2. amps-preamps
  3. 134153-1398

Where do I start-amp or speakers ?

While in the midst of downsizing I sold all my gear: Krell monos, Thiel CS6’s, Thiel 2.4’s, EAD Powermaster 2000, Thiel MCS1, etc.
I am now left with a headphone system based on the entry level Schitt headphone amp, Freya preamp,& a very nice Vinyl NIrvana Thorens 125 turntable,
So how’s that working out for you, you ask? Not so well. I need speakers & amp!
 I went from 2900 sq ft. To 1600 sq ft; a 25x24 room to an 18 x 16 room (high 20-24 ft cathedral ceiling, though, at least.)
I’m now on the way to build a new system , one component at a time; Ceiling is 4K per unit. Every time I see a nice amp, then I see a fine pair of speakers. Back and forth. Do I start with an amp or with speakers? Input, input........
michaeljbrown
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bdp24's avatar
bdp24
9,781 posts
 

I’m with ct0517 on this one (and other ones. We both love and own old Quads). The speaker/room relationship is for me the most important consideration in a system, and the place to start. This is a matter of some disagreement, but there is far more difference in sound between speakers than amps in ways most important to me: truth of timbre, lack of vowel coloration, etc.

If a, say, planar speaker is chosen, different ones work better with certain kinds of amplifiers than with others. You’re not going to put a Sanders Magtech amp on the old Quad, but an Atma-Sphere S-30 or Music Reference RM-10 would be perfect. And neither of those is right for a pair of Maggies, but a Magtech is.

almarg's avatar
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almarg
9,670 posts
 
Ralph makes an excellent point, as usual.

FWIW, though, my own preference over the years has been to start with speakers but to choose speakers which provide versatility with respect to amplifier selection. Meaning that they have medium to high efficiency, benign impedance characteristics, and the ability to handle (but not require) relatively large amounts of power.

Also, JohnnyR makes a good point about the relatively low 22K input impedance of the Cary SA200.2. While I don’t know if that would be a problem for the Freya preamp, it could certainly be a constraint on preamp upgrades that may be considered in the future, especially in the case of many tube-based preamps.

In addition, I was surprised to see the following statement in the manual for that amp, which appears in the manual in bold-faced type:
CAUTION!
Do not under any circumstances connect the amplifier to a subwoofer through its high level (speaker) inputs. There is a potential of damaging the amplifier using this type of connection due to differences in grounding schemes used by some subwoofer manufacturers.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see such a statement in the manual for an amp that is either fully balanced or bridged, but I believe the SA200.2 is neither of those. Which makes me suspicious that its internal grounding scheme might be unusual in some way. Perhaps creating a susceptibility to hum in some or many applications, and I note that Johnny cautioned about the possibility of hum in his post.

Good luck. Regards,
-- Al


almarg's avatar
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almarg
9,670 posts
 
P.S. to my comments regarding the SA-200.2:

While the manual makes no mention of it being either fully balanced or bridged, even though the manual includes a fairly lengthy description of its design characteristics and features, I see the following statement in the description provided at its webpage:
Sharing our design goals of fully differential-balanced construction to eliminate many causes of noise, allowing more details of your music and movies to emerge, we have also “voiced” the amplifier to sound tube-like, with a sweet high end and a lush and involving midrange.  
So the reference to "fully differential-balanced construction" may account for the "Caution" statement I quoted in my previous post.  Although I also see that the amp can be readily modified into an SA-500.1, which is a much more powerful monoblock in which the channels are either bridged or paralleled (it's not quite clear which).  Together with the manual providing no indication of the amp being differentially balanced that leaves me uncertain as to the accuracy of the reference to "fully differential-balanced construction."

In any event, given also the low input impedance of the SA-200.2 it may be prudent to look elsewhere for an amp.

Regards,
-- Al
 
bluesy41
211 posts
 
IMHO - Begin with room size, listening levels, music preference and then decide on speakers. This will inform you on amplification options. I don’t agree with ever starting off with amp unless you know the above. You can back yourself into a corner really quick going the amp route first without doing the preliminary homework. As well as limit your speaker options. 
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