ADS L1090 or HPM 100's

Johnny and Loomis

Thanks for your reponses, very helpful

My Marantz and the 1090s sound pretty sick. Image like a mofo is right. The music sounds like it's coming from the record player across the room. I experimented with the speaker placement a little bit and found the sweet spot and it's magical. I can see with these it's all volume and less eq, they do sound richer with the more juice you throw at it. They are a completely different animal then the L570s, there is no reason to run anything else with the 1090s. I can't imagine if they were bi-amped how good they would sound!

01-21-12: Ricplaya
...They (L-1090's) are a completely different animal then the L570s, there is no reason to run anything else with the 1090s. I can't imagine if they were bi-amped how good they would sound!

Except that it would take significant mods to bi-amp the L-1090's as they come with just a single pair of terminals. Better to spend the money on a good pair of speaker cables and a high current amp.

Also, since the columns are so narrow, it would be good to get a set of outriggers from Soundocity. I bought a pair of ADS's own optional wide-stance bases for the speakers, but that was in 1988 and I lived near their factory. They'd be very hard to find now. The wider stance was helpful so the outriggers should be even better.

I have more stupid questions.... Go figure!

Johnny appreciate all your expertise. I run 2270, so you think I need more power? I can just run the Marantz into a high powered amp, like a pre-amp?

I was thinking about the bennefits of a phono pre-amp, but your suggestion would eliminate that? I really like the warm phat tone of the Marantz. If I got another amp, wouldn't that really change the tone?

01-22-12: Ricplaya
I run (a Marantz) 2270, so you think I need more power? I can just run the Marantz into a high powered amp, like a pre-amp?

I was thinking about the bennefits of a phono pre-amp, but your suggestion would eliminate that? I really like the warm phat tone of the Marantz. If I got another amp, wouldn't that really change the tone?

If you like your Marantz, stick with it. The 2270 is a fairly hefty unit with enough power and current to drive the L-1090's well, and that generation of Marantz had good tuners and phono sections.

And yes, you can still use the Marantz as a tuner/preamp for a separate power amp if you'd like, because--unlike most receivers--the 2270 has pre-amp outputs on the back panel. At present they're jumpered to the "main in" (amplifier) section, but you can remove the jumpers and connect the "Pre-Out" to the inputs of a separate power amplifier if desired.

For now enjoy the features and tonal balance of the Marantz. It provides multiple upgrade paths should you later want for more power and/or bandwidth. I think it's a good idea to get used to your rig one component at a time, especially when dealing with vintage equipment. I anchor my 2-channel LP-based system with a 1981 Heathkit power amp. A few years ago I was using a 1980's Amber amp and preamp, so I'm familiar with putting together a system piece by piece with vintage equipment.