Amp for HT

coolsax

Ok, I want to get an amp for my HT in the next couple of months... I'm trying to decide between a 2, 3 or 5 channel, looking at emotiva, adcom and outlaw new, but also willing to go used if I can find something with a great price and good condition.(likely parasound, sunfire, or any other recs you guys have). My question is, if I decide to go for 2 channel instead of a 3 or 5 channel, the reason for this is definitely price especially used, how will using only my receiver for the center affect the quality overall since the center really is the most important speaker for dialog and such in movies and it would may not be getting the same amount of power at high volume as the mains would. Would I just be better off and save up some extra money to go 3 or 5 channel. I do about 60/40 music to HT currently but If i get some LSi7's for the bedroom, which i think i'm going to do, that ratio will probably increase the HT side significantly.

leroyjr1

Don't really think you need a amp for Monitor 60's. Your receiver should do. I'd sell the PSW505 and put that money and your amp money toward a bad **** sub.

Just a thought

coolsax

well I know i don't really need an amp for the 60s, but eventually i would like to upgrade to RTiA 7s or 9s and I'd like to have the amp first i think.. but regardless of what speakers I have, would it make that much of a difference between going 2 or 3/5 channels in regards to the center...

domflane

Get a 3 channel now and you can add a 2 channel later to gat all 5. The center will suffer greatly if you amp the mains and leave it out. Especially if you get RTi's, that CS1 is going to have a hard time keeping up. With my RTiA5's, I have to turn my CS10 almost all the way up for it to balance in HT, and thats with all three running off the AVR. Once you get a 3 channel, save your cash and get a better 2 channel which will end up driving you mains. Then you can amp the center and the rears with the 3 channel. This is all IMHO of course . . . good luck

cfrizz

Just continue to save money, excersise patience, and get a 5 channel amp of at least 200wpc so that you have what you will need to upgrade to the LSI's in the future.

Do it once & do it right the first time around will save you money in the end.

concealer404

There's an Adcom GFA-6000 locally here for $250...

janmike

cfrizz wrote: »

Just continue to save money, excersise patience, and get a 5 channel amp of at least 200wpc so that you have what you will need to upgrade to the LSI's in the future.

Do it once & do it right the first time around will save you money in the end.

Totally agree. Make one purchase instead of several.

Knucklehead

janmike wrote: »

Totally agree. Make one purchase instead of several.

Kinda agree but its nice to play around with different set-ups.

cfrizz

If you have unlimited money, go for it. But if not, do it once & do it right. This hobby is WAAAY too expensive to play around with different setups.

And before someone comes up with the old "You can sell it for what you paid for it" That is NOT gauranteed, especially in this kind of economy.

Again, if you have unlimited money, and are single, knock yourself out. But if you have other responisibilities that are far more important, then just do it once the right way & be happy for years to come.

Because most wives that kept seeing endless amounts of gear coming through the door taking up limited space & said gearhead constantly playing around with it neglecting other more important matters would be in the doghouse REAL QUICK!

cfrizz

He already has 5 channels so he might as well amp all of them now. I'm not assuming he has ROOM for 7 channels or even wants them. Plus very few movies utilize all seven channels.

cstmar01

Personally I would say if you are certain you want to do an amp now,do at least a 3 channel amp to get the center covered. For me, when I amped the front L/R I noticed an improvement in sound clarity and detail. I did try running it for awhile with just those amped and not amping the center to see what it sounded like. For me it lacked detail and seemed like it was harder for the center to keep up at times. I was running it off the Yamaha RXV-663 which is pretty close to what yours is like. I currently have mono blocks for the front and then a 3 channel for the surrounds. If you are just wanting to get an amp for now I would recommend doing all 3 channels, but if you think that in the future you are going to want to do all 5 then wait and save up a bit and get the 5 channel. I say adcom does a great job and you can find them at great prices. Also check out Rotel used, and if you want the emos are ok, but also look out on the used market for them as well as you can get pretty good deals on them, plus you can transfer the warranty.
I personally have emo but for me I will be trying out other amps in the future. (I say this due to sometimes I feel like they lack some detail and clarity and sometimes can be too straight forward for my tastes) so if you can hear an adcom or emo in a similar set up as yours I would say try that and see what you like.
I have never heard outlaw but heard some good things about them. And heck if you ever wanted to go a full 7.1 (which can sound good and bad depending on the setup and room size) and get the 5 channel you can always do mono blocks for the front lol, its overkill but I also listen to a lot of 2-channel music, and use it that way. A nice 2 channel will also work nicely as well.
Have fun choosing!

coolsax

Thanks for the help guys.. I think i'll at least go with the 3 channel... possibly 5.. just wanted to see if not having the center amped would affect the quality and sounds like it probably would. I really don't have the room for a 7.1 setup even though the AVR will do it. so i'll likely just stick to the 5.1 overall. Two of the ones i'm considering used wise is the Sunfire Signature Grand or the Rotel 1095 which seem to run around 1k -1200 on the 'gon, but I've got some saving to do to get to that point.

tell you what just getting into the whole audio thing sometimes has my head spinning.. Do I emphasize HT or 2channel?.. I love movies and music.. one set up or two... what will the wife let me get away with.. etc... I have learned a lot in the last 4-5 months on here though and what i read just makes me itching to do something better hehe. I'll probably never get to the point where i spend 5k+ on equipment but I definitely would like to be able to get good stuff that my budget affords.

cfrizz

Both of those amps will keep any speakers you have happy for years. Just be patient, save & go for whichever one you like the best.