Power to drive R700

rkevin · July 18

I really wanted to buy the R700 today but the sales rep at Crutchfield told me my amp won’t effectively drive them. I have an Onkyo RZ 50. Only speakers I am driving would be the R700 plus 2 8 inch ceiling mounted speakers. If true, what are my options? I don’t want to add a sub due to wife restrictions. I have a full setup in another room. Do I need to consider other speakers? Add an amp ? Help is appreciated!

pitdogg2 · July 18

He was basically correct. Your receiver is rated @ 120 watts x 2. Will they make sound, yes. You will never get them to their full potential, also more easily blow tweeters or drivers due to clipping. The good news is that the receiver does have pre outs to add a dedicated 2 channel or multi-channel amp. It's not all about watts you also need good current (high-current) as well. If you end up shopping for an amp look for one that will basically double down. By that I mean if it is 200 watts per channel at 8 ohms then it should double to 400 watts at 4 ohms or very close to it. That's indicative of a good power supply. One of the things that receivers do is they cheap out on the power supply because that is actually the most expensive part copper and power, banks of large capacitors to store power for demanding passages of music or movie explosions etc.

pitdogg2 · July 18

Also the more speakers the receiver is driving the less power goes to the speakers. Your receiver is rated at 120 watts per channel x 2. Driving four or five speakers at the same time you could be down to as little as 30 to 40 watts per speaker.

rkevin · July 19

Thanks! Any suggestions on an amp that will produce the power I need? One person pointed my emotive, another to Cambridge soundworks (but I only saw lower power amps there)

F1nut · July 19

This one will do the trick and then some.
https://forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/201785/mccormack-dna-500#latest

pitdogg2 · July 19

Emotive in the past had been a pretty bright sound signature. I'm not sure if they are still so try if you have a return window to do so. The McCormick is a end game amp for most, damn fine amplifier!

rkevin · July 19

Im sure I would love the McCormick but I’m gonna cap out around 2000 to maybe 2500

rkevin · July 20

After spending too much time this weekend this is where I lean - two Outlaw 2200 monoblocks (just under 1000 total ) OR there is a Rotel 1582 MKII demo unit I can have for $1200. Seems either would work well for me and the R700 s. Thanks in advance for your thoughts!

pitdogg2 · July 20

Rotel would be my choice. Rotel can be a little sterile but they do not draw attention to themselves. I've had several friends that have had very dependable results with both the 5 channel and 2 channel versions in home theater or music.
Their class D amps were horrible IMHO.

Emlyn · July 20

The Rotel 1582 MK II would be a good match. Good deal too if it's in good shape with a full warranty. Especially considering new retail is $2500.

The Rotel class A/B are tried and true designs. Haven't really changed much in the last 30 years! Other than having different model numbers and casework for the faceplate. I think they've even been using the same WBT looking binding posts for 20 years.

The R700s are marketed as having an 8 ohm nominal impedance. It's probably a little lower in reality and one of the reasons why the Crutchfield reps are saying to get a high current capable amp.

rkevin · July 21

One last question - a local dealer has a new Emotiva XPA-2 Gen3 he will sell me for $750 with warranty. I'm inclined to do this unless I am making a terminal mistake. Thanks again!

pitdogg2 · July 21

rkevin wrote: »

One last question - a local dealer has a new Emotiva XPA-2 Gen3 he will sell me for $750 with warranty. I'm inclined to do this unless I am making a terminal mistake. Thanks again!

Why not just spend the money saved and get a Emotiva 5 or 7 channel amp and use the Onkyo as a pre-amp/processor?
Remember you get what you pay for. Many people are very happy with Emotiva gear for Home Theater.

F1nut · July 21

If you care about sound quality then it's a terminal mistake, IMO

rkevin · July 21

pitdogg2 wrote: »

rkevin wrote: »

One last question - a local dealer has a new Emotiva XPA-2 Gen3 he will sell me for $750 with warranty. I'm inclined to do this unless I am making a terminal mistake. Thanks again!

Why not just spend the money saved and get a Emotiva 5 or 7 channel amp and use the Onkyo as a pre-amp/processor?
Remember you get what you pay for. Many people are very happy with Emotiva gear for Home Theater.

I only need 2 channels for this amp.

pitdogg2 · July 21

Music or home theater?

Emlyn · July 21

Check out this video starting around the 10 minute mark to see the innards of the Emotiva XPA Gen 3 amp. Class H switching to class A/B. Big case with not much to look at inside. Fits well for home theater but it is what it is.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TMgAW5yt_8

rkevin · July 21

This will be used 90% for music. It will be attached to an AVR with the TV, but mainly only for sound boosting and some whole-home audio sources. Home Theater setup is in another room.

pitdogg2 · July 21

Music, forget Emotiva.
The Rotel is a much better choice

PSOVLSK · July 21

I’d vote for the Rotel also. I’ve owned both and I probably have a higher opinion of Emotiva that many on here, but Rotel is the better brand.

mrloren · July 24

I like my XPA-3 works great on music and movies. I don't get why Emo gets such a bad rap on this board. Yes if I had the funds I'd have a Parasound.
Also look at Monoprice and Outlaw 5000

Geoff4rfc · July 25

I'll throw my wrench in here......I had my RTiA9's paired with a Gen 1 and Gen 2 XPA2, phenomenal sound in 2ch. The A9's lost the bright edge they first carried and produced Non fatiguing, detailed crisp music.

Emlyn · July 25

I enjoyed the first Gen XPA-5 I had for a while. Bought it out of curiosity but sold it after using it for a while. Excellent bang for the buck power wise but a Rotel RMB-1075 with less power was a more refined and better amp. Gen 2 was a bit more refined because they toned down the gain and reduced the noise floor. Gen 3 is a different design entirely because it's modular but I haven't owned one of those.

I have a couple of Outlaw multi channel amps for home theater channel use and have absolutely no complaints about those.

recoveryone · July 26

Its about time I hear people bring up the fact that having extra power is not about more wattage, but being able to have reserve power to cover the high peaks and very low passes without damaging the drivers in a speaker. People commented on why I use two Crown amps in my livingroom setup with my R700's. Some felt it was over kill, but fail to understand you may never want or need to play your system at such a high level but give your speakers the much needed power during peak passages to not damage the drivers.

rkevin · July 28

Thank you to all the great posts. I ended up buying the R700 and I'm using them in a 2 way setup, plus I have two 8.5" two-way speakers in the ceiling when desired. I am 100% blown away with how great these sound. Honestly, I never expected them to exceed my expectations like this. I also bought the Emotiva XPA2 Gen 3 because it ended up costing about $500 in the end and I thought "what do I have to lose". Here are a few of my thoughts after installing and listening for a few days, hopefully to help others:

1. I was worried from various posts about brightness of the Emotiva amp, too neutral for the speakers and without warmth, etc... But the sound to me is not clinical, bright, or cold - it is room-filling, clear, full, and warm. I have a large room with 11 foot ceilings and glass all along one side wall. For anyone worried about the same issue, it ended up not being an issue AT ALL for me!

2. I was worried I would miss my subwoofer. Previous house had 1000 watt HSU sub that was extremely powerful - a really great sub. The R700s would probably benefit from the addition of a sub for SOME of my content, but not much. The wife wins this round (she adamantly opposed a subwoofer in this room) but I think I end up with a dub anyway because the sound is truly exceptional.

3. I was worried the R700 may be too large in dimension and the walnut vinyl veneer would look cheap. They are very attractive speakers and, again, I am very pleased. More important, the spousal unit agrees they are attractive.

4. I was worried the sound would be a bit thin due to the 2 speaker setup. But these are truly room filling. I don't know how to explain the sound other than the sound is everywhere, all around, fully encompassing. I think the rear celing speakers (driven by my Onkyo RZ50 receiver) add to the experience, but even with them turned off the sound is spectacular.

In short, I am a very happy customer of Polk Audio and the R700 speakers. I don't know how much the Emotiva is adding to the experience - I suspect I would be equally thrilled with Outlaw, Rotel, etc... with equal power throughput. But the speakers, oh man, these exceed anything I've owned over the years. Nothing crazy, but KEF 3 way towers, Klipsch floor standing, and some pretty good 3 way speakers on stands + sub. These are so far above anything I've owned I'm stunned... and very pleased.

Thank you to everyone for the thoughtful comments!

Emlyn · July 28

Congrats! I have a pair of R600 and was really surprised at the kick those things have given their relatively small size. No subwoofer needed given room size constraints. R700s would have been too big for the room I have mine in.

Polk engineering magic!

PSOVLSK · July 28

Congratulations on the new speakers and amp. I never get tired of posts like this where someone gets new gear and it exceeds expectations. Glad you’re loving the new setup.

Milito · July 31

Congrats on your new setup, I'm glad it has exceeded your expectations.

Power to drive R700

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