Original SDA SRS modded, married to what amp? $4000 or less.

robinofsherwood

Hi everyone,

As a newcomer I'd really appreciate the benefit of some experienced advice...........
I'm rounding up finishing touches to refurbished early SDA SRS's with Trey's VR3 hand-built Monastery crossovers.
The next step is amplification, my current budget is $4,000 or less for all stages of amplification. My head is spinning with the apparent endless variety of options and combinations, old and new. The last thing to come into view was the Peachtree Grand Integrated X-1 with plenty of power and modern inter-connectivity. (I've emailed them to find out if it is common ground)
.
What do you think?

VR3

Did everything arrive ok??? :-D

robinofsherwood

VR3 wrote: »

Did everything arrive ok??? :-D

Thank you Trey,
They arrived at my work yesterday.
I laid them out on my main conference table..... very impressive handwork!
As you see I'm still looking for an amp to do them justice.
The Peachtree option is off the table unfortunately: "Our Grand Integrated is not common ground, as the ICE modules are "bridged" to become 2 mono amps, 1 for each channel."
I might need some instruction regarding the speaker wiring but could probably figure it out comparing with the old ones that I labelled. You'll have my 1C's next year!

VR3

Thank you!

Sounds good! - The wiring is labeled on the wire itself similar to what you had...

robinofsherwood

I'll get my good reading glasses and take another look:eek:

zingo

Can't go wrong with Krell!

tonyb

Robin,
Congrats on the refurb. If you could be a tad more descriptive of the sound you like and the source you will use, maybe we can at least narrow down the amp selection for you.

ZLTFUL

Agree with Tony. $4k opens up quite a bit of options for you. Things like listening space, musical preferences, listening volumes, etc will help determine some more accurate suggestions for you.

dcoil

Welcome - and you've sure picked a good speaker and already have done some great mods! I have the original SRS also, with almost every mod done (except internal wiring). Have you put in a large 16mH inductor - say a 10 AWG? This really added some slam to the low end, but I'm getting off topic. I was running a top end Yamaha receiver, 120W per channel for 2 channel listening and thought it was pretty good. It was suggested that I get AT LEAST 200W per channel with a lot of current capacity. After several suggestions I ended up with a Pass XP-10 pre and a Parasound A21 amp. The A21 is 250W /channel into 8ohm and 400W into 4 ohm. The difference between the Yammy and the Pass/Parasound was very significant, in almost every respect. I bought these used, at about $2K for the pair, but probably still under your $4K budget if you want new or maybe the new Pass or a beefier Parasound. I have copied an excerpt below on a review of the A21. There are many other good pre's and amps, so don't get stuck on my picks. You will get more bang for the buck w/used, but that is a personal preference. Then there is the personal preference between tube and solid state... another topic... The important items are 1) common ground (as you already know), 2) AT LEAST 200w/channel (wish I had more) and 3) lots of current capacity (the A21 is rated at 60A peak/channel). With your budget if you do your homework you will not be disappointed in the sound coming from your SRS's. And don't skimp on the interconnects, speaker wires or source. The sound, as the old saying goes, "will only be as good as that of your weakest link" is pretty much true.

"Swapping the Parasound in for the $20k Class AB Audio Research Ref 210 tube and $40k Class AB MBL 9008 solidstate monoblocks that are my references was somewhat less of a horizon-lowering experience than I anticipated. Putting aside the usual differences between tubes and transistors, all three amps sounded fundamentally similar, and I had to listen carefully to sort out what I was hearing. Differences certainly weren’t as marked or as dramatic as, say, those between Class D/T and top-line Class AB."

Polkie2009

ZLTFUL wrote: »

Agree with Tony. $4k opens up quite a bit of options for you. Things like listening space, musical preferences, listening volumes, etc will help determine some more accurate suggestions for you.

+1 here, $4K can definitely get you into some nice new amps and some even higher end used_ amps. A number of the CP members here have built some excellent high end stereo systems and can advise you on what models of amps run well with your Polks:cheesygrin: Good luck with the search ROS!

robinofsherwood

Gentlemen I apologize to you all for not responding sooner, and would like to thank you all for sharing your insights. As you will see from this recent message posted elsewhere I have finally made a choice and ordered some equipment.

Thank you F1nut and all you Polk elders,
for sharing your wisdom and experience with others less fortunate. I'd like to quote this message I shared 5 minutes ago on a completely different forum:

"I'm wonderfully ignorant and unversed in the audiophile faith, however, I am a good listener. As such my comments will probably be of little importance here, but I'm having an amazing time listening to the sounds and music I have collected over a lifetime of occasional collecting. My first "music player" was a wind up device with interchangeable needles, playing "78's and 45's. My new found enjoyment comes from coupling recently acquired and fully "modded" Polk SDA SRS speakers to existing sound sources. It is hard for me to to put into words how remarkable and revealing that exercise has been. My old pioneer receiver seems to perform like a champ and my B&O 9300 receiver sounds even better. LP's CD's and even Cassettes are giving the impression of live, three dimensional, on stage performance! Now, neither of these have remarkable specifications nor power to speak of, but it is remarkable how accomplished they sound coupled with these speakers.
So what can I expect from a "better" sound source? I can hardly wait to find out........ I have ordered a Parasound Halo A21 power amp., Halo P5 pre. amp. and an OPPO 105 multi disc player. At my ripe old age this will likely be my last equipment partnership, the grim reaper and father time have been talking so I'd better get back to my listening on my final journey. Hope you all have as much fun as I'm having right now!"

Thanks guys, and a special thanks to Trey at VR3 and the "Monastery" level crossover upgrades.

Oldfatdogs

Nice choices on the new gear.
Enjoy.

robinofsherwood

Thanks dcoil,
As you can see, in an earlier post, I chose the A21 and am still waiting for their P5 pre. amp to be delivered and an OPPO 105 (multi area multi field) player. I chose interconnects and speaker cables from Kimber Kable.
I hope this satisfies my equipment needs for a while so I can concentrate on the music.........

tonyb

Nice to see you again Robin. Stop in more often. Yes, great choices of gear there too. Please let us know how it all sounds or if you have any problems. I also see our very own Trey at VR3 took care of you on the crossover mods. He's a champ of a guy. Obviously your digging the mods too.

BTW- Just curious is all, how does an Englishman such as yourself wind up in San Jose ?

schwarcw

Greetings Robin!

I used an A21 with my modded SRS 2.3s for many years. The performance was excellent! I know that you will enjoy yours!

robinofsherwood

Hi Guys,
I still haven't received the new Halo P5 pre amp so the A21 has been sitting there like a boat anchor for six weeks........ until I hooked it up directly to the new Oppo 105 using the balanced interconnects and loudspeaker cables from KimberKabel.
Now for various reasons the super modded SRS's are in a different location at this time and the A21 is paired up with two original SDA 1C's instead. But KAPOW! Another revelation! This time how old speakers come alive with a decent amp and sound source setup.
I'm very impressed if not amazed with the versatility of the OPPO and I'm beginning to wonder why I need a pre amp! I'm teasing myself, still having to wait a while for the final placing and mating of all the new equipment. This is a lot of fun! Listening this morning to Wynton Marsalis "tune in tomorrow", Jeff Beck at Ronnie Scott's, Mannheim Steamroller, and an exceptional sampler disc from Legacy Audio. Then I hooked up my Dell computer monitor this afternoon to watch (to listen to) the Bourne Identity on blue ray. I may never leave the house again..............

GlennDog

Congrats!! and welcome to CP!! . . .

I've got SRS IIs and they're really stunning . . . I recently took delivery of an Oppo-105. I am also very impressed with it's SQ and will soon experiment with it as a Pre (if it can best the good Cary "sweet little pre" SLP-98 I'll eat-my-hat . . . but you never know, right?)

G

robinofsherwood

How's the Oppo-105 working out for you?
I'm extremely pleased with my purchase. The Halo P5 pre amp has arrived and is connected to the A21 and Oppo using balanced connectors, though I'm still not sure why I have it ! Well, I do hope to buy a new TT set up next year sometime and then I'll appreciate it more.