2. amps-preamps
  3. 971133848

Are Carver amps worth a damn?

i have a system which I use for both home theatre (70%) and for music. It is comprised of a Theta data basic transport, a Nakamashi cr-2 tape deck, a Marantz AV-550 preamp /tuner, a panasonic dvd player and a proscan vcr. For amplification I have been using 2 Carver TFM-35's and a TFM-15 for the surrounds. I have an unpowered sub so I get 1 channel of 250w to the front 3 and the sub, and 100wpc to the surrounds. For speakers I am using Definitives all the way around. Are the amps my current weak link in this system?
gsxer
gladstone
296 posts
 
No. They aren't.
bob_bundus
1,834 posts
 
I tried a Sunfire; no sale.
brutus5ebb
16 posts
 
regarding the silver 7's.
No I have never heard them,and if they are great then one
could use the analogy that "even a blind chicken gets a kernel of corn sometimes" overall I think most would agree
that Bob Carver cuts a lot of corners [typically on his power supplies] and his products leave a lot to be desired.
Ag insider logo xs@2x
hammy
176 posts
 
Carver makes gimmicks for Geeks. When I sold Hi-Fi the Carver amps didn't sound as good as NAD, much less the Naim gear we sold, But it was EXPENSIVE (For the Sound). The Bang & Olufsen gear had better value, which says a lot, since you pay for styling there. Other than the Silver 7's, the amps do not work well- especially on 15 amp circuits.
ohlala
1,234 posts
 
In your system, the pre, amp, and definitives are pretty level in quality. Changing the amps or the speakers, i think, would make sense. The pre and source units are good enough where they could hang around as you replace the amps and speakers. You could get a mid to early 1990s amp from a high end manufacturer which would be a big improvement. I had an NAD amp that i replaced with a classe audio 70 ($400 used), and found that the classe was much, much better, in every way for not much more money. Just an example.
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