Jones99 Posted January 1, 2013 Posted January 1, 2013 (edited) Caught the Home Theatre bug again after hearing one of the best Home Theatre setups recently...... Wondering if anyone has heard the Simaudio MC-8 5 channel or Plinius Odeon 5 channel? Or can recommend any other suggestions for Home Theater amps or power amps for Home Theater? Thanks in advance. Edited January 1, 2013 by Jones99
Once was an audiophile Posted January 1, 2013 Posted January 1, 2013 Anthem Statement A5 Lexicon LX-5 Sunfire Signature Theta Dreadnaught
betty boop Posted January 1, 2013 Posted January 1, 2013 I'd throw the elektra theatre7/theatron or theatreHD in that lot as local option its right up there ! ps re the plinius odeon I read how on another forum how that suspectedly took and entire system out when went up in smoke. just something id be carefull about also check out the bryston, mcintosh, classe and parasound equivalents. all good amps comes down to speakers planing to drive really. and would be trying to demo what you can in your system to see what gains can be made vs whatever currently running.
Jones99 Posted January 1, 2013 Author Posted January 1, 2013 Mario thanks for the suggestions.Have you had any listening experience with the above amps? I cant say I have heard any of the amps and looking quickly at the specs I suspect the Theta Dreadnaught may struggle with the Dyns. The other amps will require more research.....
Jones99 Posted January 1, 2013 Author Posted January 1, 2013 [quote name= al' timestamp='1357045653' post='820646] I'd throw the elektra theatre7/theatron or theatreHD in that lot as local option its right up there ! ps re the plinius odeon I read how on another forum how that suspectedly took and entire system out when went up in smoke. just something id be carefull about also check out the bryston, mcintosh, classe and parasound equivalents. all good amps comes down to speakers planing to drive really. and would be trying to demo what you can in your system to see what gains can be made vs whatever currently running. Thanks for the suggestions on the amps and advice on the Pliniius.....very handy to know. Speakers I will be using are Dynaudio Evidence Temptations as fronts, Evidence Center and either Confidence C1 Mk11 as rears or Dynudio Sapphires. A bit of overkill but the advice I was given from the owner of the "Impressive Theatre System" I heard was match your center to your fronts above all else..............
Once was an audiophile Posted January 1, 2013 Posted January 1, 2013 Mario thanks for the suggestions.Have you had any listening experience with the above amps? I cant say I have heard any of the amps and looking quickly at the specs I suspect the Theta Dreadnaught may struggle with the Dyns. The other amps will require more research..... I heard on a ht setup lexicon system in myaree (shop closed) dynaudio speakers where in use Confidence Series i liked the setup very much but i haven't had much experience in ht so dont take my word for it.
Craigandkim Posted January 1, 2013 Posted January 1, 2013 You haven't mentioned budget $$$- but since you're in the upper brackets with the rest your equipment, I'll throw this suggestion at you. Make the Temptations sing with some real power- something along the lines of a Bryston 14B SST up front and PP300's for centre and rears alternatively a Krell system with a 402e for mains + a 3250e for the rest. The Dyns are power hungry so feed 'em something meaty.
Jones99 Posted January 1, 2013 Author Posted January 1, 2013 You haven't mentioned budget $$$- but since you're in the upper brackets with the rest your equipment, I'll throw this suggestion at you. Make the Temptations sing with some real power- something along the lines of a Bryston 14B SST up front and PP300's for centre and rears alternatively a Krell system with a 402e for mains + a 3250e for the rest. The Dyns are power hungry so feed 'em something meaty. I have owned a krell 3250 and Krell FPB400 cx which were driving confidence Dynaudio C2 fronts, SCX center, and C1 rears. The sound was good but the heat generated was horrendous. I went from the Kell FPB400cx to the Simaudio W-8. I liked the W8 sound compared to the krell and it did not act like a heater. I have not heard the evolution series but will look into them
Jones99 Posted January 1, 2013 Author Posted January 1, 2013 Anyone had any experience with Ayre MX-R mono's? Would they work well as Home Theater amps? Small compact ,respected and well reviewed. From past experience I have enjoyed the ayre sound.....
Craigandkim Posted January 2, 2013 Posted January 2, 2013 Nice.....any amp that can control & drive your speakers effectively will make great HT amps- taking into consideration your personal tastes. I think the more power you have on tap for the Dyns will help you create a more life like presentation and you wont be left wanting.
lucmor444 Posted January 2, 2013 Posted January 2, 2013 Perhaps somewhat (comparatively) less hi-end than your current components but potentially still of interest may be the new Datasat RA7300 multi channel amplifier. 1
Jones99 Posted January 2, 2013 Author Posted January 2, 2013 Datasat is on my radar. It's products look impressive indeed ...... However I am concerned that support from such niche comapnies will lag behind major players..... I will keep it in mind though. Have you heard the RA7300 ?? The price of the RA7300 alone compares to seperate power amps/monos (second hand and new).
lucmor444 Posted January 2, 2013 Posted January 2, 2013 I haven't heard the Datasat amps nor seen a report on how they sound. They have a strong pedigree however, developed by ATI. Datasat are new to consumer HT and their footprint will be limited here in Australia (perhaps no more than some other compnaies however). Other than warrantry/repair support I would expect that most amplifiers need little ongoing manufacturer support. Another option is AB Systems Cinema Series amplifiers- only up to 6 channel but can be customised to your specification (ie the type of components used internally).
WhakPak Posted January 2, 2013 Posted January 2, 2013 A Halcro MC-series amp is always worthy of consideration....used examples (MC20/50/70) can be found at a fraction of new pricing in the usual places... 1
Jones99 Posted January 2, 2013 Author Posted January 2, 2013 (edited) A Halcro MC-series amp is always worthy of consideration....used examples (MC20/50/70) can be found at a fraction of new pricing in the usual places... Not a big fan of class D amps and with the Halcro not made anymore I will leave it off my list. Thanks for the suggestion though. Edited January 2, 2013 by Jones99
betty boop Posted January 2, 2013 Posted January 2, 2013 if had a liking to the moon amps why not contact the importer. might be able to organise you a demo
Jones99 Posted January 2, 2013 Author Posted January 2, 2013 (edited) if had a liking to the moon amps why not contact the importer. might be able to organise you a demo The MC-8 is definitely a contender. It is on my short list. It has trickle down technology from the W-8 and its sound signature would be very close. I will look into an audition . From past experiences it is very difficult to arrange one when you live in W.A. I have also heard that the some owners have mentioned that the MC-8 has an audible hum when powered up ...... this would not be acceptaible to me. I will contact the distibutor to see if this is the case. The big mutlicahnnel HT amps provide a clean uncluttered choice but I can't help but feel I would get better perfomance from multiple power amps. Still undecided which route I will take...... Edited January 2, 2013 by Jones99
betty boop Posted January 2, 2013 Posted January 2, 2013 well I run a separate musical fidelity 2ch power for my mains for that reason leaving the multichannel amp for the rest. yeah wa might be a problem, simply hifi used to be the sim audio dealer there but now theyre no longer retailing not sure who is. re audible hum this can be due to the large torroidals many big multichannel amps run. its very hard to wind a large torroidal and not end up with sum hum main reason many pot the torroidals to hide that
Craigandkim Posted January 2, 2013 Posted January 2, 2013 Yep...with those mains I don't think any 5 multichannel amp will have enough grunt- to do them justice. I'd personally go with something with plenty of mustard.
gemini07 Posted January 2, 2013 Posted January 2, 2013 Try Boris at Absolute Hi End and ask him about the Audia flight gear and the Audia Flight one Integrated Amp and the matching 3.100 amp. You will lose nothing in terms of front end music quality and have ample power for your centre and rears. http://www.absolutehiend.com/product-types/amplifiers/audia-flight I used to have an all Dyn speaker system (82s, 122 CC and 52SEs) but found it a little harsh for the music I liked. Previous posts are right regarding the power DynAudios need, but the AF should be up to the job. Their gear is extremely revealing and tonally wonderful with the right speakers and source. PS What blu ray player will you be using? Cheers, G
Jones99 Posted January 2, 2013 Author Posted January 2, 2013 (edited) Try Boris at Absolute Hi End and ask him about the Audia flight gear and the Audia Flight one Integrated Amp and the matching 3.100 amp. You will lose nothing in terms of front end music quality and have ample power for your centre and rears. http://www.absolutehiend.com/product-types/amplifiers/audia-flight I used to have an all Dyn speaker system (82s, 122 CC and 52SEs) but found it a little harsh for the music I liked. Previous posts are right regarding the power DynAudios need, but the AF should be up to the job. Their gear is extremely revealing and tonally wonderful with the right speakers and source. PS What blu ray player will you be using? Cheers, G Thanks for the suggestions. Looking briefly at the AF gear on line it seems a little underpowered but I will investigate further. I have not yet researched what bluray player I will use until I sought out my amplification and rear speakers. Do you have a suggestion for the bluray player? Edited January 2, 2013 by Jones99
gemini07 Posted January 2, 2013 Posted January 2, 2013 Like many HT fans on this forum, Oppo seems to be the way to go, although many also like the new Cambridge. I am not sure how much, if any, visual difference there might be and I guess that sound will be based on taste. If you want premium stereo playback, the new Oppo 105 seems the way to go. Or you could go for a dedicated CD player as well. Don't be distracted by the power numbers with the AF gear. I have rarely turned my AF3 amp (75W) past the quarter way mark and it is more than adequate. I understand that the Dyns usually have a 86 dB sensitivity (at 4Ohms) but with my previous 82s I rarely had the amp past 1/3rd the volume.
Jones99 Posted January 2, 2013 Author Posted January 2, 2013 (edited) Like many HT fans on this forum, Oppo seems to be the way to go, although many also like the new Cambridge. I am not sure how much, if any, visual difference there might be and I guess that sound will be based on taste. If you want premium stereo playback, the new Oppo 105 seems the way to go. Or you could go for a dedicated CD player as well. Don't be distracted by the power numbers with the AF gear. I have rarely turned my AF3 amp (75W) past the quarter way mark and it is more than adequate. I understand that the Dyns usually have a 86 dB sensitivity (at 4Ohms) but with my previous 82s I rarely had the amp past 1/3rd the volume. I will look into the Oppo when I get to the Blu ray player I still have my main system which is dedicated 2 channel system ........so premium stereo playback in a Blu ray player is not important. As good as the Oppo may be I suspect i it will not compete against the Emm Labs combo for stereo playback. Edited January 3, 2013 by Jones99
tktran Posted January 4, 2013 Posted January 4, 2013 (edited) Despite being a big WWMTTMWW the Temptation is a moderate 4 ohm load dipping only to 3 ohms in bass region and sensitive at 91dB for 2.83V, so monoblocks are nice but not necessary, a good multichannel amp that delivers 100-400wpc/4ohm will be great. Having said that it's easy to have a bit of doubt creap in when you are using amplication that costs only 4 figures into speakers this good. I would go the Lab Gruppen 4 channel PLM1000Q which powers Dynaudio's ultimate M3XE. Edited January 4, 2013 by tktran
Jones99 Posted January 4, 2013 Author Posted January 4, 2013 I had never considered pro amplification. Class TD looks intersting and the power ratings are enormous and the measurments look impressive. Pricing of 9000 USD for 4 chanels at 2300w @ 4ohms ............ I will definitely look into this option if I dont go with the Ayre MX-R Mono's. Have you heard the Gruppen? Or do you know if there are any local dealers? I definitely agree that you dont need large wattage for Dyns. My favourite amp by a long shot that I currenlty use with my Masters has the smallest wattage rating of all the amps I have used in the past.(Soulution 710- 120w @ 8ohms) Monos do have the advanatge of being able to be placed close to the speakers reducing speaker cable lengths. I would much rather run long runs of XLRs then long speaker cables. Thanks for the Grupppen suggestion tktran
Recommended Posts