Receiver needed to power 4 ohm speakers

[maynardguy13]

Hello,
This is my first post. I thought some people here might be able to help me out. I have an ADS & B&W home theater system (7.1). The ADS speakers are 4 ohm. I was wondering, is the Onkyo TX-NR808 receiver able to power these 4 ohm speakers? Also, could anyone comment if there is a better receiver for around $500-$900 that can do the job?

Finally, should I skip the A/V Receiver idea and go with a separate amp? Will this increase the cost a lot?

Thanks
I would appreciate any help.

 

[sholling]

Onkyo advertises both the 708 and 808 as 4ohm certified. I've never run either with 4ohm speakers by I ran 4ohm Salks off my 906 for several months.

http://www.us.onkyo.com/model.cfm?m=TX-NR808&class=Receiver&p=f

 

[maynardguy13]

Thanks,
I'll look into the 906 and see if there are any real differences. Do you use the Impedance selector on the 906?

How do you like the sound of the Onkyo receivers. I am thinking about buying one but some people I've talked to say stay away from Onkyo, what are your experiences with them?

Thanks for the help.

 

[sholling]

There was an article that covered this. I really wouldn't worry about it. You can either power your speakers off of the 708 or 808 or use the receiver as a preamp for a heavy duty amp like an Emotiva.

 

[TLS Guy]

Hello,
This is my first post. I thought some people here might be able to help me out. I have an ADS & B&W home theater system (7.1). The ADS speakers are 4 ohm. I was wondering, is the Onkyo TX-NR808 receiver able to power these 4 ohm speakers? Also, could anyone comment if there is a better receiver for around $500-$900 that can do the job?

Finally, should I skip the A/V Receiver idea and go with a separate amp? Will this increase the cost a lot?

Thanks
I would appreciate any help.

It would be helpful if we knew the speaker models. No speaker is four or 8 ohm. There is always a curve. ADS are known to be tough loads, and an lot of B & W speakers do not do well with receivers.

A receiver may not blow with a four ohm load, but likely it will reduce power output to a four ohm load substantially.

So we need to know exactly what speakers you have.

 

[mtrycrafts]

... Do you use the Impedance selector on the 906?
....

Just leave the selector in the 8 Ohm rating.

 

[maynardguy13]

Here are the speakers I have

ADS CM6-Fronts
ADS CM5-Rear Surrounds
ADS MV15/S- Surrounds
B&W CC6 S2- Center Channel
B&W ASW 1000: 12'' Powered Subwoofer

If you could recommend a good av receiver to power these in the $500-$900 range that would be great.

Thanks for the help.

 

[PENG]

Here are the speakers I have

ADS CM6-Fronts
ADS CM5-Rear Surrounds
ADS MV15/S- Surrounds
B&W CC6 S2- Center Channel
B&W ASW 1000: 12'' Powered Subwoofer

If you could recommend a good av receiver to power these in the $500-$900 range that would be great.

Thanks for the help.

ADS speakers are likely going to be of the acoustic suspension design that typically have lower sensitivities. Are they small book shelf speakers with 6 to 7" bass and dome mid and tweeters? If so, they are not designed to play loud in a larger room anyway so most mid range receivers should work. I used to have a pair of 3 way book shelf Braun (ADS) that has relatively low sensitivity hence a tough load but again you can't push them with too much power either. For $900 you may be able to get yourself a nice Denon AVR-4310 that offers plenty of power.

 

[tcarcio]

Marantz recievers will power 4ohm speakers so you could check out some of their models. You can get a great deal on them at www.accessories4less.com

 

[maynardguy13]

Could the Onkyo TX-NR808 drive my speakers?

 

[maynardguy13]

Would you recommend the Denon AVR-4310 over the Onkyo TX-NR808?

 

[TLS Guy]

Could the Onkyo TX-NR808 drive my speakers?

It will be fine. Those are small bookshelves. The ADS speakers have fragile tweeters so you can't push them hard anyway.

The B & W center is also a small speaker that can not handle a lot of power. It is essentially 5 ohms by the way.

 

[PENG]

Would you recommend the Denon AVR-4310 over the Onkyo TX-NR808?

If you can live with HDMI 1.3a, absolutely. Other than 3D and a couple of very minor latest features, the 4310 is superior to the newer 4311. It has the ABT VRS (some claims the 4311 has but I still doubt it) and the 4310 has Burr Brown DAC, both are not insignificant features if you care.

The 4310 has enough power to blow your 4 ohm speakers without clipping.

 

[beyond 1000]

Maynardguy

I have a 906 and the thing's a beast. Power is virtually unlimited and superclean to boot.

 

[beyond 1000]

Could the Onkyo TX-NR808 drive my speakers?

Yes! Not a 906 but no slouch either. The 800 series has a noticeably better power supply than either of the 600 or 700 series. If you can get your hands on a 906 then go for it. The 906 is equal to the 5007 in power delivery. Both have the same toroidal power supply with 145w x 7.