• WANTED: Happy members who like to discuss audio and other topics related to our interest. Desire to learn and share knowledge of science required. There are many reviews of audio hardware and expert members to help answer your questions. Click here to have your audio equipment measured for free!

Will this amp power my future speakers/headphones?

Gator Rican

Member
Joined
Jan 3, 2025
Messages
6
Likes
0
Currently own a Klipsch Pro Media 2.1 BT and looking to upgrade. Not knowing much about audio I spent the last 2 months pouring over this site. My idea was to keep it simple and get some powered speakers. I had pretty much settled on the Kanto Ora4s and adding a sub next year.

As I continued to read/learn it became clear that most of you prefer passives w/ an amp so I spent the last month researching that path. I've narrowed down to the below and need advice bc I have no idea about power/amperage/ohms and can my choice of amp power my future set up correctly. Trying to stay at or below $550.

This will be used in near-field listening (arms reach) and the amp will be connected via HDMI ARC to my monitor/tv LGC3 42". Debating whether to go directly from MacMini to the amp via USB-C or keeping it as is - Mac and PS5 to TV via HDMIs and let the TV send the audio out via ARC to the amp. I'm open for suggestions on best connection here. Of note my speakers will be anywhere from 3"- 8" from the wall.

Use case is me listening to all kinds of music via YouTube Music (75%), PS5 gaming (20%) and YT videos/Movies/TV shows (5%).

Here is where I stand today:
AMPs

Loxjie A40

SMSL RAW HA-1

SPEAKERS
Polk XT15


Kanto YU4 or 5

Neumi BS5

HEADPHONES
Philips SHP 9500


I want to keep the speakers around the size of these (no more than 8.5" in depth).

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
Last edited:
As I continued to read/learn it became clear that most of you prefer passives w/ an amp so I spent the last month researching that path.
Us? Here? I wouldn't say so. There's plenty of folks with active setups here, and for good reason. Particularly in the realm of smaller than usual speakers, they have some unique advantages.
Trying to stay at or below $550.
That's a workable budget but hardly what one would call luxurious... you can easily spend twice that on a legit nearfield setup and it would still be completely worth it. To make matters worse, the Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 BT may have its (arguably rather annoying) quirks but is not exactly a slouch sound-wise.
This will be used in near-field listening (arms reach) and the amp will be connected via HDMI ARC to my monitor/tv LGC3 42". Debating whether to go directly from MacMini to the amp via USB-C or keeping it as is - Mac and PS5 to TV via HDMIs and let the TV send the audio out via ARC to the amp.
That part is not making things any easier. You'll probably want to invest in an HDMI audio extractor with a digital (usually Toslink) output.

I might consider something like a pair of Kali MM-6, the "multimedia" version of the LP-6.

Not sure how to accommodate the cans though. Maybe go for an SMSL DL100 with dual LP6v2s? Might slightly break the budget but you'd have the HDMI ARC and headphone output taken care of.
 
Last edited:
As I continued to read/learn it became clear that most of you prefer passives w/ an amp
Not true. Depends on the day and the member that you chat the result may vary. Your price range is tight.
 
For a budget passive setup, I'd just get a Wiim Amp and some refurb Polk ES15s or refurb KEF Q150s. You can save some money on the Wiim Amp if you wait for refurbs to pop up on their ebay page. For your headphone amp needs, you could use any headphone dongle or desktop unit that takes USB in and connect it to the Wiim Amp.

You could certainly do an active setup, though, and not many here would find any fault with that. For near-field, many would argue in favor of it. You may need an external DAC to get the inputs you need, though. And may have to settle for using TOSLINK rather than HDMI ARC, but for 2-channel that's no problem.

I might recommend the Kali Audio LP-UNF in combination with a Wiim Pro Plus, for example.
 
Last edited:
Thank you guys. From my set up I view the HDMI ARC as a must since I'm using a TV as monitor (LGC3). Would the amps I listed not take care of me? Both have headphone out and HDMI ins. (Loxjie A40 or SMSL RAW HA-1). I looked in to the WIIMs but they are a bit too thick to fit under my monitor/tv which only has a clearance of 2".

I never considered getting an active set up and adding a DAC that would give me the connections I need. Where in the chain of connections would the DAC reside in an active set up and wouldn't that chain change the sound from analog to digital (or vice versa) a couple (several?) times? Is that ok? Any degradation?
 
I never considered getting an active set up and adding a DAC that would give me the connections I need. Where in the chain of connections would the DAC reside in an active set up and wouldn't that chain change the sound from analog to digital (or vice versa) a couple (several?) times? Is that ok? Any degradation?
As long as each individual DAC/ADC has inaudible THD+N, having a few them in a chain won't cause any audible problem.

The DAC would simply sit in between the sources and the active speakers.
 
Back
Top Bottom