Adcom setup opinions

concealer404
concealer404 Posts: 7,440
edited August 2008 in Electronics
I recently found an Adcom GTP-450 and GFA-5200 on CL for $300 obo for both.

Anyone have experience with these particular models?

Would this be a large upgrade from my Pioneer EX-500 setup? Is it worth the money?

This would be powering a pair of VS-25s.
I don't read the newsssspaperssss because dey aaaallllllllll...... have ugly print.

Living Room: B&K Reference 5 S2 / Parasound HCA-1000A / Emotiva XDA-2 / Pioneer BDP-51FD / Paradigm 11se MKiii

Desk: Schiit Magni 2 Uber / Schiit Modi 2 Uber / ISK HD9999

Office: Schiit Magni 2 Uber / Schiit Modi 2 Uber / Dynaco SCA-80Q / Paradigm Legend V.3

HT: Denon AVR-X3400H / Sony UBP-X700 / RT16 / CS350LS / RT7 / SVS PB1000
Post edited by concealer404 on
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Comments

  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,497
    edited August 2008
    The Adcom separates should sound better than the Pioneer but you probably won't gain too much more volume. You should notice better clarity, more power reserves and overall better presentation. Two channel is where it will be most noticeable.

    The 5200 is 80wpc @ 8 ohms and is a respectable little amplifier. I say offer him $275 and go for it. It will be a very nice combo!

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Puritan Audio PSM136 Pwr Condtioner & Classic PC's | Legend L600 | Roon Nucleus 1 w/LPS - Tubes add soul!
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  • concealer404
    concealer404 Posts: 7,440
    edited August 2008
    heiney9 wrote: »
    The Adcom separates should sound better than the Pioneer but you probably won't gain too much more volume. You should notice better clarity, more power reserves and overall better presentation. Two channel is where it will be most noticeable.

    The 5200 is 80wpc @ 8 ohms and is a respectable little amplifier. I say offer him $275 and go for it. It will be a very nice combo!

    H9

    I think i just did a bad thing.... but i'm ok with it. :D I don't know where i'll be in a year, though... time to work more overtime.

    Got it for $250. Picking it up this weekend, bedroom setup will be as follows:

    Adcom GTP-450
    Adcom GFA-5200
    Pioneer DV-50A
    Polk VS-25s

    This should be fun. Now i just need to grab some nice cables, i think i spied something in the "Audio Deal Of The Day" thread....

    Would getting a DAC even be worth it in this scenario?

    And thoughts on running one of my S8s in this setup? Obviously there's no LFE on this, but just do the other inputs on the sub?
    I don't read the newsssspaperssss because dey aaaallllllllll...... have ugly print.

    Living Room: B&K Reference 5 S2 / Parasound HCA-1000A / Emotiva XDA-2 / Pioneer BDP-51FD / Paradigm 11se MKiii

    Desk: Schiit Magni 2 Uber / Schiit Modi 2 Uber / ISK HD9999

    Office: Schiit Magni 2 Uber / Schiit Modi 2 Uber / Dynaco SCA-80Q / Paradigm Legend V.3

    HT: Denon AVR-X3400H / Sony UBP-X700 / RT16 / CS350LS / RT7 / SVS PB1000
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  • fbm211
    fbm211 Posts: 1,488
    edited August 2008
    There are a couple of nice DACs in the flea market.AudiogoN also has some good deals on DACs.And yes a DAC would give you better overall sound quality as long as its a good one.
    SDA-2BTL with custom IC
    Adcom 565 monoblocks--Monarchy Audio M-10 preamp
    Theta Data Basic Transport--Stello DA100 Signature DAC--Camelot Dragon Pro2 MK III
    Harman Kardon T-55c TT
    DH Labs Q-10 Signature Speaker Cables With Furez silver plated copper bananas
    Revelation Audio Labs Prophecy Cryo-Silver Reference AES/EBU
    Revelation Audio Labs Prophecy Cryo-Silver i2s digital cable
    4 Furutech FP-314Ag with FI-11cu Plugs/FI-11AG IECs--- Power Cords
    DH LABS REVELATIONS ICs-amps
    Revelation Audio Labs Paradise cryo-silver ICs-Source to pre
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  • concealer404
    concealer404 Posts: 7,440
    edited August 2008
    Weird, potentially extremely stupid question:

    I've always used the LFE output with my subwoofers. I'm not going to have that option any longer.

    All of my subwoofers have the High Level input jacks on the back, to run the speaker wire to from the source. How exactly do i hook those up?

    The instructions in the manuals for both the S8 and the RW-10D don't really help. They just say run the left and right +/- from the front/main output from the source. They don't go any farther than that.

    Do i double up on the wires from the amp? In this case, run two sets of wires from both the right/left channels, one set to the sub, and one set to the VS-25s?

    I'm confused. :(
    I don't read the newsssspaperssss because dey aaaallllllllll...... have ugly print.

    Living Room: B&K Reference 5 S2 / Parasound HCA-1000A / Emotiva XDA-2 / Pioneer BDP-51FD / Paradigm 11se MKiii

    Desk: Schiit Magni 2 Uber / Schiit Modi 2 Uber / ISK HD9999

    Office: Schiit Magni 2 Uber / Schiit Modi 2 Uber / Dynaco SCA-80Q / Paradigm Legend V.3

    HT: Denon AVR-X3400H / Sony UBP-X700 / RT16 / CS350LS / RT7 / SVS PB1000
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