Need help to decide on an Amp

[vartakavi]

Hi. I am new to this world and I am buying my first Amp - for a large L shaped hall around 400 sq feet with a 15ft high ceiling. I want to be able to listen to music from anywhere the house - all rooms open into this hall.

I want to use this to listen mostly to music (film, instrumental classical, easy listening both indian and western) and about 30% of the time to watch films. Right now I have an Altec Lansing 2.1 system connected to my PC. I store music on my computer and on my Ipod -- I also have a hundred or so CDs.

I have posted a separate thread on choosing Speakers in the appropriate forum.

I am ready to spend 25 to 30K for the Integrated Amp.

My questions are:

(a) Does the room size have any bearing on the power of the Amp? If yes, how much power (watts per channel) should I look for in the Amp?

(b) From what I have read in this Forum the speakers should ideally have a higher power rating than the Amp - is my understanding correct?

(c) Should I buy the Amp first and audition different type of speakers with it or vice versa?

(d) Do any Amps in this price range come with a USB or Ipod socket? Or will I be better off now buying the Amp that sounds best and later buy an Ipod dock or a CD player with Ipod connectivity?

(e) What Amps should I consider which cost less than 30K?

(f) I am planning to buy a DVD or a Blueray player to connect to my Samsung LCD TV. Can I connect this to the Amp and play my music CDs on this player itself? Do I need to get a separate CD player?

 

[venkatcr]

I want to be able to listen to music from anywhere the house - all rooms open into this hall.

Unless you put an amplifier or powered speakers in every room, you will not be able to listen to music from 'anywhere'. For example, if you are sitting in your bedroom and want to hear music playing in your hall, you will have to keep your amplifier close to distortion levels. Even then the sound will not be clear in your bedroom. The solution for this is what is called whole home audio. In such a system the music is carried through CAT5 cables to every room where it is amplified again and played through speakers in that room.

(a) Does the room size have any bearing on the power of the Amp? If yes, how much power (watts per channel) should I look for in the Amp?


Yes it does. The larger the room, the more power you need. The smaller the room, the less power you need. But it is not just the size of the room. The other factors important are speaker efficiency, sitting distance, and listening levels. Typically with speaker efficiency of 87dB/Watt Meter, listening levels of some 88dB, and 3000 cubic feet room size, you would need an amplifier that can pump some 100 odd watts of full output. If you room size increases, you may need to double the power of the amp.

(b) From what I have read in this Forum the speakers should ideally have a higher power rating than the Amp - is my understanding correct?


It is actually the other way around. If the speakers draw more power, the amplifier will start clipping easily or go into protective mode. Always have an amplifier that can deliver more power than what the speaker can handle.

(c) Should I buy the Amp first and audition different type of speakers with it or vice versa?

Depends. If you are looking for specific features, then a amplifier choice comes first. If you like the sound of particular speakers, then of course you choose that first and then locate an amp to match that.

(d) Do any Amps in this price range come with a USB or Ipod socket? Or will I be better off now buying the Amp that sounds best and later buy an Ipod dock or a CD player with Ipod connectivity?

Some AVRs in the 50K to 100K range do have USB sockets, but they have very limited capabilities in terms of playing various media. Look for a good player that can handle all you want.

(f) I am planning to buy a DVD or a Blueray player to connect to my Samsung LCD TV. Can I connect this to the Amp and play my music CDs on this player itself? Do I need to get a separate CD player?[/QUOTE]


A CD Player is always better for music alone when compared to a universal player such as Blu-Ray (not Blueray) or a DVD. But both these can play music CDs.

Cheers

 

[vartakavi]

Thanks Venkatcr. I think I will buy the Amp first and then Audition it with 3 or 4 speakers which I can shortlist based on the advice in this forum.

There is a NAD C355BEE on sale by dealer in this forum. The price of a demo piece works out to about 33K and a brand new one is offered at 37K.

Is C355BEE an old model which has been replaced by the C356BEE?

According to What HIFI magazine (Sept 2010) the price of the C356BEE is listed as Rs.28,400.

Is the NAD C355BEE a good buy for a novice buying his first Amp?

 

[venkatcr]

There is not much difference between the 355 and the 356 in terms of sound signature. The 356 has some additional features. and yes, they are both good amps, though all NAD lean a bit towards emphasising the base.

You could push harder for a better price for a demo unit.

Cheers