Acurus A200x3 Nice 3 Channel Amp with 200wpc@8ohms or 300wpc@4ohms (LAST ONE)

megasat16

Hi Folks,

I've decided to see my other Acurus A200x3 since I've sold the 1st one here.

I bought this one a bit over 9 months ago used from a guy in Florida, I think. I only used it for about 30 hours in my HT room with another Acurus A200x3 driving Polk LSi speakers. But my need for multiple 5 channel amps (14 speakers setup) requires two 5 channel amps and two 2 channel amps so I removed the Acurus and tuck them in the closet for about 9 months.

The reason I am selling the Acurus now is due to the wife wanted me to clean out the amps from the closet before purchasing a nice pair of monobloc amplifiers.

The amp listed here is in great condition cosmetically and operationally with only one noticeable nice at the rear corner of the amp. As far as I can tell, it's the only thing I could see and there is no scratch or nick elsewhere.

Look closely at the pictures and feel free to ask questions. If I need to rate it to the Audiogon scale, I believe it's better than 8 out of 10 (may be closer to 9) scale for age and the nick at the bottom of the front panel I already mentioned.

I'll include the original owner manual with the amp.

PRICE is $500 FIRM plus $35 for double boxing with plenty of bubble-wraps and Insured Ground Shipping with FedEx. I just looked at the invoices for what I paid and it's a lot more than $500 for this one. My loss for 30 hours of use and keeping it for 9 months before selling it back!!!

PayPal is OK but requires PayPal Confirmed Address for shipping. Money Order, Cashier's Check, Personal Check (needs to clear before shipping) are all welcome and accepted.

I've already ran it through the Variac when I power it 1st time after a long storage and tested it for 2 days with 4 hours listening session on all 3 channels.

When the amp is hooked up to the LSi25 speakers, I don't hear any kind of buzz or hum. I've also checked the DC offset value at the speaker outputs and they are around 4mV, 8mV, and -4mV (in case you wanted to know).

I think I've addressed the important things about this amp but if you have any question, please PM me and I'll answer the best I could. If you want to checkout some references, I have 200+ 100% perfect feedback on eBay. If you want to see my user ID, just PM me. THANKS!


Specification From Acurus A200x3 Owner's Information

Rated Power
200 Watts per channel continuous, all channels driven into 8 ohms
20Hz to 20,000Hz at no more than 0.06% THD

300 Watts per channel continuous, all channels driven into 4 ohms
20Hz to 20,000Hz

Input Impedance
20K ohms

Signal to Noise Ratio: 110dB A Weighted

madmax

I purchased and received one of the Acurus via FedEx yesterday. I've purchased a LOT of used equipment of all classes and all price ranges. (Maybe 200 items??). This transaction is at the top of the list in several catagories so I want to share my experience.

Quickness: Took maybe a few more days than necessary but only because the seller wanted to make sure all was well with the operation and I know it took some time to package it properly.

Packaging: Best packaging I've ever experienced. This amp was packaged as well as I would have packaged a $5K preamp or similar. It was wrapped with almost half a roll of bubble wrap with the ends being protected by additional bubble wrap. The bubble wrapped amp was then placed on a few inches of additional foam packing, all sides protected by air bags and another few inches of foam package on top. It was then placed in a new strong box and taped properly. It was also marked with warnings to allow the carrier to know it had sensitive electronics inside. It could have been dropped 10 feet without damage.

Description: The description was right on as far as two little marks on the corners. I would have never noticed the marks had they not been pointed out. Furthermore, most people would have never pointed them out because they just don't matter. When I removed the amp from the packaging it looks absolutely new. There was no dust, no visible signs of cleaning, no cleaning marks, no abrasions, no nothing but a brand new looking amplifier which looks as if it has never been touched straight from the factory.

Operation: I checked out two of the three channels and both were factory fresh sounding. This is a great sounding amplifier!

Price: Price was quite low for an item of this quality and condition. I wouldn't have paid more but then again, I didn't expect this factory fresh condition.



There are several people on this site who take the care of equipment they have and express the condition of equipment they are selling. Megasat16 deserves to be on that list! I would say who I think are on this list but I'm sure I would forget someone and that would not be cool.

madmax


Edit: He still has another one for sale...

megasat16

Wow! Simply WOW, MadMax!

I wasn't expecting a very professional review for the other Acurus amp you bought from me.

You are very kind and very generous to have a professional review written for the amp you bought from me.

I enjoy this Hobby very much and I want to make sure they work as they should. When the time comes to sell them, I want treat the gears I sold the same way as I were to buy them.

Thank you for easy and pleasant transaction and for the very nice review.

And Thanks for Bumping this For Sale Ad. I thought this one is going back to the closet soon.

saanthony

I am interested in buying your amp my email is saant@optonline.net thank you scott

megasat16

Hi Scott,

The amp was on hold for another person in the forum till this evening. He is supposed to let me know by tonight or the amp will be available for sale after tonight. If you can wait, it's great but I can't guarantee the availability.

If you are in a hurry, please feel free to browse the Flea Market and there are some real nice amps available too.

Thanks,
James

megasat16

The amp is available again. I was just notified by the other member the he had to let go of the amp at this time.

If anyone interested, it's available but Scott has the 1st dibs if he is still interested in the amp.

saanthony

Hi sent a pm . Thank you..... still interested

megasat16

Amp still available! Thank you!

megasat16

I really hate to do this but I have to put it up on top of the page again to see any interest.

So, here we go....

BUMP!

By the end of the week, it'll either go to Craigslist or Audiogon or eBay or back to where it belong for a long time - the closet.

Thanks!

megasat16

OK Folks, Due to my eyes and mind set on a nice pair of monobloc and my wife bugging me with this excess amplifiers,

The PRICE For Acurus Has Been REDUCED TO $480 plus $35 SHIPPING!

THANKS!

cnh

Hey Mega,

There are a couple of people looking for a good 3 channel on this site. Let me see if I can pull those guys out of the woodwork for you? Try to remember/find out who they were!

cnh

megasat16

Thanks cnh! I appreciate you looking out for me.

cnh

I'm pretty sure Shondoman was expressing an interest in external amps. He has an Onkyo 803 and I suggested a 3 channel. I think I even mentioned your amp!

I'll see who else I can turn up.

cnh

johnjhii

Mega,

I may be interested in purchasing. Can you give a quick pros / cons on the amp (you seem like an upstanding guy so I'm sure you won't oversell it)? Sounds like a pretty good product anyway. I'm interested in integrating it into a 7.1 surround sound (Onkyo 705) but probably only powering the mains and center channel.

John H.

cnh

Mega should answer this. But I think it would sound great with your 705 that's a perfect Pre/pro for this amp. And 3 channel is a great solution for the Onkyo. In terms of specs Mega has you covered above. Normally getting a good used 2 channel amp for 400 or less is a great price....a 3 for 480 with those specs. That's a GOOD deal.

cnh

megasat16

Hi John,

Good Question but where do I start?

What speakers do you have in mind to use with this amplifier?

I've tried these with RTi12 and LSi25/15/9 for testing purposes and I don't think the A200x3 has any negative side to mention with the speakers I tried.

Acurus sounds smooth for music listening with a good bass punch and slightly warm vocals. Also, the highs are very appealing on the Acurus. I don't think this one has a lot of cons in it for HT use. It'll drive most speaker with ease and doesn't even gets HOT. I played it for 4 hours straight when I tested it at 1/3 power driving a pair of LSi25 and it only gets a little warm.

I don't really know a considerable weakness for this amp but I only used it for about 30 hours in my HT room and then about 10 hours testing very recently.

The only thing I could think of right now is that the Acurus will not be able to drive very low efficiency speakers such as ribbon / planar type speakers which has impedance to 2 ohms or lower. However, this amp can drive most 8 ohms speakers with ease and plenty of 4 ohms speakers easily (with the exception of a few very demanding speakers).

I also compared the Acurus A200x3 to a few other multichannel amps such as Rotel RMB-1095, Adcom GFA-7807, Parasound HCA-2205AT, and Harman Kardon Citation 7.1 amplifier.

To me, I think the models I mentioned from Acurus, Rotel and Adcom sounds very similar but Rotel being on warmer side (but too warm for me) and Acurus being more clearer / sharper for music. Adcom is less warmer and less sharper in both the tops and low ends of the music. I don't think any of these amps sound grainy. HK Citation 7.1 at unbridged mode sounds a bit more open on higher frequency but has less bass than the Acurus and the others.

If you tell me what exactly are you looking for, I hope I can provide you a better details.

johnjhii

My system is the 705 as you know, and all Polk for the speakers. RTi10s for main channels, CSi5 center speaker, and DSW Pro 500 subwoofer.

The surrounds, for what it's worth, are RTi4s. I went with all polk just for the so-called "timbre balance." May be bunk, but I bought into it.

I don't have enough posts to send PMs, but you can email me at jhays43@insightbb.com.

megasat16

All that being said, there are plenty of better amplifiers that will beat Acurus A200x3 more or less but they are in the excess of $1000 range to start with even for a good condition pre-owned items.

I think I also should mention that I went with Two Parasound HCA-2205AT coz it has a tad better bass and has 5 x 220W per channel. I have 2 x Parasound HCA-2205AT and 2 x Pioneer M-91 in my HT room to use with 7 pairs of LSi speakers.

If you want to invest in a little better amp, I would go for HCA-2205AT but it really depends on what sounds good to your ear as well as what speakers you want to use with. I have no experience with the Onkyo you mentioned but I don't see any reason why it should not work with any amp in the HT room as long as it has Pre-out connections.

megasat16

johnjhii wrote: »

My system is the 705 as you know, and all Polk for the speakers. RTi10s for main channels, CSi5 center speaker, and DSW Pro 500 subwoofer.

The surrounds, for what it's worth, are RTi4s. I went with all polk just for the so-called "timbre balance." May be bunk, but I bought into it.

I don't have enough posts to send PMs, but you can email me at jhays43@insightbb.com.

John, I think the Acurus + RTi10, CSi5 combo should works well. I have tried RTi12 with Acurus and it sounds good. While I can't comment on how it'll sound with the Onkyo 705, I know it sound reasonable good with Adcom GTP-880 preamplifier, Yamaha RX-V1700 (through pre-out), Carver C4000 preamp, Parasound New Classic 7100 preamp, and Pioneer C90 Control Amplifier.

Ultimately, your ear is what matters most when purchasing any kind of audio gear. Do you like warmer sound or softer sound with clear highs? All amps sounds different more or less. I've tried about 100s of Solid States amps throughout my audio journey and all amps sounds a little different.

johnjhii

I tend to like softer sound (not warm / bright). Mega, can you PM me on this or send me an email to continue this discussion? I'm guessing this is getting tiresome for others at this point.

Crispy3M

I can't take it any longer... PM Sent.

megasat16

Sold!

John had paid for the amp. The amp will go out with FedEx Ground with full insurance on Monday.

Sorry Crispy3M, Johnjhii had contacted about this amp a couple of hours earlier than you so I have to give him the first choice.


Thanks for helping out, MadMax and CNH!

And Thanks to the Polk Audio and Fellow Members in Club Polk!