How about an ADCOM GFA-555?

GoBlue

Im in need of a 200+ wpc stereo amp for my loudspeakers, and this Adcom gfa-555 looks good, and affordable, but its also old. Is that going to make a difference from comparable newer amps in any ways?

Im also looking at a Rotel 991 which is similar. Its THX cert. and a bit more on the cost side.

What do you think?

Thanks!

cnh

An original Adcom GFA-555 can hold its own with newer amps in its class and more. You should see if you can listen to it to see if the sound is 'clean' or if it might need new caps or..whatever? However, having said that. I have an original that has almost no mods and it still sounds FINE! These Adcoms are almost 'indestructible'. And it won't cost much to put a couple of new parts in there if you need to. And once you do..you're probably good for another 20 years! They just run and run and run.

And they can power 'almost' anything...'almost'?

cnh

leroyjr1

The Adcom 555's are built like tanks.

Echosphere

I would go with the Rotel any day of the week.

Adcom sound is decent but boring.

Rotel is just lively, moving, and fun.

leroyjr1

Look for a Adcom 555II and be done. It's the best $300 amp you're going to find.

dpowell

Sometimes Adcoms can sound bright with Polk RT series speakers but they are great amps. It's really up to your taste. If you can pick it up for the right price, you can always resell if you want to try someting else.

leroyjr1

dpowell wrote: »

Sometimes Adcoms can sound bright with Polk RT series speakers but they are great amps. It's really up to your taste. If you can pick it up for the right price, you can always resell if you want to try someting else.

Don't know which adcom you're referring to but the 555II took to edge off my RTI a9's. I guess it all depends on your other gear as well.

Dawgfish

I used to own a 555 original. I found it to be a little on the bright side myself for two channel listening. Of course it was built like a tank and lasts forever and can even be hotrodded for a realitively low amount of cash by Ben here on the board. Adcom 555s are great ways to break into seperates for a low amount of cash. Having said that there are some other vintage amps out there that can be picked up for about the same price that perform just as well if not better. B&K ST202+ s can be routinely picked up in the $300 range also and have pretty much the same specs as the 555. They are warmer sounding and have much smoother highs, at least to me and in my system. What I am saying here is the 555 is a solid choice for a 200 wpc (8ohms) solid state amp, but it's not the only choice. Depending on your listening preferences and overall system synergy, there may be amps that are better choices for you than the 555. Get out there and listen for yourself if at all possible. YMMV.

heiney9

Adcom's are very revealing of poor pre-amps. I suspect most people that owned Adcoms and thought they were bright, had cheaper pre's driving them. I owned and sold Adcom for a long time and most of the "bright" issues come from poor pre-amp synergy. I never thought they were bright even with sl2000 tweeters.

FWIW and YMMW

H9

GoBlue

Thanks all for the advice, and opinions.

I found an original 555 for about $245 from a local. Its in great shape, and the inside looks new for a 20+ year old amp.

Ive got it hooked to a Pioneer Elite, VSX55-TXI. It already had 100 wpc, but I needed some power for these AR9's Ive got. It doesnt seem bright to me yet, but I havent listened to it that much. I also like the resell idea, that is if I dont like it.

One thing, if anyone knows. The amp makes the speakers pop every time it gets turned on/off, or when the receiver switches sound modes, or modes (ie: DVD, CD, Phono). Can you stop that, and is it something bad?

Thanks a lot guys.

Polkie2009

It sounds like you got a very nice,clean older 555 Go Blue. Having a strong external amp to drive the mains will take a load off of the power supply in the Elite.:) My old used Adcom 545 that I use for my surround back speakers seemed to do that pop thing too when I switched modes etc... Funny thing is, it only did that for about a week, now it doesn't do it.

leroyjr1

...........

mewisemagic

try turning amp off first, let it bleed down ,then turn off pre-amp

cnh

Good point above. It can take an Adcom like that with its huge capacitance half a minute or more to discharge its stored current...many people who are not used to power amps are sometimes 'confused' by this and think that it is a problem. It is NOT. It's merely an example of its power and design.

Got to go with Brock on the brightness issue. My Adcom never sounded very bright to me....neutral 'yes' but not bright--so watch your pre-amps. Select carefully!

cnh

Dawgfish

I was using my Adcom GFA-555 with an Anthem PRE-1L tubed preamp with NOS Mullard tubes and it still sounded bright to me in my system being played through SDA-1Cs with RDO-194s tweets. System synergy is very important as we have eluded to, but I was using a Pre that definitely leans towards the warm side of things and my 555 still sounded bright to me. Agian that's why it's important for folks to get out there and here things for themselves. One person's bright may be another person's nuetral and vice versa. Believe me, I'm not the only person who believes the 555 to be slightly on the bright side of the spectrum, but YMMV. As long as your setup sounds good to you then that's really all that counts in the end.

heiney9

Dawgfish wrote: »

Believe me, I'm not the only person who believes the 555 to be slightly on the bright side of the spectrum, but YMMV. As long as your setup sounds good to you then that's really all that counts in the end.

Except: In the Stereophile review they felt exactly the opposite of all those who many years later started saying Adcom's were bright.

The GFA-555 does everything well, and most things exceptionally well. It provides superb, well-controlled bass with far better speaker load tolerance than most amps. Its midrange and treble are remarkably low in coloration. There is no hint of hardness, and none of the loss of inner detail common to transistor amplifiers.

With the exception of the Krells, I have never heard a more detailed, natural, and extended upper four octaves in a transistor amp. The Adcom may even be a legitimate rival to the Krell; it's brighter and more dynamic; and somewhat more open. And, like the Krell, it gives the impression, on really good material, that the amplifier simply isn't there. Nor is the Adcom romantic or sweet, like New York Audio's new Moscodes. Rather, it offers natural upper-octave detail that the latter miss. Other amplifiers have similar upper-octave performance, but I unhesitatingly recommend the Mcom over the very stiff competition from Tandberg and Threshold.

The Adcom's soundstage is sufficiently superior that even those who claim all power amplifiers sound alike might hear the difference. It comes very close to the better tube power amplifiers in providing detailed, stable, realistic imaging with natural depth. It is not an Audio Research D-250, but is extraordinarily holographic—I suspect almost embarrassingly so. This kind of soundstage has previously cost at least $2000.

I am also highly impressed with this amplifier's dynamics. Once again, it is not going to survive a one-on-one with the Audio Research D-250 or Conrad-Johnson Premier Fives, but it rivals any transistor power amplifier in its power class that I have heard—including high-powered receivers or amps with trick power supplies—at any price. It provides these dynamics into virtually any load without bloat, restriction of sound, or change in timbre. For all the nonsense published by most manufacturers about driving complex loads, this amplifier actually delivers.

The Adcom does not lose sweetness and detail as its power goes up. I am normally leery of transistor amplifiers rated much above 100 watts; they too often blur detail and harmonic information, and this sonic price tag is far more costly than the added power is worth. This does not happen with the Adcom unless the distortion lights are blinking, and they only blink when the amp is delivering well over its rated 200 watts per channel (8 ohms) or 325 watts (4 ohms). By comparison, once-outstanding high power amplifiers like the Hafler DH-500 now sound annoyingly veiled.


As always YMMV and I agree with Dawgfish that everyone should get their own ears on gear before deciding.

H9

kevhed72

I was running a 545ii for a long time, and recently snatched a deal on a 555ii.
I went back and forth between the 2 for days on end, trying to hear the sonic differences. Not much difference except in the bass department IMO. I then scooped up a pair of Terminator 4 speaker cables (an upgrade over my MIT EXPS-1s) for another 'deal' and that tweak made the more powerful amp MUCH more noticeable. It was as if the lower-end speaker cables were restricting the detail and richness found with a more powerful amp.
The more I tweak my system w/ upgrades, the less I find the A9s to be bright at all. I can only imagine what adding a pre-amp will improve in terms of sound.