LS50 + Amp Power

Dude, read the reviews of ls50’s.  
I gave sound advice.  Elac debuts or something similar are going to sound better than ls50’s with your avr.

I had LS50’s hooked to a B&K Reference amp and McCormack pre and they sounded awful with rock music.

There are many better options out there for the same or less $ as the ls50’s in regards to pairing well or having some type of synergy with your gear.

Theres quite a few people that believe the wireless versions sound better than the passives until you spend $10k on front end gear to drive the passives.


You’d be better offwith a pair of wireless ls50’s and a bluesound node to get around that horrible app ($1800 all in) or the ls50w metas at $2500.


Do you already have the LS50’s and I missed that?

b_limo -- ur right, sorry man. I didn’t point out earlier that I have the Ls50s now. I’ve run them through the pioneer for the last 4 years.

Truth is, ur right again -- the reviews tell the story. I’ve read most of them always wondering if my AVR was up to snuff. I tend to think that I’m missing something which is why I’m looking for a low cost solution to try things out. I was headed toward purchasing a 2 channel amp - like an emotiva, outlaw, etc.

Ideally, i’d like separates for pre / power. I thought a low cost solution would be to use the pre out on the pioneer and send to a more capable power amp. I also use this same setup for HT, so I’m a bit limited in my choices (and budget).

Anyway, that's everything. Apologies for the confusing initial post. Peace. :)

For a while I used LS50s with a Parasound A21 and was pleased with the sound. Then I tired them a lesser A23 and was less pleased with the sound. They seem sensitive to the amp that drives them.  Strangely though, I really liked the sound with vintage 20-watt Cary SE tube monoblocks.

Op, no worries at all my man.  What we need to di is find you the best 2 channel integrated around $1k to pair with your ls50’s

Maybe look at a Preowned Rogue Sphinx?  I got a Belles Aria for not much more than a Sphinx and its great too.  

Do you have a Dac yet?  Whats your main source?  Streaming Tidal, Amazon, Qobuz?  Ard you using a dedicated streamer?  A laptop?

Just asking to see what your source and dac situation look like.


Something from Rega, Creek, Hegel etc would be nice.

I had a Peachtree Nova 220se and they are pretty sweet for around $1k, a Nova 150 might be cool...

Just for reference too, I’d bet that the Rega IO at 50 watts is as strong as the Pioneer at 110 watts so keep in mind that peak horsepower doesn’t mean anything with power under the curve.  I’ve heard 75 watts sound as strong as 225 watts too so it depends on other things too, not just max wattage at a certain frequency for a short period of time.

I think reputable companies rate RMS continuous throughout the pass band with both channels driven simultaneously, not maximum wattage at a certain frequency for a short period of time.