Looking to buy an amp... advice needed

djperez81

I want to purchase an amp to hook up to my HT setup i want a 3ch for my front stage but might be out of my price range(200-300) but if i get a 2ch to hook up to my rta 11t's will my center still sound good. Also by adding the amp do you use only the power of the amp or does it use the power from the amp and receiver combined. i dont mind buying a used amp if it is in good working condition. So any help here would be greatly appreciated thanks.

Knucklehead

You can get more for your money buying used and can find good deals on here if your patient. Once you connect an amp you are essentially removing the load from your AVR so that the amp is driving the speakers on the channels connected. I would look for a 3 or even a 5 channel amp.

your AVR should drive the center just fine but the upgrade bug bites often!

djperez81

any recommendations on an amp would be helpful also

nooshinjohn

Carver TFM-35....

or this....

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=110092

nguyendot

Knucklehead wrote: »

You can get more for your money buying used and can find good deals on here if your patient. Once you connect an amp you are essentially removing the load from your AVR so that the amp is driving the speakers on the channels connected. I would look for a 3 or even a 5 channel amp.

your AVR should drive the center just fine but the upgrade bug bites often!

If used for home theater more than music, wouldn't you want to amp your center channel more than the others, since most (90%) of the sound effects come from the center as opposed to any other speaker.

leroyjr1

Adcom 555 $300
Adcom 545 $200

Knucklehead

nguyendot wrote: »

If used for home theater more than music, wouldn't you want to amp your center channel more than the others, since most (90%) of the sound effects come from the center as opposed to any other speaker.

good point, thats why i suggested a 3 or 5 channel.

cfrizz

www.audiogon.com is your friend. look at 3-5 channel amps. Be patient and save more money so that you only have to do this particular upgrade once. Get an amp that has at least 200wpc @ 8ohms. This will drive your RTA-11T's just great as well as any future speakers you might get. Brands to look for are:

Rotel, Parasound, Sunfire, Adcom, Outlaw, Emotiva, (both of the last 2 are reasonably priced new as well) B & K, Nad.

Good luck.

djperez81

i was looking at the emo xpa3 which is nice but wife wont let me spend that much :frown: she says we could do better things with our money but i beg to diifer. any other 3ch that anyone will recommend?

Knucklehead

djperez81, Yeah thats usually the story around my house as well I would seriously consider a used Adcom, Rotel etc... I picked up my Rotel on here for $200 I think, I have it bridged 3x150, and it sounds fantastic. check your local Craigslist and as cfrizz mentioned Audiogon.com, oh yeah ebay may turn up something. You may want to post a "wanted" ad here as well, it seems some of these guys have all kinds of stuff laying around.

David

djperez81

thanks for info knucklehead

Beta

As stated several times in this thread, you can save yourself a lot of money by purchasing used via Audiogon or here at CP.

Generally speaking, if the seller has an excellent feedback record and the condition of the product is rated high (8/10 or 9/10), you will likely be very happy with the results.

tonyb

anonymouse wrote: »

Look for a Carver AV705X. Its 5 channel and if you are patient can get it for 300 bones or less. Its a fantastic amp for the price.

Is that the one I sold you ? Did you ever get that one channel fixed ? Agree, It is a nice amp for the price. Glad your enjoying it.

kevhed72

Save up your money ($500-800ish) and buy a solid 3 or 5 channel amp from Parasound or Rotel, used off Audiogon or this site. I couldn't be happier with my current amp at this point.

mdaudioguy

djperez81 wrote: »

i was looking at the emo xpa3 which is nice but wife wont let me spend that much :frown: she says we could do better things with our money but i beg to diifer. any other 3ch that anyone will recommend?

Listen to your wife. It sounds as if she's been doing some research here! I sold an xpa-3 to buy the previously owned amp I have now. I have no regrets about having tried Emotiva. It was a learning experience.

aboroth00

I ran a 3ch and a 2ch for my setup. Aragon and Acurus made some nice amps back then under Mondial.

jinjuku

There is a used Adcom 7500 on Craigs list near me for $400. If you could get the seller down to $350 (figure $50 to ship) would that work? I could go check it out on your behalf.

It's a 5 channel amp rated thus:

Power Rating
-150 watts continuous average power into 8 ohms at any frequency between 20Hz to 20kHz with all channels driven at less than 0.075% THD.

-225 watts continuous average power into 4 ohms at any frequency between 20Hz to 20kHz with all channels driven at less than 0.075% THD.

Signal to Noise Ratio, "A" Weighted (150 watts into 8 ohms) >115dB

Gain29dB

butter21

Do you think the Adcom would be a good amp to power LSi 25 and LSi center and rears. Or what about a rotel RMB-1075.

ben62670

That would be a great unit. IMHO the Rotel is in the same league.

butter21

Thanks and it fits my budget.

djperez81

jinjuku thanks for the generosity but its a little out of my budget at this time.Might just wait and save up a little more money.

aboroth00

djperez81 wrote: »

jinjuku thanks for the generosity but its a little out of my budget at this time.Might just wait and save up a little more money.

You got PM