Adcom vs. Emotiva ?

bklynNupe

Hi I need a bit of help choosing a amp.
I have an opportunity to buy an Adcom GFA-5500 - $450 locally ( no shipping), or some folks on the very forum turned me on to the Emotiva XPA-3 which is now on sale for $499 plus 25 dollar shipping.
I have an opportunity to hear to Adcom before buying but no opportunity to hear the Emotiva. http://www.emotiva.com/xpa3.shtm Can someone give me some things I might want to consider if buying the used Adcom? Is this price good?
Any insight is greatly appreciated.
Thanks


:cool:

Samsung ln46a650
Onkyo Tx-SR8067.1
Polk PSW 505
Polk CSI 3
Polk RTI A5

heiney9

bklynNupe wrote: »

Hi I need a bit of help choosing a amp.
I have an opportunity to buy an Adcom GFA-5500 - $450 locally ( no shipping), or some folks on the very forum turned me on to the Emotiva XPA-3 which is now on sale for $499 plus 25 dollar shipping.
I have an opportunity to hear to Adcom before buying but no opportunity to hear the Emotiva. http://www.emotiva.com/xpa3.shtm Can someone give me some things I might want to consider if buying the used Adcom? Is this price good?
Any insight is greatly appreciated.
Thanks


:cool:

Samsung ln46a650
Onkyo Tx-SR8067.1
Polk PSW 505
Polk CSI 3
Polk RTI A5

It's a good price. That amp retailed for $1200-1300 new.

bopicasso

the emotiva comes with a 30 day return policy so you can test it out and send it back if you like the adcom better.

cfrizz

How old is the Adcom, If its over 10 years old, go for the Emo.

Lowell_M

cfrizz wrote: »

How old is the Adcom, If its over 10 years old, go for the Emo.

The good ADCOMS are the ones that are more than 10 years old. I think mine was made in 1986.

I need to get my ears on one of these Emotiva amps sometime. Looking at the pictures they have on the website, it doesn't look like there is much to them. In my opinion, you can never go wrong with a used ADCOM as your first step into separates. I need to hear an Emotiva to have an opinion, but I'm sceptical.

Edit - The XPA-2 looks pretty impressive on paper. Anybody in IL have one? -sorry for the pending derail

ben62670

a_mattison wrote: »

The good ADCOMS are the ones that are more than 10 years old. I think mine was made in 1986...

Yep.

bklynNupe

Thanks for the input.
I pulled the trigger on the Emotiva; I simply just couldn't take it anymore!
I hope to get it in a few days, now I just have to get that badboy home from work.

bopicasso

I ordered mine on friday afternoon, and recieved it tuesday. Fast shipping!

Midnite Mick

Had a newer 5503 on lsi15's. Nothing special.

Unknown

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LessisNevermore

a_mattison wrote: »

Edit - The XPA-2 looks pretty impressive on paper. Anybody in IL have one? -sorry for the pending derail

Psssst......check my sig.:D
(ok, not a 2, but you'll get the idea)

bigred7078

a_mattison wrote: »

I Looking at the pictures they have on the website, it doesn't look like there is much to them.

lol not much to them? How so?


To OP, congrats on the purchase you should really enjoy the addition

Early B.

bklynNupe wrote: »

Thanks for the input.
I pulled the trigger on the Emotiva; I simply just couldn't take it anymore!
I hope to get it in a few days, now I just have to get that badboy home from work.

Good decision. The Emo will punch Adcom gear in the gut.

Lowell_M

LessisNevermore wrote: »

Psssst......check my sig.:D
(ok, not a 2, but you'll get the idea)

Dude! Are we letting you know about our local get togethers? If not....we better start inviting you!!! Anyway... I'd love to hear that EMO at some point and you are welcome to come check out my rig when we both have a chance. I forgot that there was another local around here.

Lowell_M

Early B. wrote: »

Good decision. The Emo will punch Adcom gear in the gut.

Honestly.. That's a pretty bold statement. If that is the case, Emo should be charging more for their stuff.

bklynNupe

Thanks for all of your insight, Kex.
I just posted the adcom under deals.
I can't wait, I just need some sort of stand to put that thing on.

Dawgfish

As an owner of an older Adcom GFA-545 and 555 and an Emotiva XPA-3, I would definitely have to agree with Early B's asessment. I like my Emotiva better than both my Adcoms (not that I don't like the Adcoms because I really do). I find for my setup and tastes that the Emotiva sounds better in every category or fashion that I can think off. Again that's for me. I highly recommend you check it out for yourself and see what you think.

Steve

heiney9

Dawgfish wrote: »

As an owner of an older Adcom GFA-545 and 555 and an Emotiva XPA-3, I would definitely have to agree with Early B's asessment. I like my Emotiva better than both my Adcoms (not that I don't like the Adcoms because I really do). I find for my setup and tastes that the Emotiva sounds better in every category or fashion that I can think off. Again that's for me. I highly recommend you check it out for yourself and see what you think.

Steve

Well there you go...........someone who speaks from experience and is articulate and adds a bit of an explanation. Perhaps you could give a little more ind epth description

kuntasensei

Y'know, I hate reading these threads... because the voice in my head starts saying, "Y'know, I bet your RTi70/CSi40 would sound way better with external amplification."

I hate you. All of you.

Dawgfish

Sure,

No problem. When comparing my Adcoms to the Emotiva the thing that immediately stands out is the soundstage. I get a much wider soundstage with the Emotiva than I do with with either Adcom. The Emotiva is also more detailed and has better seperation of instuments. It's like I'm on stage with the band. I can close my eyes and hear each musician in their respective spots onstage. The thing that impressed me with the Adcoms was their low-end punch. I am getting an even better punch with the Emotiva and I'm hearing notes and sounds in the bass spectrum with the Emotiva that I did not hear with either Adcom. I would describe the mids and highs of the Emotiva as being more detailed than the Adcoms also. The Adcoms seem to "roll-off" a bit in the vey upper frequency spectrum. To some though, this quality may be a good thing as it can help tame down an overly bright speaker. YMMV!

As far as audio performance, I really prefer the Emotiva to the Adcoms. One of the things that is so impressive about the Adcoms though is their reliability/longevity. Both of my Adcoms are 15 to 20 years old and they are still palying and sounding great. I guess it remains to be seen wether the Emotiva can stack up to the Adcoms in that regard. I can say this though, I'm very impressed with the build quality and components of the Emotiva. I guess it will just take time to see. Hope this helps.

mmadden28

a_mattison wrote: »

Honestly.. That's a pretty bold statement. If that is the case, Emo should be charging more for their stuff.

So, if it costs more, it will get even better?

Lowell_M

kuntasensei wrote: »

Y'know, I hate reading these threads... because the voice in my head starts saying, "Y'know, I bet your RTi70/CSi40 would sound way better with external amplification."

I hate you. All of you.

Listen to the voices!!!

heiney9

Dawgfish wrote: »

Sure,

No problem. When comparing my Adcoms to the Emotiva the thing that immediately stands out is the soundstage. I get a much wider soundstage with the Emotiva than I do with with either Adcom. The Emotiva is also more detailed and has better seperation of instuments. It's like I'm on stage with the band. I can close my eyes and hear each musician in their respective spots onstage. The thing that impressed me with the Adcoms was their low-end punch. I am getting an even better punch with the Emotiva and I'm hearing notes and sounds in the bass spectrum with the Emotiva that I did not hear with either Adcom. I would describe the mids and highs of the Emotiva as being more detailed than the Adcoms also. The Adcoms seem to "roll-off" a bit in the vey upper frequency spectrum. To some though, this quality may be a good thing as it can help tame down an overly bright speaker. YMMV!

As far as audio performance, I really prefer the Emotiva to the Adcoms. One of the things that is so impressive about the Adcoms though is their reliability/longevity. Both of my Adcoms are 15 to 20 years old and they are still palying and sounding great. I guess it remains to be seen wether the Emotiva can stack up to the Adcoms in that regard. I can say this though, I'm very impressed with the build quality and components of the Emotiva. I guess it will just take time to see. Hope this helps.

Nicely put and I think you are one of the rare people to actually state the Adcoms are rolled off....LOL! Usually the HUGE knock against Adcom is they are overly bright. Adcoms of that generation (bi-polar; original models) need careful mating with the pre-amp.

Thanks for sharing some insightful info....................rather than making one off comments that mean nothing. If moe Emotiva owners were as articulate as you as to why they prefer one over the other perhaps they (as a whole) would have a little more credibility (EarlyB excluded).

H9

Lowell_M

mmadden28 wrote: »

So, if it costs more, it will get even better?

huh?

From a business standpoint.... If there is enough value (performance) in the Emotiva line that the product costing around $500ish can kick product "in the gut" that is over $1000 retail (speaking in generalities), then they should be able to demand a higher price and make more margin $'s. If I were the owner of the company and heard comments like this, I'd fire the guy who set pricing for being over 50% lower than he could have set it. There are examples of products like the LSi's that perform well above their price level. The example we are talking about here, though is a claim that a product performs well above the level of a more expensive product. There is a lot of performance value there.

I'm not doubting (well maybe a little) the performance of Emotiva until I get the chance to hear one in person, but I'm doubting their pricing decision if their performance is that good. Why not make a little more margin $'s to put back into growing the company? You could also argue, though, they are trying to build brand by getting product out there, and so, sacrificing some margin that they could be making. There is no absolute answer and setting the pricing is more complex than what I just said, I just wouldn't be priced where they are if I was running the place.

Lowell_M

Dawgfish wrote: »

Sure,

No problem. When comparing my Adcoms to the Emotiva the thing that immediately stands out is the soundstage. I get a much wider soundstage with the Emotiva than I do with with either Adcom. The Emotiva is also more detailed and has better seperation of instuments. It's like I'm on stage with the band. I can close my eyes and hear each musician in their respective spots onstage. The thing that impressed me with the Adcoms was their low-end punch. I am getting an even better punch with the Emotiva and I'm hearing notes and sounds in the bass spectrum with the Emotiva that I did not hear with either Adcom. I would describe the mids and highs of the Emotiva as being more detailed than the Adcoms also. The Adcoms seem to "roll-off" a bit in the vey upper frequency spectrum. To some though, this quality may be a good thing as it can help tame down an overly bright speaker. YMMV!

As far as audio performance, I really prefer the Emotiva to the Adcoms. One of the things that is so impressive about the Adcoms though is their reliability/longevity. Both of my Adcoms are 15 to 20 years old and they are still palying and sounding great. I guess it remains to be seen wether the Emotiva can stack up to the Adcoms in that regard. I can say this though, I'm very impressed with the build quality and components of the Emotiva. I guess it will just take time to see. Hope this helps.

Thank you Dawgfish! Now I definately want to hear an Emotiva amp. You are describing exactly what I was going after by hunting for a Marsh amp. Now that I have tried the Marsh for a long period of time, I still honestly like the ADCOM. The Marsh got a little harsh with my rig. But, the Evo line might be worth a try as well.

heiney9

Don't get me wrong I still have pretty huge doubts.................which I really can't comment about until I listen to an Emotiva for an extended period of time. I'd love to demo one.........but after what happened to a Polkie as far being banned from buying another product after returning an amp; I'll pass on the 30 day trial.

H9

Lowell_M

heiney9 wrote: »

Don't get me wrong I still have pretty huge doubts.................which I really can't comment about until I listen to an Emotiva for an extended period of time. I'd love to demo one.........but after what happened to a Polkie as far being banned from buying another product after returning an amp; I'll pass on the 30 day trial.

H9

hmmmm.... Further confirming my doubts of their business savyness.

mmadden28

heiney9 wrote: »

... I'd love to demo one.........but after what happened to a Polkie as far being banned from buying another product after returning an amp; I'll pass on the 30 day trial.

H9

IIRC, and if we're referring to the same event, they weren't banned from buying another amp, but would have had lost their 30 day return privilege if they decided to buy another amp anyway. I think they were offered a different model instead. Personally, I didn't agree with how Emotiva handled the situation but I also didn't care for how the user handled the situation either (communications is key). But every company will have its customer service issues.

My assumption is that Emotiva will take more proactive communication actions to resolve misunderstandings better, based on what came out of that issue and the discussions that resulted. To me it was simply a case of a company protecting its business from potential abuse (although over-zealously) which all companies have a right to do.
For example, if you kept buying speakers and returning them over and over and over again from Amazon or Polk Direct or any store for that matter, I think a similar result (restriction) would occur.

I didn't say all this to start any kind of debate on that issue. I just wanted to help clear up the issue before anybody jumped to any conclusions.


On a similar note though. Although its near impossible to listen to an Emo or any Internet Direct product first unless you know somebody that already has one near you. Buying one and returning if you don't like it is the only way to do it and that is why I believe Emotiva even has the 30 day return policy in place. But I wouldn't agree that it would be OK to buy every model amp they have and only keep the one you like just because its offered. All companies take some kind of loss when they accept a product as returned. Its no longer 'new' and shipping charges were also lost. Some companies can afford it better because they have a higher margin of profit, so it hurts less, but since the Emo prices are low relative to similar equipment in the industry, they are already apparently operating on a low margin.

heiney9

mmadden28 wrote: »

IIRC, and if we're referring to the same event, they weren't banned from buying another amp, but would have had lost their 30 day return privilege if they decided to buy another amp anyway. I think they were offered a different model instead. Personally, I didn't agree with how Emotiva handled the situation but I also didn't care for how the user handled the situation either (communications is key). But every company will have its customer service issues.

My assumption is that Emotiva will take more proactive communication actions to resolve misunderstandings better, based on what came out of that issue and the discussions that resulted. To me it was simply a case of a company protecting its business from potential abuse (although over-zealously) which all companies have a right to do.
For example, if you kept buying speakers and returning them over and over and over again from Amazon or Polk Direct or any store for that matter, I think a similar result (restriction) would occur.

I didn't say all this to start any kind of debate on that issue. I just wanted to help clear up the issue before anybody jumped to any conclusions.


On a similar note though. Although its near impossible to listen to an Emo or any Internet Direct product first unless you know somebody that already has one near you. Buying one and returning if you don't like it is the only way to do it and that is why I believe Emotiva even has the 30 day return policy in place. But I wouldn't agree that it would be OK to buy every model amp they have and only keep the one you like just because its offered. All companies take some kind of loss when they accept a product as returned. Its no longer 'new' and shipping charges were also lost. Some companies can afford it better because they have a higher margin of profit, so it hurts less, but since the Emo prices are low relative to similar equipment in the industry, they are already apparently operating on a low margin.

Not my problem if their business model only allows them a small margin. I would think with direct internet sales that they should have a very liberal return policy since the only way to hear one is to purchase over the internet. Even a hint of hassle as far as returning it for it not being what I wanted is a turn off.

I agree there are 2 sides to every story and I did read the response from Emotiva and it turned me off as far as taking a chance on a purchase w/o first hearing one for an extended period of time.

Places like Odyssey, First Watt, Outlaw, SVS, etc.....don't seem to have these reservations. Again this seemed to be an isolate incident and if I ever thought about trying an Emo I would have all the return guidelines in place (and in writing) first before purchasing. So I do agree communication is key.

H9

Dawgfish

Thank you folks.

a_mattison,

Interestingly enough I also have a Monster Power MPA-3250 which I understand was designed by Marsh. I don't know how it sounds compared to Marsh's own amps. You would tend to think he would keep his best stuff for the products with his own name on it. I know Monster is not well liked by a lot of folks and I dislike their cables myself, but I bought the amp anyways because I got a really good deal on it and it was a Marsh designed amp. Comparing the Emotiva to the Monster Amp, I like still like the Emotiva better. The Monster has a wider and more well defined soundstage than either Adcom, but it is still narrower and less defined than the Emotiva. The Monster sounds very "sterile". It's very clean and balanced. It sounds great with classical, jazz, and other intricate instrumental music, but it seriously lacks low end punch for rock, blues, and harder driving, more up tempo music. The Emotiva is just a more well rounded amp. It hits harder in the lows, and has a warmer, more natural feel in the mids and highs. The difference in sound between the two amps is almost like comparing the sound between CD (Monster) and Phonograph (Emotiva) in that regard. Agian, I don't know how the Monster sounds compared to an actual Marsh amp, but if they sound similiar, I think the Emotiva stacks up very well against it. Agian, just my dos pesos.

Steve

Unknown

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