Amplifiers and the SDA 2B

muncybob
muncybob Posts: 3,042
edited March 2011 in Vintage Speakers
So I've read that the 2B's should be powered by a common ground amplifier. I will soon be in the used market for a 2 channel amp to power my 2B's and wonder if there are certain amps I should stay away from? Or perhaps a better question may be, in my price range($400 or less, wife says less!) what would be a good match sonically and also reliability even though they may have some age to them.
Yep, my name really is Bob.
Parasound HCA1500A(indoor sound) and HCA1000(outdoor sound), Dynaco PAS4, Denon DP1200 w/Shure V15 Type V and Jico SAS stylus, Marantz UD7007, Polk L600, Rythmik L12 sub.
Post edited by muncybob on
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  • sda2mike
    sda2mike Posts: 3,131
    edited March 2011
    i run mine with an ADCOM 555...stellar results:wink:
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  • quadzilla
    quadzilla Posts: 1,543
    edited March 2011
    Carver, adcom, nad are some to start looking at. I've even seen a few B&K go in that price range. B&K would be my preference if you can find one in your price range. NAD would be second. After that, it's a toss-up between adcom and carver. Any of them will work very well. It's mostly a matter of preference.
    Turntable: Empire 208
    Arm: Rega 300
    Cart: Shelter 501 III
    Phono Pre: Aural Thrills
    Digital: Pioneer DV-79ai
    Pre: Conrad Johnson ET3 SE
    Amp: Conrad Johnson Evolution 2000
    Cables: Cardas Neutral Reference
    Speakers: SDA 2.3TL, heavily modified
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  • On3s&Z3r0s
    On3s&Z3r0s Posts: 1,013
    edited March 2011
    +1 to B&K or NAD... I've used both with SDA's and have been very happy with the sound. The 2B's aren't particularly hard to drive. Right now I have mine hooked up to a NAD 7155 (55wpc receiver) and the combination sounds pretty good. As a word of caution, vintage NAD gear can be a little flaky because NAD outsources production to the cheapest bidder. I've got pieces from Japan, Taiwan, and Malaysia, and the more recent stuff comes out of mainland China. The Taiwanese era stuff seems to be most flaky. But otherwise a good value for the money.
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  • JPSmario
    JPSmario Posts: 142
    edited March 2011
    Rotel is a great option as well. My RB980BX does well with my SDA2A'a
    Dual 1229/Grado Gold/Rotel RCD1070/RC995/RB980BX/Pioneer 7100/Denon DRM710/Monster HTS3600MKII/PolkAudio SDA2B/TL's
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  • danger boy
    danger boy Posts: 15,722
    edited March 2011
    my NAD 2600A does fine.. plenty of power.. but there are better sounding amps out there.. FYI

    I actually prefer my Pioneer (pre Elite) from 1985 with 120wpc dual mono over the NAD.
    PolkFest 2012, who's going>?
    Vancouver, Canada Sept 30th, 2012 - Madonna concert :cheesygrin:
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  • On3s&Z3r0s
    On3s&Z3r0s Posts: 1,013
    edited March 2011
    danger boy wrote: »
    my NAD 2600A does fine.. plenty of power.. but there are better sounding amps out there.. FYI

    I actually prefer my Pioneer (pre Elite) from 1985 with 120wpc dual mono over the NAD.

    Does the Pioneer dual mono work with the 2B's and a stock interconnect? I would expect that to be non-common ground.
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  • Neskahi
    Neskahi Posts: 297
    edited March 2011
    On3s&Z3r0s wrote: »
    Does the Pioneer dual mono work with the 2B's and a stock interconnect? I would expect that to be non-common ground.

    I can say that the Dual Mono Pioneers from that era work with any SDA
    I have used. TL's and non TL's. Including the SDA SRS's. I had read that
    dual mono designs may present problems but have I have not had any.
    Also have a simple Adcom GFA-535 that drives 2B's wonderfully. Come to think of it, it's supposed to be a dual mono design also I think.
    SDA 2.3/RDO's... xovers by Ben
    SDA 2.3TL/Stock..
    SDA 1C/Solens/RDO's [gave to my Uncle]
    SDA 2B RDO's
    Snell Type CV
    SDA 1.2TL's
    GFA7700 Adcom
    GFP750 Adcom
    TFM55X Carver
    M90 Pioneer/C90 Pre
    M91 x 2 Pioneers/C91 Pre
    Yaqin MC10l
    DCD-1520/1560/2560 Denon
    Marantz DVD-8400
    Carver m1.5T
    DV-79avi Pioneer
    TFM35X x 2
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  • danger boy
    danger boy Posts: 15,722
    edited March 2011
    On3s&Z3r0s wrote: »
    Does the Pioneer dual mono work with the 2B's and a stock interconnect? I would expect that to be non-common ground.

    i run the SDA2b's without the interconnect cable.. but the few times I have used it.. it did not do any damage... amp and speakers are both fine.:smile:
    PolkFest 2012, who's going>?
    Vancouver, Canada Sept 30th, 2012 - Madonna concert :cheesygrin:
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  • Schurkey
    Schurkey Posts: 2,102
    edited March 2011
    I suspect most amps advertised as "dual mono" are in fact common-ground. They may have separate power supplies on the + side, but share the - side along with the power cord. Gotta be careful with the factory-bridged amps, though. Bridged amps will be incompatible unless the SDA speakers have the AI-1 (or similar) interconnect/isolation transformer.

    Fifteen seconds with an ohmmeter on the - terminals of the amp will tell the tale.
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  • muncybob
    muncybob Posts: 3,042
    edited March 2011
    Thanks for the info. I may need to consider amps that don't run on the hot side due to minimal ventilation...does this narrow down the field somewhat? Adcom seems to be priced in our range but don't they tend to run hot?
    Yep, my name really is Bob.
    Parasound HCA1500A(indoor sound) and HCA1000(outdoor sound), Dynaco PAS4, Denon DP1200 w/Shure V15 Type V and Jico SAS stylus, Marantz UD7007, Polk L600, Rythmik L12 sub.
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  • Cayuga
    Cayuga Posts: 480
    edited March 2011
    Just a heads up, there's a NAD 2200 listed on craigslist Rochester
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  • helipilotdoug
    helipilotdoug Posts: 1,229
    edited March 2011
    muncybob wrote: »
    Thanks for the info. I may need to consider amps that don't run on the hot side due to minimal ventilation...does this narrow down the field somewhat? Adcom seems to be priced in our range but don't they tend to run hot?

    About double your price range, but Sunfire could be your answer. They do run cool, but do need some ventilation. A couple of 300X2 Sunfire amps on the bay right now. (No Affiliation)
    Sunfire Theater Grand IV
    Sunfire Cinema Grand Signature
    SRS 2.1TL
    SDA 2BTL's
    CSiA6
    FXiA4
    FXiA6
    SDA 2A's
    Monitor 10A's
    http://www.douglasconnection.com
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  • intangible
    intangible Posts: 262
    edited March 2011
    I have a B&K that runs just warm to the touch. They can be found easily in your price range.
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  • muncybob
    muncybob Posts: 3,042
    edited March 2011
    ,,,any thoughts on Parasound? I'm watching a HCA 800 II on ebay. Tried searching CL for B&K but apparently the "&" does not work in the search box? Also considering a GFA 545 @ $150. I think I can resolve the ventilation issue.
    Should I be concerned about the caps drying out in older amps? If so, can they be replaced by somebody who knows what they are doing(that's not me!).
    Yep, my name really is Bob.
    Parasound HCA1500A(indoor sound) and HCA1000(outdoor sound), Dynaco PAS4, Denon DP1200 w/Shure V15 Type V and Jico SAS stylus, Marantz UD7007, Polk L600, Rythmik L12 sub.
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