short onkyo m501 amp review
phoneisbusy
Posts: 867
Finally found some time to hook the Onkyo to the main rig now that the holiday season is winding down.
I have the m501 hooked up to my RT12's and found that there's a definite improvement. The notes seems sharper and less muddled. The bass is tighter but where I notice the differences most in piano music. The notes seem to linger and sound more airy and not so compressed.
The music now seems more forward whereas the Pioneer Elite (vsx-41) seemed to present it more meekly. Some CD's sound a bit harsher now (my wife has John Denver in the cd player) but some sound wonderful (Rankin Sisters - Do You Hear Christmas cd).
The rt12's do seem happier to have more power driving them though. The mid's have always been good but I'm finding the highs have more of a presence.
I noticed that the amp needed a few minutes to warm up after power up though. After power up, the sound is thin and strained. After a minute the music starts warming up and filling in. I may just decide to leave it on all the time.
Not the most professional review but there you go. Nice upgrade to the rig at a nice price. TroyD was great to deal with.
regards
Dave
I have the m501 hooked up to my RT12's and found that there's a definite improvement. The notes seems sharper and less muddled. The bass is tighter but where I notice the differences most in piano music. The notes seem to linger and sound more airy and not so compressed.
The music now seems more forward whereas the Pioneer Elite (vsx-41) seemed to present it more meekly. Some CD's sound a bit harsher now (my wife has John Denver in the cd player) but some sound wonderful (Rankin Sisters - Do You Hear Christmas cd).
The rt12's do seem happier to have more power driving them though. The mid's have always been good but I'm finding the highs have more of a presence.
I noticed that the amp needed a few minutes to warm up after power up though. After power up, the sound is thin and strained. After a minute the music starts warming up and filling in. I may just decide to leave it on all the time.
Not the most professional review but there you go. Nice upgrade to the rig at a nice price. TroyD was great to deal with.
regards
Dave
Time is the best teacher. Unfortunately it kills all its students.
Post edited by phoneisbusy on
Comments
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good review. the m-501 was my first seperate amp. i ran a 2 channel system along with the P-301 preamp. my M-501 still powers my 2 center channel speakers in my home theater system. I just dont have the heart to dump this amp. a solid performer, and the perfect amp on the used market to get into seperates on the cheap.Living Room 2 Channel -
Wiim Ultra. Jolida CD player. Fiio k11 R2R DAC, XTZ as300 Edge amp. Focal Cobalt 826 towers,
Upstairs 2 Channel Rig -
Classe Audio 5 Preamp, DIY1200as2 Icepower Amp x 2, Wiim pro streamer and Topping E70 Velvet DAC, California Audio Labs DX1 CD player, Polk LSi15's with MM840 woofer upgrade.
Studio Rig - Scarlett 18i20(Gen3) DAW, Schitt Saga 2 preamp, Topping a90 headphone amp, Mac Mini, Audiophonics Hypex NC252m amp, Polk r200's -
Rock on Dave, stop BS'n and turn it up!CTC BBQ Amplifier, Sonic Frontiers Line3 Pre-Amplifier and Wadia 581 SACD player. Speakers? Always changing but for now, Mission Argonauts I picked up for $50 bucks, mint.
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A very cool looking amp too. I was hesitant about selling mine but you can only have so much stuff.
2 channel - Willsenton R8 tube integrated, Holo Audio Spring 3 KTE DAC, audio optimized NUC7i5, Windows 10 Pro/JRiver MC29/Fidelizer Plus 8.7 w/LPS and external SSD drive, PS Audio PerfectWave P3 regenerator, KEF R3 speakers, Rythmik F12SE subwoofer, Audioquest Diamond USB cable, Gabriel Gold IC's, Morrow Audio SP5 speaker cables. Computer - Windows 10/JRiver, Schiit Magni 3+/Modi 3+, Fostex PMO.4n monitors, Sennheiser HD600 headphones
