New Amp :) - Got some questions.

cascius

Hi guys, it's been a while and I need some new advice on hooking up my new amp.

Before I get to the questions, here's my gear:
Front: M70s
Center: CS2
Surrounds: M40s
Sub: PSW505
Receiver: Pioneer 1121k
New Amp: Carver AV-705X 5 Channels

I just got the Carver and will be hooking it up next week. The key reason I got it was that I thought the M70s didn't sound too good when the 1121k powered all 5 speakers. So on to the questions:

1: Should I drive all 5 speakers through the Carver? I'm pretty pleased with the performance of the 1121k with the surround speakers right now. Would I get better performance by only driving the Front + Center through the Carver? If so should I by-amp (Oh no I didn't just say that!!!!) or just not use 2 channels?

2: Choice for RCA cables. Do you guys have any cable recommendation for hooking up the amp to the receiver? I'd like to keep the cost under $50. Would these Monoprice cables do?

3: My girlfriend will also be using the system, so I'll leave the Carver on all the time (she would hate me if she had to press the on/off button every time...) I understand that's what most people recommend, but does anyone have any idea of how many watts it will use when not in use?

4: Finally, was that a smart buy? From what I've read it should be a nice upgrade from the 1121k.

Thanks in advance,

- Olivier

tonyb

It's a nice amp, had one myself. I would run all 5 channels on it, but it's not a necessity. At least the front 3, but preferably all 5. That means you need 5 interconnects. Keeping it under 50 bucks means your going to buy the bottom of the barrel. Signal cable would be my choice for good quality cables at a reasonable price. Look at Bluejean cables too.
You have to turn on the receiver so why would it be a big deal to turn on the amp too ? Tell the GF to think of the 2 as one, both need to be on. She'll figure it out.

Oh, a word of caution. The posts on the back of that amp are plastic so don't hulk out tighting them down or you'll strip them. Good luck and congrats.

cascius

Thanks Tony.

Looking at blujeans, they seem to have a descent set of 5 channels for about $75 (BJC LC-1 Multi-Channel Audio Cables). Will those do? That's a bit more than I'd like to spend, but I guess I can live with it. If anyone has any other suggestions, please tell me

The Carver Amp cannot be controlled through a remote control, so she would have to physically press the power button on the device, which knowing her, would create a lot of unnecessary drama ;p

- Olivier

thsmith

Does the amp have a 12v trigger or your power conditioner able to do it ?

tonyb

It won't hurt anything leaving it on. Drama to push a button ? LOL.....women I guess eh ? Another idea would be to have the receiver and amp on a power strip that way one button turns on both. Bluejean cables will work fine btw.

Incidently, this very second I'm wearing my Alcatraz hat. Love your town, the people...alittle weird. Another weird thing, there's no grass in your city. WTF...you have to search out a park for a blade of grass.

cascius

thsmith wrote: »

Does the amp have a 12v trigger or your power conditioner able to do it ?

I haven't received it yet so I'm going through the manual right now. From the look of things, it doesn't have one. Also from what I just read it draws 100watts when idled, not too bad i guess.

Polkersince85

Be sure to give it some air to breathe. 100 watts can bake cookies.

cascius

tonyb wrote: »

Drama to push a button ? LOL.....women I guess eh ? Another idea would be to have the receiver and amp on a power strip that way one button turns on both. Bluejean cables will work fine btw.

Well I'll say this much: I had to change from an IR to an RF remote control because "things didn't turn on properly" (aka she would press the power button and then point the remote away from the HT...).

I guess I'll bite the bullet and get those cables.

tonyb wrote: »

Incidently, this very second I'm wearing my Alcatraz hat. Love your town, the people...alittle weird. Another weird thing, there's no grass in your city. WTF...you have to search out a park for a blade of grass.

Yes, it's a very "entertaining" town to live in...

And incidently: my girlfriend is currently in your town.

cascius

Polkersince85 wrote: »

Be sure to give it some air to breathe. 100 watts can bake cookies.

Yes, i'm going to have to figure something out. The AV Cabinet i use is getting packed. The back is open, but that might not be enough. I might have to add some fans in there...

Marty913

My Carver 705x draws 85 watts (.7 amps) at idle according to the readout on my Belkin PF-60. It is barely warm but I do have it open on 3 sides with three inches on top. I leave it on all the time.

cascius

Thanks for the info. I'll see how much heat it gets in my cabinet. I've removed the cabinet's back pane and will make sure to leave at least 3 inches above it. If that's not enough, i'll just throw in a silent 120mm exhaust fan on top.

Here's a random thought: since the receiver won't power any speakers, will it ever get hot? I'm asking because if it doesn't I might put the Carver on top of it. Otherwise I'll put it in a separate compartment.

BlueFox

cascius wrote: »

Here's a random thought: since the receiver won't power any speakers, will it ever get hot? I'm asking because if it doesn't I might put the Carver on top of it. Otherwise I'll put it in a separate compartment.

It might. When I switched to a Sunfire TGA-5400 amp I thought the same thing, and put my DVD/SACD player on top. Big mistake, as the AVR became really hot. Apparently, when using the pre-outs, at least for me, the amp is still engaged, even with no speakers attached to it.

Marty913

cascius wrote: »

Thanks for the info. I'll see how much heat it gets in my cabinet. I've removed the cabinet's back pane and will make sure to leave at least 3 inches above it. If that's not enough, i'll just throw in a silent 120mm exhaust fan on top.

Here's a random thought: since the receiver won't power any speakers, will it ever get hot? I'm asking because if it doesn't I might put the Carver on top of it. Otherwise I'll put it in a separate compartment.

The receiver (mine is a NAD T747) does not get as hot with the Carver (just warm, actually) but it still generates heat because the video & audio processing chips are still active. The Carver is also pretty heavy plus would block the typical roof vents on the receiver where the video chip does it's primary venting. I would separate them.

One other consideration is wire management. If the receiver & amp are close together (like on top of one another) you have an awful lot of wires coming together in a small space (I/C's, speakers, HDMI, optical, power, etc.). Probably another reason to spread them out.

hochpt21

tonyb wrote: »

It won't hurt anything leaving it on. Drama to push a button ? LOL.....women I guess eh ? Another idea would be to have the receiver and amp on a power strip that way one button turns on both. Bluejean cables will work fine btw.

Incidently, this very second I'm wearing my Alcatraz hat. Love your town, the people...alittle weird. Another weird thing, there's no grass in your city. WTF...you have to search out a park for a blade of grass.

Is it ok to have a receiver and amp on a strip together? I am waiting for my first amp as well and thought of doing that...but I thought I read somewhere that one needs to turn on before the other or you could possibly damage your speakers? Is that true?

cascius

Thanks for all the info guys. I still have to wait a couple days until the Amp arrives (Monday) and the wait is killing me!

I will indeed separate the receiver and the amp. I've just got to figure out how to stack everything nicely in the cabinet. I was looking at dimensions yesterday and from the look of things, it's going to be a bit crowded. I guess I'll plan a little week end project of moding some Scythe 120mm silent PC fans to ventilate the cabinet.

hochpt21 wrote: »

Is it ok to have a receiver and amp on a strip together? I am waiting for my first amp as well and thought of doing that...but I thought I read somewhere that one needs to turn on before the other or you could possibly damage your speakers? Is that true?

I'm not sure what you are asking. Are you talking about having both the receiver and amp on the same power strip? If so are you implying you will turn on everything by turning on the power strip?

As far as the proper sequence to power things up, I just googled it and didn't find anything pertinent to AVR/AMP order. In my case the amp will always be on and the AVR will either be on or on standby.

Good luck,

- Olivier

hochpt21

Yea, wasn't trying to thread-jack, but I thought maybe the answer would help you as well if you decided to take Tony's idea.

I am looking at a Belkin surge protector that has a remote. You can power six of the eight recepticles off with it.

I swear I read somewhere, however, that if you don't turn the amp/reciever on in the right order that there can be a loud "woof" sound that could damage your receiver.

EndersShadow

Here is the cheapest best solution to your RCA question: http://www.mitcablesexpress.com/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=275&category_id=107&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=14

Buy 2 sets if your doing your front 3, or 3 if your doing all 5. Yes it will take you over budget, but what your getting is a ridiculous deal.

These cables are IMHO better than Signal (which I used before these). You wont find these RCA's for cheaper EVER again as they are phasing out the EXp line.

P.S. I have the 705x myself and love it. I would drive just the front 3 from it (and no bi-amping) but even if you drive all 5 its got a really special feature called "power steering" that sends extra unused watts from one channel to another if needed. Its pretty cool.

Its driving my LSi 15's and LSiC like a champ!

cascius

EndersShadow wrote: »

Here is the cheapest best solution to your RCA question: http://www.mitcablesexpress.com/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=275&category_id=107&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=14

Sweet. Is this a better choice than getting the Blue Jeans Cables?

- Olivier

EndersShadow

cascius wrote: »

Sweet. Is this a better choice than getting the Blue Jeans Cables?

- Olivier

Yes. Blue Jeans RCA's and Signal Cable RCA's are still good, but the MIT's IMHO are a step above and honestly for that price they are a steal. Just look at the normal MSRP on them.

I bought 2 sets of EXp1's and am planning on trying to get another couple pairs of EXp2's providing my bonus comes in while they still have some for sale

cascius

The carver has arrived and after doing the mcacc calibration it sounds way better than the amp of the 1121k. The soundstage has increased and I think I'm getting more definition than before.

Right now it sounds a bit bright but I think it's just a matter of tweaking the calibration.

Tonight I should receive new spikes for the fronts, so ill wait to have those installed before polishing the tweaks.

- Olivier

EndersShadow

Glad you like it. What interconnects did you end up getting?

cascius

EndersShadow wrote: »

Glad you like it. What interconnects did you end up getting?

Well, I'll say this much: for now I'm shamelessly using some Comcast component cables to do the job... :redface:
I need to pull the trigger on those MIT cables asap though.

Otherwise for some weird reason my Sub now sounds weaker than before. I'll have to look into it tonight.

EndersShadow

cascius wrote: »

Well, I'll say this much: for now I'm shamelessly using some Comcast component cables to do the job... :redface:
I need to pull the trigger on those MIT cables asap though.

Otherwise for some weird reason my Sub now sounds weaker than before. I'll have to look into it tonight.

Eh, use what you got, but those MIT cables wont last forever and once gone are gone for good. I would try to order them ASAP. If nothing else just order 2 sets for your L,R,C and let your surrounds use cheaper stuff. Best would be order 3 sets obviously.

Yeah you prob need to check your calibration if your sub is sounding wonky.

cascius

By the way, both the receiver and the amp run surprisingly cool in my current configuration. I have left 3inches+ over each and my cabinet has no back. Last night I had it run for 4 hours playing music and movies and it seems temperatures won't be a problem.

I just pulled the trigger on 3 sets of the MIT cables. The deal of $85 + Shipping total was hard to pass by considering 1 pair would normally run for $89. Thanks for the tip!

Once I receive those, I'm going to redo my cable management which currently is non-existent...
I'll try to group cables in 3 stacks:
- Power Cords;
- HDMI/Component Cables;
- Speaker Cables.

From what I've read, the key thing is to have the power cord cross the other cables perpendicular (if they must cross at all...)
I'm thinking about getting some square or J raceways to run those cables and keep a clean look.

Any tips are welcome.