Amp Problems

Drastlin

Alrighty, got a problem here due to my stupidity hope someone can help me out. I got a Sony STR-DG800 receiver that is rated Channel Power Rating: 770 Watts-110 Watts X 7 (8 Ohms,THD 0.7%), 700 Watts-100 Watts X 7 (8 Ohms, THD 0.09%). I hooked up my monitor 60 and cs2 center speaker and it did not sound very crisp. When I looked at the back of the receiver I saw a multi-channel RCA output which I thought would connect to corresponding channels on an amplifier to control it. Unfortunately, the output was an input for multi-channel Super-DVD player. Then when I closer examined my receiver it only had outputs for front left and front right channel.
I bought an Adcom GFA-5503 which is 3 channel 200 watt at 8 ohms Rated at THD + noise at full power into 8ohms/4ohms typical 0.018%.
I hooked up my front right and front left monitor 60 speakers and the sound quality has sky rocketed. However, the speakers play much more softly than they did on the Sony receiver which has less wattage. I don't know what the problem is but any help would be much appreciated.

danger boy

just crank it up more. not all receivers or amps will have the same volume. most certainly each one is differnet. Brand X you may have a volume setting of -30 while brand Z it will be -42, and brand Y will be +2 for the same volume.

don't worry at all what the old receiver volume setting is compared to the new one.

Nearly everyone on this board has gone thru the same thing. i certainly have.

Oh and btw, there is no problem with your gear. it's just better now then the old one was.. you just have to crank it more. esp that amp will help alot

RuSsMaN

You got a different setup now, not a mismatch per se, but the Adbomb's input impedance and/or the Sony's output voltage isn't the same as the Sony by itself.

Try going into the Sony setup menus and increasing the output level for the front l & r speakers (the preout may or may not be affected - lets hope it is).

Welcome to the boards, and thanks for choosing Polk Audio.

Cheers,
Russ

Drastlin

After a few more hours of experimenting it appears that the RCA outputs that say front left and front right in the manual are truly the surround speakers on the receiver. I didn't notice this until I just sent a stereo signal instead of a 5.1 signal. I guess the next question would be, what is a good preamp\sound processor for around $400 bucks. Maybe a little more depending on the benefits. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!

cfrizz

Hi Drastlin Welcome! Any Denon 19xx series & up have preamp outputs will get the job done. The 1906 comes in at $549.00. or if you don't mind going used check out other Denon's @ www.Dakmart.com

ohskigod

consider looking for a used outlaw 950. they were going at about 450 used. worth every penny. I havent had the usrge to update mine, thats how much I like it

Drastlin

Thanks I will go check out those pre-amps. Just one more question, do you think a good pre-amp will improve sound quality compared? Or do they just allow everything to be hooked up properly. Thanks for all the previous help!

cfrizz

Here are some options for preamps.

http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?homeproc&1157864668
http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?intatran&1159973591
http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?homeproc&1158725067

Mike682

Drastlin wrote:

After a few more hours of experimenting it appears that the RCA outputs that say front left and front right in the manual are truly the surround speakers on the receiver. I didn't notice this until I just sent a stereo signal instead of a 5.1 signal.

The L/R preamp outs on your receiver are for surround L/R. You are basically adding power to the surrounds, not the fronts. This is the main reason why they sounded "soft". When checking this out, I noticed the specs said 5 pre-outs. Don't let the specs fool you. Crutchfield lists five preamp outs but those preamp outs are only for sub, surround L/R and Zone 2 L/R..

Drastlin

Mike682 wrote:

The L/R preamp outs on your receiver are for surround L/R. You are basically adding power to the surrounds, not the fronts. This is the main reason why they sounded "soft". When checking this out, I noticed the specs said 5 pre-outs. Don't let the specs fool you. Crutchfield lists five preamp outs but those preamp outs are only for sub, surround L/R and Zone 2 L/R..

Heh, those sneaky ****. Yeah probally gonna try and ebay my sony receiver and hopefully upgrade to something off audiogon, really liked the outlaw 970 preamp but don't have the cash. Now that I know what I am generally looking for, hopefully I can make a better decisions when I get my next pay check.

danger boy

if you go with a strickly a pre amp.. you will need another stereo amp if you have surrounds.. your three channel amp will only be enough for your three fronts. left, center and right fronts. pre amp new or used is the way to go IMHO.