2. amps-preamps
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Picking an amplifier

I have the following speakers:
NHT 2.1 Front LR 200W @ 6ohms
NHT AC1 Center 150W @ 8 ohms
NHT SW2 Subwoofer 200W @ 8 ohms
The rear speakers are inconsequential (and boxed up) they might come out to play when I move to bigger digs.
I’ve been using NHTs 214s and 216s, (think lightbulbs) but the market is drying up. I remain unconvinced they are worth the shipping & costs to repair.
My (current) short list of replacement amps:
Outlaw Audio model 770 7 (7 channels)
Bryston 9B ST (5 channels) (2 years left on warranty)
Parasound 5125 (5 channels)
The budget is $1000, I have located sources for all three at or below $1000.
Any/all discussion of suitability, repair outlook, and peanut shells welcome. From a listening perspective, I've been fine with the NADs, but am priced out of the newer models. Nuts, I might even repair the NADs if I find the right person with the skills & tools.

shalmaneser
shalmaneser OP
62 posts
 
reading your post, I had to laugh at your 4x20AMPs supply. The house I'm in was designed to spec by the original owners. (wierd, wierd, wierd design choices) Whoever signed off (or actually did the work) on the electric didn't make enough runs to the circuit breaker box. The laser printer makes all the USP's yelp when it warms up. I won't go into what happens when the '50 powers up. We're moving soon - I'll sort out the next house. Not worth sorting this one out - they won't spot the idiotic electric in the inspections. I didn't buy the place, and wouldn't have for other reasons besides the electric. 
The Anthem 50 arrived yesterday. Fun stuff. Reading into the audio of the Z170-A motherboard reveals a few things. http://dlcdnet.asus.com/pub/ASUS/mb/LGA1151/Z170-A/E10611_Z170-A_UM_V2_WEB.pdf?_ga=2.132761034.53232...
It is a 192/24 digital output. I'm going to hook up the analogue outs and compare it to the TOSLINK to see if I care about the acoustic difference.
I came across a review (one of the NHT president's rebuttal to a 3rd party review) who pointed out that one's hearing often adapts to & accepts the acoustic signature if it's close enough to one's expectations. Essentially, blame your auditory & nervous system if they costs you six figure audiophile $$$. (You still hear dog whistles and you're 50 years old)
So far the Jriver has made the most difference. AFAICT, the jacks take either this:
https://www.monoprice.com/product?c_id=104&cp_id=10429&cs_id=1042902&p_id=7175&seq=1...
or these:
https://www.monoprice.com/product?c_id=104&cp_id=10429&cs_id=1042902&p_id=7174&seq=1...
I think the computer connections swing both ways electrically and the MOBO & drivers sort out whatever you plug in. Conceivably one could go directly to amps & use the computer gains for volume. 
auxinput
2,920 posts
 

those 1/8" audio outputs are stereo line outputs and will need something like this:

https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=666

or this:

https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=5598

See page 1-22 of your MOBO manual.  The lime/green jack outputs the left/right channels.  This is likely going to be lower than SoundBlaster audio quality (which is fine if you are just running basic computer speakers or don't care about audio quality).  I think that old Sony processor you have is still going to sound a whole lot better.

shalmaneser OP
62 posts
 
The Sony is breaking down - output channels cutting in/out, some of the menu functionality has disappeared (most recently test tone only allows on/off/RF/auto).  Its getting to be time to order some hardware. I may have one or two of those splitters you indicate in my cable hoard. Will test them. 

shalmaneser OP
62 posts
 
auxinput:Just had a DOH moment, you gave me a list of pre/pro's to go through. Scrambling to see if I want that  Marantz SR6011 that closes in a couple of hours. 
auxinput
2,920 posts
 

The Marantz SR6011 is a receiver. I would not recommend spending you money on a receiver since you bought that MC50 amp.  That's when I was recommending a "one size fits all" item for under $1,000.  Since you bought a nice MC50 multi-channel amp, a receiver would be a waste of money.

If your interested in the Marantz "warm" signature, I would recommend looking for the AV7702, or the AV7702mkii if you want the latest 4K HDCD 2.2 support. The processor is going to have much better power supply and analog stages. Plus it also has balanced XLR outputs for the MC50 amp. The receivers will only have RCA.

Both the Marantz AV7702 and the Yamaha CX-A5000 are going to be good choices for you. Marantz is going to have more of a warm sonic signature. The Yamaha will be more neutral sounding.

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