Recommended common ground power amp

hifi junky

I'm still in search of a common ground power amp to drive a pair of SDA 2B's, with the use of the interconnecting cable.
I would like something vintage 80's- early 90's, with display VU or digital, LED meters ect.

I was inquiring about a Nikko alpha lll, though I think it is only 80 wpc. I think it would be under powering my speakers as it has been recommend to use a amp producing 200 wpc.

Any recommendations or opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

boston1450

I used a Yamaha cr1040@80wpc at normal listening levels & it seemed fine to me. I wouldnt hesitate to use my cr2040 on my 2bs @120wpc. Will it make them sing. Probably not. Will it hurt them. No. Depends on your budget & what you want out of them..the denon poa2200 i use sounds fantastic on the 1c's & i use to use them on the 2b's & can be picked up cheap

Mystery

Since no budget is mentioned...
Sony es, onkyo, Yamaha m-85 etc will do fine.

Schurkey

hifi junky wrote: »

I'm still in search of a common ground power amp to drive a pair of SDA 2B's, with the use of the interconnecting cable.
I would like something vintage 80's- early 90's, with display VU or digital, LED meters ect.

I was inquiring about a Nikko alpha lll, though I think it is only 80 wpc. I think it would be under powering my speakers as it has been recommend to use a amp producing 200 wpc.

Any recommendations or opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

There's less difference between 80 and 200 watts than you might think. Look up the equivalents--80 vs. 200 watts in the dBW scale:
80 watts = 19.03 dBW
200 watts = 23.01 dBW

http://www.rapidtables.com/electric/dBW.htm

You want meters or LEDs? First amps that come to mind are older Carver and Soundcraftsmen. Some of those amps are plain, but others have meters or LED power indicators.

Beware, the first-series Carver M1.0 are NOT common ground, neither are the M500 series. Most of the rest are, including the later version of the M1.0.

Pretty much anything made in the 80's, and most stuff made in the '90's is going to need fresh capacitors by now. Service is still available for Carver equipment, I don't know anyone fixing Soundcraftsmen.

OldmanSRS

A great amp, without breaking the budget is an Adcom GFA-555. You can find them for around $300 - 350 in great shape. The large power supply caps are expensive if they are bad but there is a very small chance that's the case. If the amp isn't humming from the speakers, the caps are OK. Otherwise, there are only 4 small electrolytic caps (and they aren't coupling the signal path) so re-capping is just a few bucks if you decide to go that route. The sound of the Adcom trounces my Carver TFM-35 in bass tightness and overall impact and clarity.

My .02

Randy, that Denon amps looks like an awesome component. Specs are great. Maybe I need to pick one of those up next :biggrin:

[Deleted User]

I bought a Yamaha PC20002M recently and it's working out well with my SDA SRS 2s. You can find them for $300 to $600.

ALSATIAN in USA

look at GUITAR CENTER used power amplifiers....ad around 50$ chipping at your home or shop!... http://used.guitarcenter.com/usedgear/index.cfm

ALSATIAN in USA

On the top right at GEAR SEARCH--KEYWORD "power amplifier"

ALSATIAN in USA

http://www.guitarcenter.com/In-Store-Used-USED-ADCOM-GFA5006-555MS-3-STEREO-CHANNEL-AMPLIFIER-108948455-i3084158.gc

ALSATIAN in USA

(sorry) I believe the ADCOM GFA5006 is not good for your SDA. Bridged only for 8 OHM!

BKphoto

If I was in the market for an amp I'd go Parasound...

hifi junky

Thanks everyone for the input. I guess I've got some homework to do !
To be continued....

F1nut

Lots of choices, http://app.audiogon.com/listings?filter_category_id=49

boston1450

OldmanSRS wrote: »

A great amp, without breaking the budget is an Adcom GFA-555. You can find them for around $300 - 350 in great shape. The large power supply caps are expensive if they are bad but there is a very small chance that's the case. If the amp isn't humming from the speakers, the caps are OK. Otherwise, there are only 4 small electrolytic caps (and they aren't coupling the signal path) so re-capping is just a few bucks if you decide to go that route. The sound of the Adcom trounces my Carver TFM-35 in bass tightness and overall impact and clarity.

My .02

Randy, that Denon amps looks like an awesome component. Specs are great. Maybe I need to pick one of those up next :biggrin:

you otta hear it hooked to a volume control cd player no pre, powerful unit & sounds oh so sweet. Im almost tempted to get another. I like Adcom but i think the Denon walks all over it power wise

OldmanSRS

I had the Carver connected to a CD with no pre and it still sounded tubby and lazy. I will not dispute the power, Adcom vs Denon but with the 1.2s at 93 dB efficiency, 200W is more than adequate for my listening. The carver has power meters and if I listened for a while at levels averaging 50W, my ears were ringing afterwards. I realized that power is less important than how an amp works with a particular set of speakers.

The Carver TFM amps are/were supposed to emulate a tube amp sound. One thing that sticks out as different on the TFM-35 is the damping factor is about 9. Tube amps have a similar low damping factor. This might work well with some speaker designs than benefit from a less damped woofer cone but the 1.2 get a little boxy sounding with the Carver, maybe the damping is too low?. The bass sounds louder with the Carver but listening carefully reveals its not as clean and accurate, as if it's adding a harmonic. As far as why the TFM does not sound lively in the mids and highs, I can't say. I tested both amps frequency response ( not sound pressure, electrical output) and it was flat from 20-20 with the speakers connected, varying only 1.0 dB at the amp outputs (driving the dynamic speaker load). What I'm hearing is worse that a 1dB drop.

xjghost

Some good helpful info here. Now I got even more homework to do.

Mystery

boston1450 wrote: »

you otta hear it hooked to a volume control cd player no pre, powerful unit & sounds oh so sweet. Im almost tempted to get another. I like Adcom but i think the Denon walks all over it power wise

Very dangerous.
I did that for some time and the cd player's volume came back to 0 when powered on.
One day, I forgot to decrease it before playing and my ear was ringing for a while even though I stopped it after few seconds.
:eek:
Never again will I use an amp without a pre.

zingo

How about a Denon POA? They have good power plus meters!

F1nut

with the 1.2s at 93 dB efficiency

Spec is 91 dB.

One thing that sticks out as different on the TFM-35 is the damping factor is about 9. Tube amps have a similar low damping factor.

The damping factor is basically a non-factor. Here's a couple of good reads,

http://www.audioholics.com/audio-amplifier/damping-factor-effects-on-system-response

http://www.butleraudio.com/damping1.php

OldmanSRS

Stock is 91 dB but with the low DCR inductor mod, I measured a 2dB sound pressure increase (as well as a 2dB voltage increase at the SDA MW) level below 120 hz. I read those damping links some time back. Good info and puts damping effect on cone control into perspective when it's lower than 32. IMO a 9 damping factor might be a contributing factor in bass tightness when a speaker has a 3 Ohm DCR.

Moose68Bash

Back to your original question:

If you want a great vintage amp at 200wpc into 8 ohms with a very neutral sound, have a look at Perreaux's PMF 2350 or 2150 on eBay or Audiogon occasionally. They do not have meters, but they are built like tanks.

My experience with Perreaux products from 1989 to the present has been very good.