Wharfedale Linton-based system - amplifier upgrade

[hszazg]

Hi all,

I hope everyone is having a relaxing Sunday with good music playing.
I'd like to get your help, suggestions, insights, and ideas for my setup.

Setup:
Speakers: Wharfedale Linton (the normal ones, not the Super) (product page: https://www.wharfedale.co.uk/products/linton?_pos=2&_sid=fe6d9cab9&_ss=r)
Power amplifier: Pro-Ject Amp Box RS (the old one) (product page: https://www.project-audio.com/en/product/amp-box-rs/)
Pre-amplifier/DAC/Streamer: Yamaha WXC-50 (product page: https://europe.yamaha.com/en/audio/home-audio/products/wireless-streaming-amplifiers/wxc-50/)
I also have a phono amp and a turntable (Pro-Ject Classic Phono Amp and the Debut Pro), but they're mostly for fun and aren't really all that relevant here.

Room:
The speakers are positioned as far away from the walls as possible (think around 35cm - I think that's around 14/15 inches). I've also got them off-axis a bit, following Erin's recommendations. The room is big enough (3m by 4m), but no walls are square - old house, so no 90 degree angles. I tried creating an equilateral triangle with each speaker being on one vertex (corner? Apologies, English isn't my first language) and my armchair being on the third one. My ears are level with the tweeters when I sit. What I'm trying to say is that I've really thought about positioning and the whole geometry of the setup to try to get the best sound possible.

Question(s):
So, my first and most important question is: do I have a serious bottleneck in my system somewhere? Is there a clear upgrade route for me?
I've been regularly reading ASR for years now, and I tried scouring the forums for info on setup combos that have the Linton's as the main speakers and came across Ncore recommendations (think the D class monos from Audiophonics: https://www.audiophonics.fr/en/powe...-mono-ncore-nc500mp-1x500w-4-ohm-p-14319.html).
Second and less important question: If I were to get these monos, should I go for the 500 or the 250?

Why am I considering this now?
When listening at higher volumes, bass-heavy music tends to resonate (I hope this is the right word) in the room. It feels like instead of hearing the bass, I feel it. My point is that I'd like to be able to listen to music at higher volumes without having this problem, and after trying to reposition my setup once again to no avail, I can only think that I need to change something in it. Maybe not, maybe it's a matter of doing something with the settings of my WXC-50, but the upgrade bug bit me after having a look at those mono amplifiers, but I need the science to justify spending that kind of money on my audio system just like that. If I had no power amplifier, I'd likely buy those Audiophonics long boys in a heartbeat.

Thank you for taking the time to read and hopefully share your thoughts with me.

Best,
H

 

[digitalfrost]

When listening at higher volumes, bass-heavy music tends to resonate (I hope this is the right word) in the room. It feels like instead of hearing the bass, I feel it. My point is that I'd like to be able to listen to music at higher volumes without having this problem, and after trying to reposition my setup once again to no avail, I can only think that I need to change something in it.

Your money would be better spend on a measuring mic and a mic stand, so you can find out what is going on. You are probably exciting room modes. This could be improved with EQ or by installing bass traps.

 

[Good Vibes]

Hi

The Lintons are big boys and would probably prefer a bit more space from the walls however, I think the issue with bass could be tamed with EQ. I can very highly recommend the WiiM Ultra or Pro Plus, for not only its EQ and room correction capabilities, but also for its overall functionality and user friendly software. They are well worth the money.

As the someone else mentioned, buying a mic like an Umik 1 and utilising REW in conjunction with EQ, is one of the best ways to clearly understand the issues and improve the sound.

 

[DVDdoug]

Right... A different amplifier won't change room resonances. Different speaker placement can make a difference (better, worse, or just different) but that's not always practical or possible and since the wavelength at 100Hz is 10 feet, and longer at inversely proportionally lower frequencies, you have to move them a LOT.

should I go for the 500 or the 250?

Your speakers are rated for up to 200W so there's no need for enough power to burn them up. (That's complicated because you can also fry a speaker with a lower-power amp if you push the amp into clipping/distortion but hopefully you'll turn it down when you hear distortion.)

 

[Miniyouuuu]

You need EQ to solve some frequency room gains.
The easiest way: buying a Wiim preamp with EQ and manually change each frequency by ear.
The advance way: buying a microphone and using REW to implement filters than “compensate” those gains in any DSP (Wiim, MiniDSP…).

Lintons play hard bass when located close to walls. You can fill the bass reflex to prevent some room gains but the better way is measuring and implementing EQ.

Low bass absortion is difficult and expensive. sub 100hz frequencies require huge width of absorbing materials.

Better and more power amplification help with the speed of transients, the amount of volume and some additional definition, but nothing to do with room gains resonation.

 

[JeremyFife]

Agree with other members, changing your amplifier won't help.

Sounds like room interactions: bass nodes being excited at the higher volumes.

Experiment with different speaker positions - cheapest option.
Ideally you would make some measurements to confirm the issue, and also so you have a baseline to see if changes really help.
EQ may help, room treatment could be expensive/complicated - for either, measurements first would be best.

Have you tried the REW room simulation? That's a free way to see the effect of different speaker positions. It's not bad.

 

[hszazg]

Hi all!

Apologies for the late reply and many thanks for the replies sharing your knowledge and insights.

I'll look into repositioning more the Lintons and doing more tests. I'll likely need to go for the microphone route and start taking measurements regardless but I'd like to try finding a better spot for my speakers.

I appreciate the honest insights and thank you for steering me off of spending more money.

Wishing everyone a good Sunday!

Best,
H