krell showcase with lsi line

sickicw
sickicw Posts: 456
edited March 2006 in Electronics
Anyone have any expericance with with the krell showcase amp? I currently have an outlaw 5 channel amp and am not satified with the low end or dynamics of this amp.
Speakers: LSi9 x 2, LSic, LSiFX x 2, Velodyne HGS-15
Amps & Power: Rockford Fosgate T8004 x 3, Cascade Audio APS-55 power supplies x 5, and 1 farad capacitor.
Electronics: Denon 3806, Toshiba HD-A1, & Sony KDL46XBR2
Accessories: Anti-IC interconnects, 8 Mondo Traps from Realtraps, and Salamander furniture.
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  • venomclan
    venomclan Posts: 2,467
    edited March 2006
    Hi sickicw,
    I do not know about the Showcase amp, but I have the Krell KAV250a (250w). I was using the Outlaw M200's before I upgraded. The Krell has a much blacker background, dead silent. Control was amazing. The Outlaw sounded good but the Krell will take hold of the speaker and really push it.
    Venom
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  • sickicw
    sickicw Posts: 456
    edited March 2006
    yea, i am also looking into some of the KAV line as well. does the krell amp produce sigificantly more dyamics? I dont notice much of a background noise using my outlaw amps, but then again i never demoed a krell in my home to compare it to. Was the upgrade you made worth the money?
    Speakers: LSi9 x 2, LSic, LSiFX x 2, Velodyne HGS-15
    Amps & Power: Rockford Fosgate T8004 x 3, Cascade Audio APS-55 power supplies x 5, and 1 farad capacitor.
    Electronics: Denon 3806, Toshiba HD-A1, & Sony KDL46XBR2
    Accessories: Anti-IC interconnects, 8 Mondo Traps from Realtraps, and Salamander furniture.
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  • polkatese
    polkatese Posts: 6,767
    edited March 2006
    Sickicw,

    I never have Outlaw, but I had the same problem with my B&K AV125.7 amp before. At low to moderate volume level, I need an amp that can drive the current and pump out the details. I have a Krell KAV400Xi that drive my LSi15, in two channels, very well. For multi-channel I took a leap of faith to Gemstone Blue Diamond 7 channels amp. I've been very happy with it, brute force for sure.

    www.gemstoneaudio.com

    I have a thread with pics of this amp. For the price, it's well worthed, and compared favorably against Cinenova, ATI, etc.
    I am sorry, I have no opinion on the matter. I am sure you do. So, don't mind me, I just want to talk audio and pie.
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  • venomclan
    venomclan Posts: 2,467
    edited March 2006
    For me the upgrade was worth it because I got a killer used private deal. If I had to pay retail then no it would not have been worth it for me because this amp is a bit overkill for my particular speakers- B&W CDM7NT. Krell tends to underate their power output. I have heard from a few sources that 100 Krell watts usually come close to 150 actual watts on the test bench.

    The Krell is very dynamic. Evry suttle note can be discerned. The Krell is on the forward side so they will mate best with a warner speaker.
    Venom
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  • sickicw
    sickicw Posts: 456
    edited March 2006
    here is a question that might be stupid, but anyway. I noticed a lot of krell amps are rated at 200watts @8 ohms and 400 watts at 4ohms. I am wondering if i plug one of these into my lsi9s (rated at 200 watts 4ohms) and then run my pre amps auto-setup (with the white noise tests) will I blow my speakers? Any ever hear of this happening?
    Speakers: LSi9 x 2, LSic, LSiFX x 2, Velodyne HGS-15
    Amps & Power: Rockford Fosgate T8004 x 3, Cascade Audio APS-55 power supplies x 5, and 1 farad capacitor.
    Electronics: Denon 3806, Toshiba HD-A1, & Sony KDL46XBR2
    Accessories: Anti-IC interconnects, 8 Mondo Traps from Realtraps, and Salamander furniture.
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  • unc2701
    unc2701 Posts: 3,587
    edited March 2006
    Nope, not a problem. You are much more likely to blow speakers on an amp that's got less power.
    Gallo Ref 3.1 : Bryston 4b SST : Musical fidelity CD Pre : VPI HW-19
    Gallo Ref AV, Frankengallo Ref 3, LC60i : Bryston 9b SST : Meridian 565
    Jordan JX92s : MF X-T100 : Xray v8
    Backburner:Krell KAV-300i
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  • joe6pak
    joe6pak Posts: 267
    edited March 2006
    Hey sickicw.

    I have a 5 ch showcase. I can not compare it to a outlaw, but it should have no problem pushing those Polks. Mine is pushing some Dynaudio C-3 speakers. I think these Danes are more demanding than the Polks. To address your original concern, dynamics, and low end are all there. This amp has ample power for most applications. When I really want to crank it up I am ready to quit before the Krell is. If you can, give it a home demo. Is it worth the price? Well, there is the point of diminishing returns. It just always seems that when you start moving up the ladder, the price for each step up cost more for each little improvement. That hold true no matter what the hobby. Drag racing, cameras, guns, hot boats, etc. There are several amps that sound pretty nice for less money. Shop around if you can. I am happy with my amp.
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  • mantis
    mantis Posts: 17,204
    edited March 2006
    Krell In my opnion is overkill for the Lsi line. As good as they are, I don't feel they Need Krell to sound there best.
    As joe pointed out, there are many amps on the market that can get it done for less. I believe that B&K is a Excellent match as well as Rotel. Both companies make amps alot less then Krell and will sound awesome.

    When you start looking at companies like Krell, maybe it's time to move on to higher end speakers as well. Then you can hear what the Krell can do.Thats my opnion on the whole thing. I believe in synergy from top to bottom. I try not to branch away from that.My thing is Balance.

    You can however get Krell and run your Lsi's on it. How you could thing that Krell would not do justice with Lsi's is way behond me. krell makes amps that can't be rated. they have amps that are current limitless. there are not speakers made that require more power / current then what krell amps can provide.

    Good luck with what you decide.

    Dan
    Dan
    My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.
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  • I-SIG
    I-SIG Posts: 2,243
    edited March 2006
    mantis wrote:
    krell makes amps that can't be rated. they have amps that are current limitless.

    That's a little strong don't you think? I assume that you mean within reason for audio equipment.

    Wes
    Link: http://polkarmy.com/forums

    Sony 75" Bravia 4K | Polk Audio SDA-SRS's (w/RDO's & Vampire Posts) + SVS PC+ 25-31 | AudioQuest Granite (mids) + BWA Silver (highs) | Cary Audio CAD-200 | Signal Cable Silver Resolution XLR's | Rotel Michi P5 | Signal Cable Silver Resolution XLR's | Cambridge Audio azur 840C--Wadia 170i + iPod jammed w/ lossless audio--Oppo 970 | Pure|AV PF31d
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  • sickicw
    sickicw Posts: 456
    edited March 2006
    mantis wrote:
    When you start looking at companies like Krell, maybe it's time to move on to higher end speakers as well.

    How you could thing that Krell would not do justice with Lsi's is way behond me. krell makes amps that can't be rated.

    Dan


    I just upgraded from rti to lsi, and dont see another speaker upgrade for a very long long time.... also i never thought that krell wouldn't do my speakers justice, just was wondering if the costs was worth it. I am starting to think that mabee it might be overkill at this point, but i might try to demo a showcase sometime just for the fun if it.

    I guess for now i will stick with my rockford fosgate car amp for my left and right channels and the outlaw amp for the rest.
    Speakers: LSi9 x 2, LSic, LSiFX x 2, Velodyne HGS-15
    Amps & Power: Rockford Fosgate T8004 x 3, Cascade Audio APS-55 power supplies x 5, and 1 farad capacitor.
    Electronics: Denon 3806, Toshiba HD-A1, & Sony KDL46XBR2
    Accessories: Anti-IC interconnects, 8 Mondo Traps from Realtraps, and Salamander furniture.
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  • LuSh
    LuSh Posts: 887
    edited March 2006
    I've always built my system around electronics. I don't purpose to start a flaming thread; There are so many speakers on the market now that sound good, I think you can really find a pair that fit the bill provided you're happy with the electronics.

    I mention this because with a Krell Showcase you could have a solid foundation in which to build outward for years to come with different speakers.
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