SDA 2B speaker and amplifier issues
Comments
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K call me crazy but is it possible to modify my JVC to handle lower ohm speakers like my SDAs? Honestly I have no issues upgrading to a better amplifier, but each amplifier can sound so much different between one amplifier to the next. And there are no places locally where I can buy an amplifier and test it out.
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Can I use my JVC RX44 as a preamp? The JVC does not have designated preamp plugs tho....might be able to use tape in/out plugs.
NoK call me crazy but is it possible to modify my JVC to handle lower ohm speakers like my SDAs? Honestly I have no issues upgrading to a better amplifier, but each amplifier can sound so much different between one amplifier to the next. And there are no places locally where I can buy an amplifier and test it out.
No, and even if it were possible, the JVC is mediocre at best."Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul! -
Part of the hobby is experimenting. It's the only real way to know what you like. Even if you demo something in a showroom, it doesn't mean it will sound the same with your gear in your room.
Perhaps you could find the same vintage JVC receiver but just a few models up with more power. However, the SDA's deserve better than a mediocre receiver to get the best sound out of them. But if you like the JVC sound maybe a more powerful JVC is what you should be looking for.
H9"Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul! -
Part of the hobby is experimenting. It's the only real way to know what you like. Even if you demo something in a showroom, it doesn't mean it will sound the same with your gear in your room.
Perhaps you could find the same vintage JVC receiver but just a few models up with more power. However, the SDA's deserve better than a mediocre receiver to get the best sound out of them. But if you like the JVC sound maybe a more powerful JVC is what you should be looking for.
H9
Ok thanks heiney9, I appreciate the advice. I've been reading up quite a bit the past month and I think I have my choices narrowed down to:
Adcom GFA 555 II amplifier with Adcom GFP 750 (if I can find one) or GFP 715 or GFP 710 preamp
Emotiva UPA-2 amplifier with XDA-1 preamp
or
Denon PMA 2000ivr integrated amplifier
Seems like for the non intergrated amplifiers your preamp is key and that is the one area I'm struggling with now. I'm leaning towards the Emotiva line since the equipment is new. Also, I talked with Anthem today and they said it might cost $300 to $500 to repair the amplifier, which is too much for me. -
Also, I talked with Anthem today and they said it might cost $300 to $500 to repair the amplifier, which is too much for me.
I don't understand, it will cost you less to repair the amp than to buy something else, so why not repair it?Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
I don't understand, it will cost you less to repair the amp than to buy something else, so why not repair it?
Sorry I wasn't clear. The Anthem amplifier was a friends who was interested in selling it (before we knew the right channel was out). I've had it for a couple weeks. So I don't want to buy an amplifier that already needs work. -
Got ya.
Here a few integrated amps worth looking into that won't break to budget.
http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?intatran&1328302879&/Anthem-Integrated-225
http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?intatran&1328146825&/Musical-Fidelity-A3.2
http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?intatube&1328577873&/Jolida-1501RCPolitical Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
I tried out a cheap old JVC amp 35watts w/my SDA 1C's and i thought it sounded better than my 200 watt per channel Sherbourn amp.
However, I bought a Yaqin MC-10L tube amp 52 watts and it blows them both away. Night and day difference. Go tubes and dont look back.I got static in my head
The reflected sound of everything -
Denon PMA 2000ivr integrated amplifier.
Note that this one is not common ground, (I'm pretty sure but not 100% sure) so don't use it with SDA's unless you use an A-1 cable. -
Interesting when I talked with Tim at Polk he said avoid tube amplifiers with the SDAsI tried out a cheap old JVC amp 35watts w/my SDA 1C's and i thought it sounded better than my 200 watt per channel Sherbourn amp.
However, I bought a Yaqin MC-10L tube amp 52 watts and it blows them both away. Night and day difference. Go tubes and dont look back. -
Interesting when I talked with Tim at Polk he said avoid tube amplifiers with the SDAs
I wholeheartedly disagree with that.SDA SRS 2.3TL's
Silk Audio MS-90-BT integrated tube amp
Yaqin MS-20L integrated tube amp
SDA 2B TL's -
Interesting when I talked with Tim at Polk he said avoid tube amplifiers with the SDAs
I also wholeheartedly disagree.
Not sure about all SDA's but my 1C's and tubes are a match made in heaven. I also have no problem whatsoever w/having enough power. I almost never get past 5 (out of 10) on the volume. Usually have it around 3 ish.I got static in my head
The reflected sound of everything -
I wanted to update this thread since it has been a month and I was able to resolve most of the issues. It appears the reason my left channel was "shutting down" was because of a bad poly switch and not caused by the JVC RX-44 shutting down.
I swapping out the JVC with an amplifier that was rated to handle 4 ohms (Emotiva UPA-2). The left channel continued to shut down at moderate volume levels with the new amplifier. I also confirmed the speakers are running at 4 ohms (ohm meter) and not 6 ohms as listed in the manual.
I'm going to have a friend help me replace the poly switches in both speakers, which should stop the speaker from shutting down. I also realized I would have to experiment with different equipment (JVC wasn't designed to drive 4 ohm speakers) to get good sound out of my SDAs. Currently, I'm using Winamp to play my FLAC files with:
Asus N10J (toslink)--> Maverick Audio D1 (rca)--> Emotiva UPA-2 --> SDA 2Bs
I'm using the tube output and it sounds really good. So, thanks to everybody for the help. I'm finally enjoying my SDAs. -
I swapping out the JVC with an amplifier that was rated to handle 4 ohms (Emotiva UPA-2). The left channel continued to shut down at moderate volume levels with the new amplifier. I also confirmed the speakers are running at 4 ohms (ohm meter) and not 6 ohms as listed in the manual.
Just so you know, you cannot test with an ohm meter on the binding posts what the nominal rating is on a speaker. The 2B's are rated as 6 ohm nominal and you do not need an amp rated for 4 ohms to drive them.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
Just so you know, you cannot test with an ohm meter on the binding posts what the nominal rating is on a speaker. The 2B's are rated as 6 ohm nominal and you do not need an amp rated for 4 ohms to drive them.
Interesting, I watched the repair guy use the ohm meter directly on the binding posts, which showed 3.9 ohms. What is the best way to measure nominal rating? -
That just measures the resistance of the crossover. To measure the nominal impedance the speaker needs a signal thru it while on a scope.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
If you want hefty bass from your SDA's get an ADCOM. I had a 555 and loved it. But after having a Parasound I don't think I could go back, not even for a sub amp. Take a serious look at what F1 linked to. I know nothing of them, but I would trust his judgment. Also I have used a Denon AVR as a preamp and noticed the same results as you. The sound stage just was not as wide, nor as defined.
