Amp..Warm,Bright orr Neutral

larry777

Hi everyone. When looking for an Amp i understand that different companies produce amps that have either a Warm,Bright or somewhat Neutral sound. as an example I understand Parasound and Sunfire have a Warm sound and Emotiva has a Bright sound. Can anyone tell me what type of sound the following Amps would have....Adcom,Anthem,Arcam,Rotel,Nad,Outlaw,B & K,and Acurus. Am I understanding correctly that a Warm amp can help offset the Brightness of the Rti Speakers, or would you also need a Warm AVR to help do that ? ( I have Polk Rti10's,CSiA6,and RTi4 surrounds ) Please add any other comments and get me back on track if I am thinking in the wrong direction here. The more I research and review places like Audiogon,the more I realize how much I don't know. Thanks for the Input.

megasat16

You do know that Adcom, Anthem, Arcam, Rotel, NAD, Outlaw, B&K and Acurus made many models of amps? Not every models from the same Manufacturer sounds the same.

You need to ask more specific question as what models you are looking at from what brand.

But in General, you are correct that the warmer amp can tame the brightness of the speakers a bit. You can either use an amp or an AVR (if the speaker is easy load) to do that.

larry777

Thanks for the reply and I guess my post was too general. Would price range for these companies help at all. Lets say their entry level 200 watt 5 channel amps ?

megasat16

larry777 wrote: »

Thanks for the reply and I guess my post was too general. Would price range for these companies help at all. Lets say their entry level 200 watt 5 channel amps ?

Frankly, you need to be more specific than that. Do you want used or New? Some new amps are Class D or ICE amps.

Older ones are Class AB amps.

I've heard multi channel amps from Rotel, Adcom, Parasound and B&K. I don't find them harsh or overly warm. But if you are using RTiA or RTi spakers, I think any of them would tame the brightness more or less.

But remember, someone's bright speaker is someone's just right. So, you'll need to experiment and listen to yourself.

larry777

I prefer used, but only a yr or two old so I can still have Warranty left if possible. Are the class D ICE amps better ? I am familar with the Pioneer SC Line which is a consideration for the AVR piece. My current Denon AVR 888 has no Preouts so an AVR is a must. I see that a lot of Posters here seem to have some older gear so those products must be Very Good.

megasat16

I understand why you are looking for used but fairly new (1 to 2 yrs old) amps. They are fairly new so there is less chance of anything goes wrong in a few years. But if something does go wrong, most manufacture will not honor warranty unless you also get a proof of purchase (receipt) from the original owner. Most companies will state the warranty applies to the Original Owner only. Very few companies such as Bryston offers transferable warranty.

If you are into ICE amps, I think there is a Pioneer Elite SC receiver review by one of the polkie (mantis?) you need to read up.

I don't see why you can't use Elite to power RTi speakers you have but should you want to try out the amps, just use the pre out from SC to hook up the amp in the future.

reeltrouble1

ice is for igloo's.

larry are you doing a 2-channel, a home theater or a rig to do both. one thing is for sure....and its a good thing.....you are thinking about things and not afraid to ask, everyone started somewhere.

RT1

megasat16

Fire is for BBQ. Tube is for the lighting!

reeltrouble1

BBQ trumps Ice Cubes........everytime...hehehe

I guess larry actually sleeps at night.....

RT1

larry777

Thanks for the replys guys. I am looking at Multi Channel as I currently have the RTi10 Towers,CSiA6 Center and RTi4 Surrounds. First step will be an AVR as my Denon 888 has no Preouts. I am thinking ahead to an Amp purchase and was thinking at least 200 watts x 5. Then I see amps like Parrasound at 125 x 5 , Adcom at 150 x 5 and Nad and Rotel also less than 200 x 5 as examples. So should I be looking at 200 x 5 with these speakers or consider some of these other models ? I am also looking for warm units to match the Bright RTi speakers. I have checked out the Pioneer Ice amps which seem very good ( If not too Bright ) and see that many people run them without an amp. I have also read where one person added an amp and the sound quality declined. So which AVR/Amp combo will actually increase sound quality and give a fairly warm to neutral sound is where I am at now and thats why so many questions. Thanks for the help/comments.

larry777

Would anyone like to comment on this question ?

reeltrouble1

you could just use an AVR, dont get all hung up on the 200 watts thing, its much more about the current the power supply has available, I have a 100 watt onkyo that can run a theater setup of Lci just fine even though its not designed for it.

Since you mention them I would look hard at the NAD and the Rotel.

I was teasing mega about the ice, this type of tech has come a long way.

On the used market the B&K models offer a very nice sound, my 317 could run most any speaker let alone a theater.....they are in flux though right now, closed down until another company buys them, likely to happen though....

NAD gear tends to be just a bit warm as well.

You might just look for a nice 2-channel amp to run the fronts and then let the AVR run the center and surrounds.

RT1

mdaudioguy

Also, HK for warmer sound with the RTi10s. I tried several combos, and settled with the gear in my sig. I'm not planning on changing any of the HT stuff, and it sounds very good for 7.1/5.1 movies AND 2-channel music.

mdaudioguy

reeltrouble1 wrote: »

You might just look for a nice 2-channel amp to run the fronts and then let the AVR run the center and surrounds.

That would be a great solution.

larry777

Thanks guys, as this is the type of info I need so I don't get too focused on one area and end up omiting other suitable options. Their is so many ways to expand your system and so many products available that it can get mind boggling. I have also thought about a 3 channel amp possibility and now a 2 channel setup is another consideration in addition to the 5 channel. I am watching other posts and review past posts to gather as much info as possible. Thanks for all the comments/help to date.

reeltrouble1

if you just have a 5-channel and it goes down your out of business for a while. so having other options are helpful. AVR though work for HT systems....afterall, its what they are meant to do. The extra amps are an attempt to improve SQ, alot of times for playing music.

Still the AVR is a compromise to convenience over sound quality, they are by design filled with signal degrading electronic parts. The guys here have used all the different ones and you see some trends......

If you were using a low grade speaker for HT, well not a big deal on an avr choice, and we all have to deal with budget, but your Polk's are very much a reference level HT speaker and they will reveal problems up the chain from your front end electronics, most likely since you are looking for a more warm or laid back sound this is what is happening. Now the most likely problem with any bright harsh sounding system for music is the speakers tweeter, well, true to form Polk's HT speakers are designed to be a bit more forward than their speakers designed for music playback. So if you use products with HT speakers where the designer could not get the treble right they will either opt for the cheap quick fix and attentuate those frequencies which will make your speakers sound thin or worse they do nothing you get harsh sound, the casual user might say it sounds better at lower volume.

Just keep your learn on, trust yourself and what you hear, those ears are your best sound measuring device. Most of all have fun.

RT1

Gulfstrings

Since you're looking for both - and you have my favorite speaker assembly, and if a warmer sound is what you're looking for ... it could be NAD.

Can't imagine anyone wanting the best from their RTis being disappointed with their products.

Good luck.

orrb_05

Larry,
I've been in the same boat - looking for some external power to run off my AVR. I have an RTi set-up as well (RTi12-CSi5-RTi6) and it sounds great for HT, but seems to need some extra juice for 2ch music.

In my search I ended up going with two Outlaw monoblock M2200 (200w @ 8ohms). Right now I'm just going with the two for my mains, but am seriously thinking about a third for my center - they're just that good in terms of value vs performance. I did not find one negative review on these or their predecessor (M200). They have tamed the bright sounding RTi12 (more like fatiguing) and also make my Swan D2.1 SEs sound fantastic.

They are $350 each plus S/H directly from Outlaw, or $325 plus S/H thru Amozon and shipping from Outlaw - save $25

http://www.outlawaudio.com/products/2200.html

orrb_05

There are four of the Outlaw M2200 monos that I mentioned for sale on Audiogon and the seller rates them a 9/10.

As far as warranty, I believe that Outlaw will transfer warranty as long as it's within the covered period.

http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?ampstran&1294967043&/Outlaw-M2200-200-watt-monobloc

HTguru1982

Found this on Ebay:

Bridgeable amp, 90 watts x 3. As mentioned above, NAD is on the warm side and will help tame your RTi's. Cheap, too.

http://cgi.ebay.com/NAD-906-Six-Channel-Amplifier-Amp-w-Soft-Clipping-/270662756377?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3f04c1e819#ht_500wt_950

dekuda

Here is something to consider....Try starting out with a 2 channel amp to power your RTI10's. I have a 2 channel Parasound(1500,205w/ch) powering my RTI12's. You can find really good deals on 2 ch amps than you can find on multi-channel amps. Your RTI10's will benifit most with extra power. My CSI5 center and my two surrounds are being powered by my Marantz AVR(110w/ch) and everything is sounding great.Remember,by taking that load off of your AVR for the fronts,your AVR will be able to supply more power to your center and surrounds! I am very happy with this setup and will wait untill I come across a good deal for a 3or5 channel amp. But the prices are too high right now. Again, More of my listening is music so this is where I notice the most improvement!

larry777

Thanks guys,all great information to be considered. Tks.

samnor

for good bang for the buck, you can also consider 5 marantz ma500(125w) or step up to the ma700 (200w) monoblocks. you get pretty sweet deals on multiples (I've seen them both here on CP as well as on the 'gon). I'm using one to power my center channel along with a parasound hca-1500 (same as dekuda) and an adcom 5400. I second the suggestion made by RT1 about going with multiple 2 channel amps rather than a 5 channel amp. You'd find much better deals on those...