will be musical!! (not preferred, right?)

- One important question, how is the norge 1000 / 2000 mosfet compared to onkyo DIRECT mode (current setup)? Is it a big difference? How is the norge in rendering Low freqs? (some reviews say that it lacks the low end).. Which one is better (1000 / 2000) and why?

Gurus please help...

 

[suprateep]

I am having an Onkyo receiver HTR320 paired with Space TWR-6 towers / Center / Onkyo surrounds / Onkyo Sub. I am planning to buy Norge Concerto series for music and plan to use the same towers. Following are my doubts :

- How is it possible to connect the same towers to two amps?

- Can I use the Norge as a power amp for front L/R (while connecting the analog out from HTPC) and the remaining through the onkyo amp. My amp is 5.1. If this is possible, i can connect the side surrounds to the front L/R-in of the amp and rear surrounds to the surrounds-in of the amp, thereby i can get a 7.1 setup through htpc. Also the onkyo amp can deliver more continuous power since the fronts are run by a separate amp. Suggestions welcome..

- If i use the setup mentioned above using the norge amp, whether the movies' front L/R will sound better than the onkyo amp? whether the movies will be musical!! (not preferred, right?)

- One important question, how is the norge 1000 / 2000 mosfet compared to onkyo DIRECT mode (current setup)? Is it a big difference? How is the norge in rendering Low freqs? (some reviews say that it lacks the low end).. Which one is better (1000 / 2000) and why?

Gurus please help...

point 1. yes you can connect the front towers with 2 amps with a speaker switchbox -comes around 2k from radioshack. Even a custom one can be made with good wires and peripherals and a knowledgeable electrician. If you are from Chennai - you can get the switch easily.

point 4. the norge 1000/2000 mofset is way better than even my onkyo 606 in pure more. It is good for bass at moderate to slightly high frequencies. At very high frequencies they loose a bit of bass a appear a little high on the mids. But with your source I guess that will be compensated.

pont 2 -3. You want true 7.1 from 5.1 amp and a stereo amp - yes its theoretically possible but its not true true 7.1. BTW analog out from HTPC from a inbuilt SC is prone to distortion so Norge 1000 cannot do justice.

Remember source is imp - MOST IMPORTANT.

You can connect the Norge as a preamp from source from a HTPC (please use a good SC with analog out - available for around 5k) and use optical/coaxial to get 5.1 surround from the onkyo for movies. Let it stay that way. You will mess up everything. Stay with a separate music and movie setup.

I plan to connect my HTPC to my Onkyo for LPCM 7.1 via HDMI. And separately from the optical out to a DAC (beresford) to an stereo amp (Norge for now) to my front towers. I am happy with my 5.1 setup with Onkyo for movies and 2 channel stereo setup to come soon.

BTW please mention the specs of your HTPC> that will help.

And please play FLAC atleast from the HDD not mp3s at 128kbps

 

[cmsajith]

@supradeep, Thankyou for your suggestions.
(Based on your reply)
Point1 : I am planning to make a switch my self (a manual sliding one, need to design) coz' dont want to have an impedance protector circuit and the possible interference from the circuit.

Point4 : Does 1000/2000 have A/B speaker options (I am planning to hook it to zone 2). Also does it have sub out?

Point2-3 : I dont understand why its not a true 7.1 setup. I am using the 7.1 analogue outs of the mobo and i am amplifying it separately. Front L/R through norge and the rest through the onkyo. As per my understanding, the onkyo will simply act as an amplifier for the analog i/ps (it will amplify whatever comes in). I will be using very good inter connects and the maximum length will be 1.6ft. Is there any chance of interference?
My HTPC is based on gigabyte 786G ver2.0 / AMD 5200+ dual core processor / 2 gb (upgrading to 4gb) / OS : Win7 with Media Centre, which can run HD flawlessly with a limitation that it will not o/p 7.1 LPCM through HDMI. So i have to use the analog out for HD audio. Is there any difference in digital out and analog out without external interference? (currently i am trying with the mobo dac and for stereo it has a separate dac also. reviews states that this board comes with a better SC and dac similar to most entry level HTRs. if found a significant difference i will go for asus SC in future). Assume that the analog out doesnt have any distortion, whether the norge sound better than the onkyo fronts for movies?

For source, i am using ISO of the audio cds with daemon tools/ flac / wav / 320 mp3 / 128 mp3 from HDD. My mobo can output 44.1KHz without any colouration (not tried yet), HTPC is 1 month old.

 

[suprateep]

@supradeep, Thankyou for your suggestions.
(Based on your reply)
Point1 : I am planning to make a switch my self (a manual sliding one, need to design) coz' dont want to have an impedance protector circuit and the possible interference from the circuit.

Point4 : Does 1000/2000 have A/B speaker options (I am planning to hook it to zone 2). Also does it have sub out?

Point2-3 : I dont understand why its not a true 7.1 setup. I am using the 7.1 analogue outs of the mobo and i am amplifying it separately. Front L/R through norge and the rest through the onkyo. As per my understanding, the onkyo will simply act as an amplifier for the analog i/ps (it will amplify whatever comes in). I will be using very good inter connects and the maximum length will be 1.6ft. Is there any chance of interference?
My HTPC is based on gigabyte 786G ver2.0 / AMD 5200+ dual core processor / 2 gb (upgrading to 4gb) / OS : Win7 with Media Centre, which can run HD flawlessly with a limitation that it will not o/p 7.1 LPCM through HDMI. So i have to use the analog out for HD audio. Is there any difference in digital out and analog out without external interference? (currently i am trying with the mobo dac and for stereo it has a separate dac also. reviews states that this board comes with a better SC and dac similar to most entry level HTRs. if found a significant difference i will go for asus SC in future). Assume that the analog out doesnt have any distortion, whether the norge sound better than the onkyo fronts for movies?

For source, i am using ISO of the audio cds with daemon tools/ flac / wav / 320 mp3 / 128 mp3 from HDD. My mobo can output 44.1KHz without any colouration (not tried yet), HTPC is 1 month old.

well sorry for not getting the analog connection planned. Yes you can get 7.1 surround that way. The 2060 norge had A/B speaker options. There is no LFE out but R/L preout that can be connected to a sub and from there you can speaker cables out for R/L. Most better subs offer that option.

Anyway the mobo analog outs have a lot of distortion AFAIK. The chipset specs are fine but the way the mobo manufacturers implement the chipset - thats a cause fo concern. So I would suggest you get a DAC (beresford) for that. If you are happy with the sound so be it.

BTW have you played any true HD video (1080p) on your mobo + proc combo HTPC. I am planning a Asus 78EM + AMD 7750X2/X3 8450 for the setup. Wondering if that could play 1080p effortlessly.

BTW where are you getting the DAC? What price?

 

[cmsajith]

my htpc handles the 1080p without any issues (cpu load of 30% - 40% only, in h/w accelerated mode). My mobo is GA-MA78GM S2HP ver2.0, some of this mobo review says the Realtek 889A which is made specifically for gigabyte 780g chipset has the similar performance (since this board is specifically for htpc purpose) as many entry level HTRs. Anyways i will be checking it up with some dedicated SC.

Do you have any idea about the A/B and sub out options in the Norge Gold 1000 and 2000 mosfet amps? Any idea how good are these amps for movies?

For HD playback (720p / 1080i / 1080p), a good video card + any dual core processor + 1GB ram (preferably running @800Mhz in dual channel mode) is enough. Since i am planning to do some post processing (like sharpening / deinterlacing etc) using FFDshow which requires processor power, i went for 5200+, moreover this processor is the least power hungry processor in the market at that time. 1080p will work in your combo. If you are looking for 7.1LPCM out thru' HDMI, try with nVidia 8200 / 8300 based mobos. Mine is ATI HD 3200, it will support only 2 channels through hdmi and digital out thru' optical and spdif. Since there is not much TrueHD blueray content available (in net also) i thought it will be better go with this board (since feature wise it was better than others), later, when this becomes available i can buy a good display card / sound card with hdmi with 7.1 lpcm. Moreover i can upgrade to a better avr that are currently available now.

 

[suprateep]

my htpc handles the 1080p without any issues (cpu load of 30% - 40% only, in h/w accelerated mode). My mobo is GA-MA78GM S2HP ver2.0, some of this mobo review says the Realtek 889A which is made specifically for gigabyte 780g chipset has the similar performance (since this board is specifically for htpc purpose) as many entry level HTRs. Anyways i will be checking it up with some dedicated SC.

Do you have any idea about the A/B and sub out options in the Norge Gold 1000 and 2000 mosfet amps? Any idea how good are these amps for movies?

For HD playback (720p / 1080i / 1080p), a good video card + any dual core processor + 1GB ram (preferably running @800Mhz in dual channel mode) is enough. Since i am planning to do some post processing (like sharpening / deinterlacing etc) using FFDshow which requires processor power, i went for 5200+, moreover this processor is the least power hungry processor in the market at that time. 1080p will work in your combo. If you are looking for 7.1LPCM out thru' HDMI, try with nVidia 8200 / 8300 based mobos. Mine is ATI HD 3200, it will support only 2 channels through hdmi and digital out thru' optical and spdif. Since there is not much TrueHD blueray content available (in net also) i thought it will be better go with this board (since feature wise it was better than others), later, when this becomes available i can buy a good display card / sound card with hdmi with 7.1 lpcm. Moreover i can upgrade to a better avr that are currently available now.

yes the asus 8300 bases A3N78EM can ouput 7.1 LPCM.

btw the norge does nto have a LPF out but it has a R/L out - which can be connected to a sub which has output for L/R speakers. Its a good amp musically - meaning great mids and clear treble and bass -almost neutral. I really have not seen it operating musically in movies i.e.

 

[venkatcr]

Sajith:

I got your PM. I think Supra seems to be answering you questions quite well. I will come in when needed.

Regarding comparing Craftel to the Norge, it would not be fair to do that as I have not heard the Norge amplifers. The Craftel amps have decent sound, but may not have many of the options you are looking for. At the same time, the advantage of a company such as Audiocraft is that Mark will build any feature you want. All that is needed is patience and clarity of what you want.

Cheers

 

[suprateep]

thanks Venkar.

BTW sajith if you do have some questiosn regarding the Norge amp do call up Mr. Bajaj. He will respond to all your queries. Nice man actually.

 

[cmsajith]

Is there anybody using the Norge 1000 / 2000 mosfet amp for stereo setup and movies?

Just now i was going through the DAC discussions esp, bresford. I am thinking about the following setup:

source (PC / DVDP) > Bresford > Onkyo amp (Any significant diff (for both movies and music) than feeding to the Norge amp like source (PC / DVDP) > Bresford > Norge 1000/2000). Some time back somebody was suggesting this setup. Also can the DVDP+DAC+Norge be comparable to highend cdps?

 

[cmsajith]

yes the asus 8300 bases A3N78EM can ouput 7.1 LPCM.

btw the norge does nto have a LPF out but it has a R/L out - which can be connected to a sub which has output for L/R speakers. Its a good amp musically - meaning great mids and clear treble and bass -almost neutral. I really have not seen it operating musically in movies i.e.

The idea cameup after seeing some stereo amps in the net with bridge option to work like a mono block power amp.

 

[suprateep]

The idea cameup after seeing some stereo amps in the net with bridge option to work like a mono block power amp.

yes everyday i am getting new ideas myself after my daily dose of reading. I just discovered that the Onkyo 606 does have preouts (i.e. for L/R for zone 2). So i plan to use it as a feed to the norge (i finally get to audition it at my place next week) - and voila.

Next step feed audio from HTPC via optical and feed the same to Norge.

If that works I am good to go with my setup and will have peace. But some sources on the net say onkyo cannot pass to zone 2 via L/R preouts when using optical as a source.

Only if someone could confirm this?

BTW go for the DVDP/HTPC>DAC Beresford>Norge = better sound than similar with Onkyo.

Buddy any clue what price the beresford DAC is. I intend to get it some time soon.

PS: I have listened to the Norge through Pioneer 610 (Rahman music) - extended sessions at moderate to high volumes on wharf 9.5 - musically it was well off. Dunno about movies.

 

[cmsajith]

their website says 104.99pounds for 7510 and 154.99pounds for 7520. I have not yet decided which one to go for. If i am going for beresford, i will be bringing it through some of my relatives over there. the problem is with the warranty.

supra i know DVDP/HTPC>DAC Beresford>Norge this will be better than the DVDP/HTPC>DAC Beresford>onkyo, but my question was is it a big difference? Together it will cost around a good cdp ie.,10K - 11K for Norge 2000 amp + 7782/-(TC7510) or 11488/-(TC7520) without vat and shipping (not sure about the local charge over there) So its almost 18K or 22K. Thinking, is it worth to go for this combination?

Also could you please do a detailed review of the norge 1000 and 2000 for music n movies?

 

[suprateep]

their website says 104.99pounds for 7510 and 154.99pounds for 7520. I have not yet decided which one to go for. If i am going for beresford, i will be bringing it through some of my relatives over there. the problem is with the warranty.

supra i know DVDP/HTPC>DAC Beresford>Norge this will be better than the DVDP/HTPC>DAC Beresford>onkyo, but my question was is it a big difference? Together it will cost around a good cdp ie.,10K - 11K for Norge 2000 amp + 7782/-(TC7510) or 11488/-(TC7520) without vat and shipping (not sure about the local charge over there) So its almost 18K or 22K. Thinking, is it worth to go for this combination?

Also could you please do a detailed review of the norge 1000 and 2000 for music n movies?

shipping charges are actually not too high for the beresford. If you wait for a couple of months we can order the beresford together. My HTCP purchase next month is gonna suck my pockets dry (LC 16 MR costs a bloody 13.5 K + other stuff - i will wait till the prices of the Asus HDAV 1.3 drops further - don't know when)

And wait for the review of the Norge 1000vs 2060 till next week. I am getting a further dekho and sunoh this Saturday - side by side comparison of sorts. Wait till then man.

 

[cmsajith]

I dont understand why are you planning for an Asus xonar inspite of the hdmi out of the mobo with 7.1 lpcm for movies and beresford dac for music. Then your avr became obsolete.

reg, Norge, if possible, plz do a comparison for 2000 mosfet amp also along with the 1000 and 2060 amps for music and movies. Since you know the configuration that am planning for, it will be a major help for me. Anyways i am not at all in a hurry.

LC 16 MR is a pretty good looking case. I am planning for diy case. An old flat bed case is there with me and i need to get a brushed alum faceplate for it.

 

[suprateep]

I dont understand why are you planning for an Asus xonar inspite of the hdmi out of the mobo with 7.1 lpcm for movies and beresford dac for music. Then your avr became obsolete.

reg, Norge, if possible, plz do a comparison for 2000 mosfet amp also along with the 1000 and 2060 amps for music and movies. Since you know the configuration that am planning for, it will be a major help for me. Anyways i am not at all in a hurry.

LC 16 MR is a pretty good looking case. I am planning for diy case. An old flat bed case is there with me and i need to get a brushed alum faceplate for it.

HDAV 1.3 is not coming now - may come later.

I wish i could indulge in DIY like you - don;t have have the drive any more

Anyway the plan is to size up the 1000, 2060, 2000 mofset side by side - the last time i tried the 1000 blew off the 2030. Will update you next week.

 

[BLASTO]

HDAV 1.3 is not coming now - may come later.

I wish i could indulge in DIY like you - don;t have have the drive any more

Anyway the plan is to size up the 1000, 2060, 2000 mofset side by side - the last time i tried the 1000 blew off the 2030. Will update you next week.

Yepeee.. :yahoo: :clapping:

How did you manage to get all those 3 to your house?

I think I will be skipping all the trouble and jsut buy what you will buy eventually.. hyeah:

Iam inclined towards M35+Norge combo..

Craftel audition (next month) may make me rethink about the M35, If they perform 80-90% of M35s, I may as well get the craftel floorstanders instead. They are less than half the price..

So you've already got one waiting for the review..