Some amplifier questions

Pgawan2b,

I respect your wife's grandfather's service and the sentimental value of his gift to her. To many a/v enthusiasts, however, anyone pairing $15k of electronics with a 42" tv screen is definitely guilty of some kind of offense. Personally, I'm somewhat offended just at the thought of it.

Sad but true,
Tim

Thanks for the kind words, Tim. He was part of a truly great generation.

Pagawan2b,

"Thanks for the kind words, Tim. He was part of a truly great generation."

You're welcome. I instinctively feel proud and grateful to the Americans of the WWII era, especially those who fought. They truly were a great generation; some have even called them the Greatest generation and I tend to agree with that.

Wemfan,

I completely understand if you go with the KEF LS50 spkrs on a nice pair of stands. I've read the reviews, too, and they are very highly recommended for both sq and value. If you do buy them, you may want to get a matching KEF center channel rather than position another LS50 on its side. I would call KEF, or a KEF dealer, and ask them for the best center spkr solution.
You also mentioned the Golden Ear Triton Seven towers as an option. These would also give you very good sq and value but, remember, the Sevens do not have built in subs/amplifiers like the Triton Threes do for $500 more. But you may find you don't require a sub in your smaller room, and lower volumes, with either the Golden Ears or the KEFs.

I don't think you can go wrong with either choice so it may be decided by which you consider the better looking or which fits your room best.

For a 3-ch amplifier, I think the Emotiva is a good match for both the Oppo 105 and the spkrs. In my opinion, if you want to look at amps that would be a possible step up in sq, I would look at a new or used Rotel, Wyred4 Sound, ClassD Audio, D-Sonic or Nuforce amp. Rotel offers both class A/B (same type as the Emotiva) and class D models. The others are all class D amps which are much more energy efficient and run cooler than the A/B amps. Which amp type sounds the best is debated on forum sites like Audiogon ad nauseum. I think class D sounds very good, when done right, and use a ClassD Audio 440CS unit as my main 2-channel amp with very good results. I use older used class A/B Adcom amps for my sub and surround channels. I'm considering replacing these 2 amps with a class D 4-ch amp soon, too, mainly to decrease electricity consumption, not for sq. reasons.

You can buy a new Emotiva XPA-3, like Dbphd mentioned, for $799 on Amazon. I also saw someone is selling one used on Audiogon now for $699 that he said is like new and hardly used.

Also I looked up KEF retailers in Oklahoma and saw there is one, called Bluespeed A/V in Tulsa. There may be others since I only looked up Tulsa on their 'retailer locator' at www.kef.com.

Best of luck,
Tim

Tim, You have my interest up for considering other amp options besides Emotiva. I looked up everything you suggested.

1. I couldn't find any prices on a 3 channel Rotel and no used ones.
2. Wyred 4 Sound has a great looking amp for $1775 but they are sold out of it
3.Class D Audio has a 4 channel amp the SDS-470 for $1275
4. D Sonic has a 3 channel amp for $1775
5. Nuforce didn't have anything but 8 channel amps on their site.
6. Parasound A31 There are two of them used on Audiogon

How would any of these amps compare to the Emotiva XPA-3 ? I could stretch my budget a bit if I was really getting better value for it. All opinions are very welcome. I don't know much about amps and of course want acquire something appropriate that will work well with the Oppo and Kef LS50 speakers.

Wemfan,

I think the Emotiva XPA-3 would be a good match for the system you're building. The more I see and learn about the KEF LS50 speakers, the more I like them as a good choice for your needs.

As far as improving on the Emotiva for sq and your interest in alternative options, While I was looking for stand options for your KEFs yesterday,I saw an expired ad from another Audiogon member for a very interesting solution for you: he was building and selling custom stands for the LS50s that had class D amps built into the stands.

The amps were Hypex Ncore 400 module based amps that are highly regarded class D kit amps from The Netherlands. These are a lower powered variation on the Hypex Ncore 1200 modules that are only available to high-end class D manufacturers that sell their completed amps for $10,000 plus per pair as monoblocks( such as Merrill Audio, Acoustic Imagery and Mola Mola). You can read all about these modules on Audiocircle's forum.

I sent an email to this member,secretriches, asking if he'd be willing to build a pair of these amp/stands for you but he has not responded as of today.

The only other class D amp you may want to check out is the Axiom ADA-1000 in 3 channel form for $1,100. But, unlike the other class D amps I mentioned, I cannot say with any degree of certainty that the Axiom will better the Emotiva in sq.

I am sure that the Hypex Ncore 400 based kit amps will better the Emotiva in sq. If secretriches does not respond, you could probably find someone else to build a 3-channel version for you or you could build one yourself. An easier solution may be to just contact Wyred4 Sound and inquire when their 3-ch amp will be in stock again. That amp would also better the Emotiva in sq.

I'll let you know if secretriches replies. His amp/stands are ideal for your situation but only if he still makes them and at a reasonable price.

Later,
Tim