confused about what amp to pick

[chickenmanic]

Hi all,

Sorry if this has been covered before I couldn't find anything good about my circumstance.
Anyway, i'm getting alittle bit confused with some of the information i am finding on the internet while trying to pick a amp/receiver that will compliment the speakers i currently have.

Right now i currently use;
2x Audioline AL-50 bookshelf speakers which i'm unsure of there specs but i use when next to my computer
2x Audioline AL-1000 tower speakers, 175 watts and i think they are 8 ohms
2x Audioline AL-3212 tower speakers, 220 watts, 24 - 24 khz response, and maybe 8 ohms as well.

i believe i'ld be happy enough with these speakers for a fair few years, so i want to find a amp that would do the same without being destroyed or destroying these speakers whilst being able to pump them pretty loud for parties and what nots.

i'm not to particular about prices and would like a zone 2 function but mainly just want to get great sound from the amp in any task i give it.

 

[tyhjaarpa]

Budget would help a lot with suggestions. And are you planning to buy one amp to run 3 different stereo sets? Amp for each stereo set? Multichannel setup?

 

[chickenmanic]

i hope to stay under the $1000 dollar mark realistically but if theres something thats maybe a couple hundred more nd is more suited to the job i wouldnt mind jumping up to that.

i would like to run the 4 tower speakers in a semi sorround sound setup ( not full surround as i dont have a centre) but i would like the bookshelfs to run on a different channel so i can use those without the towers to keep the volume down for the neighbours or while im on my pc.

and lastly i just want the one amp really.
Hope that answered your questions.

 

[lsiberian]

Tower speakers are rarely 8 ohm. If it has two woofers it's 4ohm no matter what the specs say.

I'd just get a nice stereo receiver unless you want to do home theater down the line. HK makes a nice one that my father in law has been running for years. There is no need to spend 1k on anything.

 

[chickenmanic]

yer im just guessing from what people have told me and what soem of the other models say its really hard to find info on these speakers as they were australian speakers built about 2 decades ago which apparntly now make jensens,

I think these would do me for the home theatre unless i want to get front roof speakers in a proper setup or want to create a outdoor system later on when i have my own place so, but anyway thanks for the help ill defintly look at a HK then

 

[Seth=L]

Where did you get those speakers?

Edit: found em, they're white van specials. I wouldn't spend much money on a receiver for those.

Edit again: If you have a budget of $1000 I'd buy new speakers and a receiver, start over. White van specials are notorious for causing damage to equipment as they're not regulated by any sort of quality control or held to any truth in specifications. Those speakers could just as well be 2 ohms.

Pioneer sells some very good speakers for entry level prices and you could pair them with a $200-300 receiver.

 

[chickenmanic]

i bought them second hand from people downsizing and i mainly want something thats going to give these speakers justice and frankly work like there ment to.

they are also quite clear and not as bassie as some of the new systems i see around focus on, so its my preference from my experience i have around speakers(not much)

the current amp im usiing is a Kenwood KR-V6040 and its kind of falling apart and was never able to pump these speakers as loud as i liked

 

[markw]

Here's a copy of that receivers owners manual : http://manual.kenwood.com/files/B60-0763-00.pdf

Please note that it's quite powerful AND can run both A and B sets of speakers simultaneously. The former is very expensive and the latter is hard to find nowadays.

If volume level is your issue, your answer isn't more power. Doubling the power will have a barely audible effect. You need to look at more sensitive speakers for that.

 

[chickenmanic]

ok wow the specs i would love for it to be working properly after reading that but i cant turn mine up more then half way before it stops making any sound and same goes if i let it play close to as loud as it can for more then 15 mins else it cuts out again

thats mainly the issue i get which is why ive always thought of it as a amp issue

 

[Seth=L]

It cuts out because the speakers are a 4 letter word that begins with a capital "S". As I already said they are not regulated by anyone or anything, they're likely going to cause any amplifier you use aside from commercial sound reinforcement amplification that is basically load invariant, to shut down and eventually fail from abuse.

 

[Seth=L]

Here's a copy of that receivers owners manual : http://manual.kenwood.com/files/B60-0763-00.pdf

Please note that it's quite powerful AND can run both A and B sets of speakers simultaneously. The former is very expensive and the latter is hard to find nowadays.

If volume level is your issue, your answer isn't more power. Doubling the power will have a barely audible effect. You need to look at more sensitive speakers for that.

The "manufacturer" claims a 95dB efficiency rating, but that is a completely arbitrary number that was printed on the outside of the box along with everything else about these speakers.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I think a Denon X4000 for $800 would be good. Should be good for most applications. If not, you can always add external amps later.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

If Seth says it's white van, then it's what they are. I trust his opinion.
In other words: listen to reason - try to find someone else to sell them and believe their aussie heritage fairytale.
Buy some nice speakers and see how your Kentwood would shine.
Case in point hsu hb1 bookshelves

 

[Seth=L]

If Seth says it's white van, then it's what they are. I trust his opinion.
In other words: listen to reason - try to find someone else to sell them and believe their aussie heritage fairytale.
Buy some nice speakers and see how your Kentwood would shine.
Case in point hsu hb1 bookshelves

Yes, everyone else, please stop recommending AVRs. Just imagine what you would do if someone came to the forum and said, I have a bose acoustimass system, can you recommend a $1000 receiver for me? Would you just recommend a receiver, or would you recommend new speakers? Lets not bar the fact that these are worse than bose, these pose a risk to his current and future amplification equipment.

 

[tyhjaarpa]

Had to look these speakers up as well and they don't look too good. For 1k you can setup pretty nice stereo system to start with.

 

[KEW]

You don't know people here, or Seth, however, even as an absolute stranger, Seth's comments deserve at least some testing. Do you have any other speakers (or a friend, etc) try them with your amp and see if it cuts out like it does now. That will determine if the speakers are the source of your amp's problems.

Of course, we have no way to know the problem is the speakers, it may well be the amp or wiring, but you should investigate before buying an amp.

Also, do a close visual inspection of your wires as well as the terminals to make sure no stray wires are touching. My brother's cat had dug his claws into the speaker cables and it behaved just as yours is - works at low volume, but when you crank it, it cuts off. He only found out after replacing the amp that the first one was cutting out via the protection circuit.
Unfortunately he had worn out the protection circuit by the time he figured it out. The first amp worked better, but never would run full volume after the cables were replaced. The second amp is still running fine.

However, either way, you do have white van speakers. If you decide to keep them, hopefully they will not harm your other gear.
I think it is not so hard to determine the true worth of these speakers. Just weigh one of your towers. Then find a tower of similar dimension with similar drivers that you think of equivalent quality and see what the published weight is. A good speaker has heavy magnets for the drivers and a solid, braced cabinet to control resonance. You can't really cheat on weight (you probably can a little, but weight is typically not a concern for speakers, so why spend the extra money).

If you are here in the states, go to Best Buy and buy a pair of Pioneer BS-22 or FS-52 speakers (about $140/pr or $280/pr, respectively). BB has a 14 day return policy (be sure to keep all packaging, manuals, etc). Test your amp with them, and compare the sound quality.

 

[Mark of Cenla]

I agree! ^

Peace and goodwill.

 

[chickenmanic]

Sorry about my absence and late replys and yes i live in australia.

Kew, your a bloody good man.

Seth I would like to point out that i believe these speakers are a great sound for a small budget and producing a clear loud sound. i did not get them from a white van and i am the second owner of all these speakers. i paid about 100 Aussie dollars ($76 USD) and the more powerful ones where 150($114).
I know there is hardly any evidence on the web even locations in australia to state the origins of these speakers and some other ones around here.
the reasons why i had bought them was mainly because i knew they could go loud and produce a great sound that i liked.
one of the owners i had bought these speakers from stated he bought them from jb hi fi over a decade ago or so(cant 100% remember).
i understand you will probably take this with a grain of salt.

i have a mate who has some good amps and speakers ill test my entire system with by the weekend.
i have already tested the al-1000 at his before to double check that they were fine at higher sounds and reached the true limit of the bookshelf speakers.

the main reason i think its the amp at fault becaue over the course of the 3-6months i have had it these are the main issues i have had with it;

1 the volume control knob can be removed and the moving pin has about a 180 degrees of free play meaning you have to turn the know up half way if its on low before you get any kind of volume control.
2 the sound quality whilst at low is poop, as in you have really low were you can barely hear a thing then if you slowly turn it up a bit you can get some crackles and pops, turn it up abit more then you have a decent volume and doesnt play up any further.
3as i have said before if i turn it up past a certain point it will not produce any sound and if it stays at a high volume for a length of time it starts to periodically cut out(i think its cause it gets to hot.)
4 the left speaker on the B channel cuts out or doesn't even work most of the time.

these issues have been with it ever since i got it second hand as a deal with the first set of speakers.

and about the weight i did notice the AL-3212 to be a fair bit lighter then the AL-1000
the Al3212 weighs at 21.8 kilograms and as the al 1000 are harder to get to ill weigh them when i check them at my mates but should probably be around 25 to 30 kilograms, i have also noticed that they sound more bassie so the sub drivers could be heavier.

the wires look like there in good shape but i will go buy some proper 10 or 14 gauge wire instead of what i currently have to see if its any better

 

[KEW]

Sounds like you just need to use some contact cleaner on you Amp's volume knob!

Not the best video, but it is all I could find and still better than any written description.

 

[chickenmanic]

Thanks Kew, that video was great.
I definitely will give that a go and that should fix up that problem then thanks.