picking an amp...

brooksbp

So I've been checking out the amp market recently, new to the world of audio components, and am having a difficult time seeing as how subjective all of this is.

What's the difference between say a mint Carver 2-ch amp (Carver m1.5t) and a QSC CX502. They both have relatively close "tech specs" in terms of wpc, thd, frequencies, etc... This leaves me wondering the practicality of buying a QSC, Crown, etc (corporate professional audio?) brand amp vs a Carver, NAD, Emotiva (more audiophile-y).

I've recently owned Polk RTi4 (bookshelf), Yamaha pre/amp (100wpc), and a 12" self powered sub woofer. This combination wasn't really cost effective seeing as how the Yamaha receiver set me back $500 and all I really needed was a good pair of floorstanding speakers (since bookshelf + sub doesn't cut it) and a nice amp... so now I'm hooked on components. The hard part is figuring out what I want; but that also means figuring out what's available...

Can people sort of provide advice on "professional audio equipment" vs "audiophile equipment"; the same relationship I provided between QSC and Carver above? I can't feel it. And don't have the money to 'test' (buy/sell/buy/sell/etc...) things out. Certainly don't have any good audio stores around me...

I mainly use my system for 2-ch music. Don't care about HT. I've mainly been looking for a system that will provide me with music that I can hear clearly and feel intimately. I think the best system I've ever heard was at a nightclub called Beta in Denver. The music was pretty damn loud, but it didn't hurt my ears... and I could FEEL the vibrations precisely. They have a brand new Funktion-One sound system. But I'm not looking that powerful and definitely looking for more room-oriented.

I think I'm headed in the right direction looking for pretty beefy floorstanding speakers like the RTi A7s, but am pretty lost when it comes to amp shopping.

So with all that... any advice is appreciated. Thanks!

Kex

You have to remember that the RT in RTi stands for Reference Theater. I drive four RT55 and a CS400 center (they're all big speakers, with a lower -3dB limit of about 50Hz), which work very well for music and HT, but I think that if you want to go a step further for musicality you should really be looking at the LSi range. For subwoofers, you can think about sealed versions, rather than ported, if you want to avoid boominess. Otherwise, others will also recommend legacy SDA speakers (used market only) as the best option of all, perhaps even more so without a subwoofer.

One thing you might want to consider is that one of the biggest improvements I noticed recently was when I added a new NAD receiver. It may only be a receiver, but it pushed so much clean, chest vibrating bass from the big ol' RT55 and CS400 that I was quite taken aback, especially for music listening. This was an effect that I was not able to achieve with an Emotiva LMC-1 and LPA-1 combination. Low string notes, low organ notes, or deep voices, vibrate your chest sometimes in a way I had not been able to experience previously ... and all of this from the speakers, not the subwoofer! On that basis, and it is a limited experiment obviously, I would highly recommend NAD for musical preference. If I ever add an external amplifier to my system, it will probably be a NAD also, unless something changes my mind in the meantime. I also find myself listening to music at higher levels than before, just because there is so much extra detail present, and it never seems too loud or noisy, nor does it cause listening fatigue as loud music sometimes can.

I am currently also playing around with a sealed Rythmik F12G subwoofer, in an attempt to perfect my improved system even further. For music purposes, I think it can be argued that a subwoofer probably does not need to be larger than 12". It is not fully tuned as yet, IMO, so I'm not going to say it solves all the problems where music is concerned, but it is more musical and "accurate" than my previous ported subwoofer. The ported subwoofer had more blast power for movies, although I think I still prefer the sealed version nonetheless, but the sealed version certainly has more detail in the bass notes it produces and blends well with all the very detailed, or "dry" bass the NAD is pushing out from my speakers.

If you really don't want a subwoofer, despite all the comments you may read about sealed versions, then you may have to consider something like the LSi15 so that they have woofers inlcuded for lower frequencies.

Just some food for thought ... YMMV!

snow

To answer your first question about the differences between pro gear and HI FI gear is that usally pro gear tends to be a little less musical, harsh sounding may be a good term it's all about power and stamina under tough conditions where loud spl's are required versus a more refined listening experience in a home audio enviroment with HI FI gear. Also pro gear usally offers 1/4 and Xlr inputs versus RCA and XLR inputs on HI FI gear.

As far as to what amp you should buy it's hard to give you a lot of options without knowing what your budget is. As a general rule of thumb most amps that output 200 wpc or more and offer a 4 ohm rating are sufficent to provide the power thats needed to keep up with transients and a little headroom. Of course thats not always true there has been and always will be exceptions to that rule. I have seen gear thats rated as low as 30 wpc that performed very well and in fact outperformed some 200 wpc amps.



REGARDS SNOW

tcrossma

One other issue with some pro-audio equipment is that they can sometimes have loud fans that are not exactly suitable for home use.

ward91

this would be worth a look;

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=61705

in the link i talk about my xs500

i dont think that it is a nice a hi-fi listen as my other hi-fi amps (rotel ra930ax and my nad) but it is a verry energetic sound. i also find the bass better, it is more detailed and precise. than my other amps. i still enjoy listening to it but less so now.

"whilst remaining fairly warm sounding" i would like to take that back, my bad.
im not sure what im trying to describe due to the lack of experience and vocabulary. but could it be the charechteristic sound of a mosfet?