Alternative for Emotiva XPA-2 Amp

[fmw]

Fair enough. I guess my point was directed more towards those who buy an $800 Emotiva. Other than getting the warranty and peace of mind of a new unit, is there anything that warrants the nearly double cost?

No. The difference in price is probably due to the number manufactured. Some could be due to the manufacturer's assessment of brand value.

Out of curiosity I looked up the specs for the Drivecore amps from Crown. 110 db S/N ratio, .05%THD and a .5db variance from a flat frequency response means that the amps have no audible distortions and won't change the sound. They will simply make the sound louder. There could be an issue with cooling fan noise but those can nearly always be disconnected for home audio applications. Perhaps the D amps don't even have fans. I don't know. What this tells me is that, in your shoes, I would buy one of these before the Emotiva or any other mentioned in this thread. Fortunately I don't need any more than my receiver provides so I don't have to make the decision.

 

[Irvrobinson]

No. The difference in price is probably due to the number manufactured. Some could be due to the manufacturer's assessment of brand value.

Out of curiosity I looked up the specs for the Drivecore amps from Crown. 110 db S/N ratio, .05%THD and a .5db variance from a flat frequency response means that the amps have no audible distortions and won't change the sound. They will simply make the sound louder. There could be an issue with cooling fan noise but those can nearly always be disconnected for home audio applications. Perhaps the D amps don't even have fans. I don't know. What this tells me is that, in your shoes, I would buy one of these before the Emotiva or any other mentioned in this thread. Fortunately I don't need any more than my receiver provides so I don't have to make the decision.

I'm not sure which specs you're looking at, but the DriveCore specs are not impressive. The best SNRs are -103db referenced to full power (the 1500 model is rated at -97db), which puts them in the -70db range at 1W. The frequency response at 1W is rated +0/-1db from 20-20KHz, and THD is rated at 0.5% and IMD at 0.3%. Except for the SNR spec none of them look like they'd be audible in the worst case, though if that -1db rating is at 20Hz they would make lousy subwoofer amps. I also suspect that the amps actually exceed these specs, since most Crown amps do. Nonetheless, much better performance is available, though perhaps not at those power levels for those prices. Personally, for home audio use that's probably going to be predominately under 1W most of the time, I'd go another way. And especially if I were selecting very sensitive speakers to pair with them, like horn-loaded models.

 

[jingusus]

Thanks for the thoughtful responses.

Jinjuku, are you suggesting that the emotiva amps are colored in some way? From reviews, they seem to be quite neutral. Have you had a chance to try the XPA-1? Is the A21 more transparent?

Peng - I'll check out the Bryston, though I don't mind the larger footprint (as evidenced by the fact that I'm considering the emotiva gear even though I live in a 4 floor walk up ). I guess I want as much bang for the buck in the USD 3500 to 4000 range for a preamp and power amp.

I have an audition with the P5/A21 next week, which I'm looking forward to.

 

[PENG]

Thanks for the thoughtful responses.

Jinjuku, are you suggesting that the emotiva amps are colored in some way? From reviews, they seem to be quite neutral. Have you had a chance to try the XPA-1? Is the A21 more transparent?

Peng - I'll check out the Bryston, though I don't mind the larger footprint (as evidenced by the fact that I'm considering the emotiva gear even though I live in a 4 floor walk up ). I guess I want as much bang for the buck in the USD 3500 to 4000 range for a preamp and power amp.

I have an audition with the P5/A21 next week, which I'm looking forward to.

If you are in HK, there are no shortages of low cost preamps or DAC/preamps that will sound just as good as the more expensive P5 or even more expensive preamps, but it also depends on the kind of inputs you need.

 

[jinjuku]

Thanks for the thoughtful responses.

Jinjuku, are you suggesting that the emotiva amps are colored in some way? From reviews, they seem to be quite neutral. Have you had a chance to try the XPA-1? Is the A21 more transparent?

How did you come to that question based on my post?

 

[jingusus]

If you are in HK, there are no shortages of low cost preamps or DAC/preamps that will sound just as good as the more expensive P5 or even more expensive preamps, but it also depends on the kind of inputs you need.

Any suggestions?

 

[jingusus]

How did you come to that question based on my post?

Sorry, maybe I misconstrued your statement: "Given the demographic necessities you should really go with the Parasound. I think well engineered Amps and Pre-amps should be transparent and not color the sound."

 

[PENG]

Any suggestions?

I have tried Opp HA-1, Cambridge Audio Dacmagic, Xduoo TA-1, Fiio X5, any one of them are as good as much more expensive pre pros and preamps (when used as preamp), well the Dacmagic may be slightly behind but the Xduoo and Fiio are really good. If you only play digital stuff don't waste money on a preamp. I have preamps that are hardly used now, may be a few times a year when I have time to use the turntable. I think full feature preamps are really a waste of money from sound quality stand point.