Having trouble deciding between amps

[Ma-ik]

Hello everyone

I'm having a little trouble deciding which amplifier to buy for a 2.1 system, my speakers are not the most efficient, 85-84 db sensitivity and goes down to 3.2 ohms, more background on the set up and the space can be seen in the thread in the link:

Advice: difficult to drive speakers, struggling amplifier

I recently decided to replace my jbl sound bar+sub that I had in the living room (6.5 x 3.4 meters, a narrow and open space to a dining area). I purchased Elac solano bs283.2 speakers, after listining them at the store i really liked their tone as well as the design and build..these speakers are...

www.audiosciencereview.com

After a lot of thought I came to conclusion that I want to understand what is happening with the sound in my space, therefore I want the amplifier to have a room correction (prefer Dirac) and crossover with HPF and LPF.
I've already returned two amplifiers and I really want to reach the result that will satisfy me, I don't have the option demo equipment, that's why it's so hard to choose.
The speakers are Elac Solano 283.2.

The options in my price range:

1. NAD C389+bluos+Umik1 = 1750€

2. NAD C268+Wiim Ultra+DDRC24 = 1650€

NAD C268 Power Amplifier Review

This is a review and detailed measurements of the NAD C268 power amplifier with balanced inputs. It is kindly sent to me by a member and costs US $900 at NAD dealers (not Amazon, etc.). The C268 is built on Hypex UcD Class D amplifier modules so in testing it we will get coverage on that as...

www.audiosciencereview.com

3. Iotavx SA40+DDRC24 = 1400€ (pre out-amp in)


Has anyone seen power measurements of the 389? It looks exactly the same inside as the 268 and they use the same class d module I wonder if they have the same power? According to the specifications, the 389 has more power both continuously and at peak.
Has anyone compared them and can share their experience?
I've seen some measurements of the 399 but it's less comparable since it has a different hypex amp inside, and tend to believe the power supply is also different.

For the Iotavx SA40 I found only unreliable reviews on YouTube, I did not find any measurements, It's quite new, that's probably why.
It has a lot of power for class ab at this price, what's more, they don't publish too detailed specs, only very dry details.

I would like to hear what you guys think

 

[FrantzM]

HI

Must the amplifier be a NAD or a lotvax?
If not, then you have an amplifier costing much less (around $300 for the pair, on Amazon) , with more power (reaches up to 192 watts at 4 ohms) and, yes, better performance.:
Fosi monoV3, reviewed (click here) by ASR..
...
Fosi V3 mono (pair) + WiiM Ultra + DDRC24 = $1400 could be less

Peace.

 

[Ma-ik]

It doesn't have to be NAD or Iotavx, but it also can't be Fosi mono V3
If it was a desktop set up I wouldn't have a problem, but this is a living room so I prefer a product that also looks good.

I will try to ask my question differently, I am trying to understand what will give me a better effect, an amplifier with a lot of headroom at peaks but less power continuously or an amplifier with enough power continuously but without much headroom at peaks.
A good example for my question could be Yamaha A-S701 and NAD C268: (according to the measurements here at ASR)

c268 - 102 watts at 4 ohms continuous and 230 watts peak power

NAD C268 Power Amplifier Review

This is a review and detailed measurements of the NAD C268 power amplifier with balanced inputs. It is kindly sent to me by a member and costs US $900 at NAD dealers (not Amazon, etc.). The C268 is built on Hypex UcD Class D amplifier modules so in testing it we will get coverage on that as...

www.audiosciencereview.com

a-s701 - 202 watts at 4 ohms continuous and 230 watts peak power

Yamaha A-S701 Stereo Amplifier Review

This is a review and detailed measurements of the Yamaha A-S701 stereo integrated amplifier with included DAC and Phono stage. It is on kind loan from a member and costs US $800. The A-S701 is one of the best looking amplifiers I have tested. Yes the controls are plastic unlike the glory days...

www.audiosciencereview.com

As I understood, music in the most parts needs less watts, while during peaks the speakers draw more watts from the amplifier..so if put it simple, what is more important to look at, peak or continuous power?

I'm not a expert as you can understand, so this might sound a little strange question..

 

[Mikig]

why not instead opt for a digital preamplifier that has all the digital innovations you are looking for combined with two Fosi V3 mono? probably with a lower expense than the amplifiers you indicated you would have performance, the possibility of adjusting the parameters you want and the possibility of making updates in the future.

 

[Ma-ik]

Without getting into arguments, I understood that they have restrictions with low impedance loads
And I have a very bad experience with this kind of class D (I already had a Chinese amplifier at the beginning of my journey) , If i would go in this direction, I prefer the hypex modules and like
My problem with all these amps apollon, vtv, buckeye is the fact that most of them are desktop size or not looking good enough..I prefer a full size amp that looks good for my living room

Back to my question
I have often been told that when it comes to the music itself, sometimes even 20-30 watts is enough, while when there is a peak in the music, the demand will be higher and the speakers will have to draw more power from the amp...
That being said, wouldn't something like the NAD 268 be enough for me? With 100 watts continuous and 200 watts peak?

These are the speakers specs:

Recommended Amplifier Power 40 - 200 W/channel
Nominal | Peak Power Handling 70 W | 100W
Nominal | Minimum Impedance 4Ω | 3.2Ω

 

[Chrispy]

Without getting into arguments, I understood that they have restrictions with low impedance loads
And I have a very bad experience with this kind of class D (I already had a Chinese amplifier at the beginning of my journey) , If i would go in this direction, I prefer the hypex modules and like
My problem with all these amps apollon, vtv, buckeye is the fact that most of them are desktop size or not looking good enough..I prefer a full size amp that looks good for my living room

Back to my question
I have often been told that when it comes to the music itself, sometimes even 20-30 watts is enough, while when there is a peak in the music, the demand will be higher and the speakers will have to draw more power from the amp...
That being said, wouldn't something like the NAD 268 be enough for me? With 100 watts continuous and 200 watts peak?

These are the speakers specs:

Recommended Amplifier Power 40 - 200 W/channel
Nominal | Peak Power Handling 70 W | 100W
Nominal | Minimum Impedance 4Ω | 3.2Ω

What speakers are they and where's the sensitivity spec? What do you mean "this kind of class D"? Why do you rely so much on "what you're told"?

 

[Ma-ik]

speakers: Elac solano bs283.2
sensitivity: specs: 85db, tested: 84db
״What do you mean "this kind of class D״ - i mean TPA, Infineon based amps
"Why do you rely so much on "what you're told"?" - I'm not, I'm here trying to understand

 

[Chrispy]

speakers: Elac solano bs283.2
sensitivity: specs: 85db, tested: 84db
״What do you mean "this kind of class D״ - i mean TPA, Infineon based amps
"Why do you rely so much on "what you're told"?" - I'm not, I'm here trying to understand

Why only tpa/infineon amps? That's limited.

Still, helps to know what you understood from other sources as to your assumptions. Just because it's on the internet doesn't mean a lot sort of thing....

 

[Ma-ik]

Why only tpa/infineon amps? That's limited.

Still, helps to know what you understood from other sources as to your assumptions. Just because it's on the internet doesn't mean a lot sort of thing....

Absolutely, I would love to hear what you have to contribute on the subject, just telling people they are in the wrong direction is not enough

 

[Chrispy]

Absolutely, I would love to hear what you have to contribute on the subject, just telling people they are in the wrong direction is not enough

Perhaps if you would focus the query? Your general idea is vague....

 

[Mike_Trueman]

You can have my list if you want more choices
I made this list to start my journey for an amplifier with good build quality and good sound.
If you have the chance then listen and control the amps with your own music before you buy.
My personal favorites are the ATOLL, REGA and ROTEL amplifiers.

Rega Elex mk4 - 1600€ - 72W - pre out - class A/B
NAD C 389 - 1600€ - 130W - trigger in/out - 2x sub out - HybridDigital UcD
Atoll IN100 Signature - with option DAC DA200 - 1700€ - 100W - PC USB - trigger out - class A/B
Atoll IN80 Signature - with option DAC DA200 - 1300€ - 80W - PC USB - trigger out - class A/B
Arcam Radia A25 - 1800€ - 100W - PC USB - trigger in/out - pre out - class G
Arcam Radia A15 - 1250€ - 80W - SPDIF - trigger in/out - pre out - class A/B
Rotel A14MKII - 1500€ - 80W - PC USB - trigger 2x out - pre out - class A/B
Musical Fidelity M3Si - 1400€ - 85W - PC USB - pre out - trigger in/out - class A/B
Marantz 60n - 1500€ - 60W - SPDIF - sub out LF - class A/B
Marantz Model M1 - 1000€ - 100W - SPDIF - sub out LF/HF - class D
Pro-Ject MaiA DS3 - 1200€ - 80W - PC USB - trigger in/out - Sub Out - class A/B

 

[Ma-ik]

You can have my list if you want more choices
I made this list to start my journey for an amplifier with good build quality and good sound.
If you have the chance then listen and control the amps with your own music before you buy.
My personal favorites are the ATOLL, REGA and ROTEL amplifiers.

Rega Elex mk4 - 1600€ - 72W - pre out - class A/B
NAD C 389 - 1600€ - 130W - trigger in/out - 2x sub out - HybridDigital UcD
Atoll IN100 Signature - with option DAC DA200 - 1700€ - 100W - PC USB - trigger out - class A/B
Atoll IN80 Signature - with option DAC DA200 - 1300€ - 80W - PC USB - trigger out - class A/B
Arcam Radia A25 - 1800€ - 100W - PC USB - trigger in/out - pre out - class G
Arcam Radia A15 - 1250€ - 80W - SPDIF - trigger in/out - pre out - class A/B
Rotel A14MKII - 1500€ - 80W - PC USB - trigger 2x out - pre out - class A/B
Musical Fidelity M3Si - 1400€ - 85W - PC USB - pre out - trigger in/out - class A/B
Marantz 60n - 1500€ - 60W - SPDIF - sub out LF - class A/B
Marantz Model M1 - 1000€ - 100W - SPDIF - sub out LF/HF - class D
Pro-Ject MaiA DS3 - 1200€ - 80W - PC USB - trigger in/out - Sub Out - class A/B

thanks
What speakers you tried to drive?

 

[Ma-ik]

Perhaps if you would focus the query? Your general idea is vague....

Try to imagine, you have bookshelf speakers (relatively hard to drive) with the specs I mentioned above, and imagine that you have to place the speakers close to the wall (so it is better to eliminate very low frequencies from the speakers and integrate subwoofer), add to that that for whatever reason you really want the amplifier you are looking for to look good (and not desktop size) and try to imagine that the Chinese amplifiers topping, smsl, fosi don't exist in the world and you want to listen at 85 dB maximum from a 3 meters distance with a budget of 1800 euros, which amplifier/dac+amplifier/power amp+source would you buy?

 

[Chrispy]

Try to imagine, you have bookshelf speakers (relatively hard to drive) with the specs I mentioned above, and imagine that you have to place the speakers close to the wall (so it is better to eliminate very low frequencies from the speakers and integrate subwoofer), add to that that for whatever reason you really want the amplifier you are looking for to look good (and not desktop size) and try to imagine that the Chinese amplifiers topping, smsl, fosi don't exist in the world and you want to listen at 85 dB maximum from a 3 meters distance with a budget of 1800 euros, which amplifier/dac+amplifier/power amp+source would you buy?

I'm trying but not sure why I'd have such speakers let alone need some sort of "aesthetics" in the electronics boxes (they're all limited in that respect). Discriminating to canadian designed stuff made in china, meh.

 

[pogo]

A good looking one is the Sonoro Maestro Quantum: Link
In any case, you can rely on NAD with Dirac Live.
By the way, the amplifier section of the C268 is quasi identical to the C379 and can be used with it in bridge-mode.

...and don't forget the new Bluesound Node and Node Icon with Dirac Live as pre-amp

 

[pogo]

Another good looking option would be a JBL MA7100HP or MA9100HP with Dirac Live. Here you have the option of bi-amping your speakers.

 

[Ma-ik]

A good looking one is the Sonoro Maestro Quantum: Link
In any case, you can rely on NAD with Dirac Live.
By the way, the amplifier section of the C268 is quasi identical to the C379 and can be used with it in bridge-mode.

...and don't forget the new Bluesound Node and Node Icon with Dirac Live as pre-amp

And the c389 looks similar to the c379 but rated with more power and better performance overall, they both seem to be using their customized ucd102, Is the power rating of the c389 reliable? I haven't seen his measurements anywhere...I mean, it would be disappointing to buy the 389 and find out in the future that in reality it has exactly the same power as the 379 and I could have saved on this purchase
c389 seems like my best option if it really has a better power rating than c379..

״Bluesound Node and Node Icon with Dirac Live״ - Yes, I saw that they mention it in their page, though It can take time to be available

 

[Ma-ik]

Another good looking option would be a JBL MA7100HP or MA9100HP with Dirac Live. Here you have the option of bi-amping your speakers.

Also on the radar, but it makes me sad to pay for so many features that I didn't use, my set up is for music only..I don't need 6 hdmi or 7 speaker outputs, for bi amping I would prefer something like musical fidelity M6x 250.4/2.. looks like it really has power! hahaha
Do we already know what class d JBL are implementing here?

 

[Ma-ik]

Sonoro Maestro Quantum - Does he have the option to set a crossover?
and since it doesn't have a subwoofer output, will Dirac make a correction to separate subwoofer channel at all?

 

[Ma-ik]

I'm trying but not sure why I'd have such speakers let alone need some sort of "aesthetics" in the electronics boxes (they're all limited in that respect). Discriminating to canadian designed stuff made in china, meh.

I thought about it again I should be asking this type of question elsewhere...