CurtPalme.com Home Theater Forum

[WanMan]

AVR or separates for amplification?

[draganm]

A receiver is fine if you plan to have ALL bookshelf speakers and a small center channel. Start throwing in towers, a large center, and dipole surrounds and you will easilly overheat a receiver and even worse, Clip the hell out of the front end during a really loud part of the movie. I still have my receiver, but I took 50% of the load off it by mono-blocking the main speakers (receiver must have pre-outs). MY receiver only drives the center and surrounds but even at that I think it's at max output.

[WanMan]

Oh, I am not asking for advice, but then again I wasn't clear at all when I created the poll. I am curious to know what others are currently doing.

[Zebu Fellenz]

AVR now, but I'm looking into seperate amps.

[Nashou66]

I have an Adcom GFA5300 3 channel 200W on the floor next to my front speakers, then I have two GFA 5200 80W for the rears.
And a Adcom GFP830 processor.

Athanasios

[macgyver655]

[CasetheCorvetteman]

Get speakers that suit the amp and it wont matter.

My speakers are not real flash, they are Jensen inwalls, and with the Sherwood amp i had before the sound was fine at lower levels, but didnt sound near as good as it does now with the Harman/Kardon. The Sherwood was rated at 130w X6 @ 6ohm, the H/K is only rated 55w x7 @8 ohm, but it will go all the way up full with crystal clear sound louder than i can bear to have it.

If the rating was done the usual way, that 130w x6 of the Sherwood was with 1 speaker connected, and one channel input, probably with one tone, which is not real hard on the transformer, and 130w is really piss poor cause you sure as hell wont get that with all channels driven. If it was done in the FTC way like the H/K is, its all the channels driven at once with the same signal. When you start driving more channels, the transformer has to supply them all instead of just one, and it can only supply so much power. Receivers will only ever put out so much power with one transformer. An amp that only has to supply 1 or 2 channels will be able to supply them alot more power with alot less transformer than an amp trying to drive 7 channels.

If you want to lift the roof, make sure youve got enough power to drive the speakers that will do it. If you want to listen at a comfortable volume, make sure the speakers are suited to the output of the amp.

[WanMan]

[CasetheCorvetteman]

You clearly missed the point. That wasnt my suggestion at all.

[WanMan]

Ok, so what point was it that I missed? Let's say I do not know any better and get amps or an AVR that is of insufficient to drive the speakers for the room. That seems like a bad idea, too.

I chose speakers that sounded good to me across a couple of different AVRs. Unfortunately, their sound may change when or if I go external amplification. But let's assume I am ok with the speaker+amp sound. I am clearly approaching this from a amp as a function of the speaker, and not a speaker as a function of the amp.

Enlighten me, Case.

[ecrabb]

So far, this is all a drastic oversimplification, anyway.

What's the size of the room?
What sort of clean SPL do you want to achieve in the room?
Is it treated? Fully or partially?
And the biggie: What's your budget?

You could pick an amp, then pick speakers with an efficiency to match. You could also do what most people do: Figure out their budget for speakers, pick speakers that will fit the budget, aesthetics, and listening preferences, then pick an appropriate amp to drive them, whether that be AVR or separates.

If you're talking about a dedicated room with much of any treatment, it's very safe bet that even the cheapest separates amps are going to sound better, have more headroom, and be capable of higher non-distorted sound pressure levels than even a very expensive AVR.

Basic sound treatments and separate amps were BY FAR the two biggest upgrades I did to improve the sound in my HT. I could never go back to an AVR-only for amplification. You can still use an AVR as a preamp/processor, of course.

SC

[Bucketfoot]

I voted mixture, as I am using an AVR (instead of a true pre/pro) to feed my amp.

[ralpharch]

In both Family room and theater room I have AVRs - so answered poll that way - but I have a question regarding separate amp (or new more capable AVR) for newly added 4 season room.

I have everything hooked up to the Family Room receiver, including network/internet HD streamer, cd player, HD cable etc. In the new room I just have stereo with two in-walls that I power off the A/B speaker selector on the reciever, so I have all my sources available there as well as Family room.

(A is surround in Family room includiing; A/B is stereo in family room and 4 season room; B is stereo 4 season room only). Since the selection of speakers is not available on remote, but only manually at AVR (Pioneer VSX-D810) operation is a PITA. Always need to switch to listen to music in the new room or listen to tv off its speakers without surround.

Options:

1. get an amp for 4 season room and use the Pioneer pre-outs for that (the pre-outs are multi-channel but I assume that I can just use L-R for stereo

2. Get a newer more capable AVR that can output different channels simultaneously without A/B switching (surround in Family room/stereo in patio room) or that has A/B speaker selection available via remote?

Your thoughts recommendations appreciated.

[J Kildare]

I posted a mixture:
1-1000w amp in SVS ultra 2
2-200w Nakamichi stasis amps
1-100w Nakamichi stasis amp
2-300w amps in mains for subs
7x130w in my Denon 3808 Reciever used for 2 back channels only.

Jim

[WanMan]

[AnalogRocks]

All seperates here. Just because....

[AnalogRocks]

All seperates here. Just because....

[CasetheCorvetteman]