Pre/Amp Question with Klipsch Chorus

[porkfish]

I am looking to buy a receiver/amp/pre-amp to power my Klipsch Chorus speakers. This is basically my starting point and I want to add to them. I don't have a ton of money (about $500-1000, maybe a little more) to buy a receiver/amp-pre right now (i will buy used). But, I would like to start buying pieces that would eventually add up to something nice. What should my next move be - receiver, separates? I am looking at the NAD, Rotel, CA, Arcam, etc. gear. I don't want Onkyo, Sony or Yamaha type "Best Buy" gear. Give me something that is, at least, a step above these entry-level pieces. If they cost much more, then so be it. I am looking for something not only now but something with future value too. My space is moderate (20X15 or so). I will definitely add a center speaker and maybe a couple of rear speakers in the future. However, I have a couple of Polk bookshelf speakers to pair with these, but they are clearly inferior to my Klipsch. I will probably never have seven speakers so 7.1 is not important. I do watch a lot of movies and listen to XM on DTV, along w/CDs - probably 50/50 CD/DTV. I have a Toshiba 46" HDTV with 1080i that I will have hooked up with a DTV HDTV receiver. I don't know that much about all of this, but I have tried to give as many specs as I can so that hopefully somebody that knows a lot more than me can give me some suggestions for amplification and further speaker recommendations...

 

[Seth=L]

I would consider an Emotiva RPA-1 power amp (recently reviewed here) along with an RSP-1 preamp. With the 10% off and free shipping that Emotiva is offering now you may want to act quickly depending on your tastes, motivation, and the recommendations of other members here.

Emotiva

 

[Nick250]

What should my next move be - receiver, separates? I am looking at the NAD, Rotel, CA, Arcam, etc. gear. I don't want Onkyo, Sony or Yamaha type "Best Buy" gear. Give me something that is, at least, a step above these entry-level pieces. If they cost much more, then so be it.

Here go again, for the 1000th time. If you scroll down through the threads in the Amp/Receiver forum aka "do your homework" you will have your answer. A hint, make your next stop the "Room Acoustics Forum".

Nick

 

[avaserfi]

Here go again, for the 1000th time. If you scroll down through the threads in the Amp/Receiver forum aka "do your homework" you will have your answer. A hint, make your next stop the "Room Acoustics Forum".

Nick

Nick got it right. While more power sounds like a great thing and certainly won't hurt acoustics will give you the best bang for your buck making your whole system sound better if done right.

 

[jcPanny]

Emotiva

The Emotiva Ultra series are entry level seperates in your price range and you will get more power from the LPA-1 amp than most mid-fi receivers.

Otherwise, check audiogon for used gear.

 

[porkfish]

seth/jc, thanks for the suggestions! i hadn't looked at these before. however they have gotten some great reviews.

nick, i appreciate the suggestion of the acoustics forum. however i have done some "homework" and i didn't find anybody on here suggesting anything about pairings with my particular speakers. so it was really hard to piece together much information. my list of brands i threw out i actually picked up from doing research on this forum. i hadn't considered any of these before, other than rotel. my attempt at soliciting assistance was mostly to gain an understanding of the pros/cons of using a receiver or separates, and also some thoughts on different brands to use with my current equipment. so, sorry if i wasted your time with my repetitive question...

 

[Seth=L]

so, sorry if i wasted your time with my repetitive question...

Don't view it as a waste of time, we don't have to read everyone's posts.

 

[Nick250]

seth/jc, thanks for the suggestions! i hadn't looked at these before. however they have gotten some great reviews.

nick, i appreciate the suggestion of the acoustics forum. however i have done some "homework" and i didn't find anybody on here suggesting anything about pairings with my particular speakers. so it was really hard to piece together much information. my list of brands i threw out i actually picked up from doing research on this forum. i hadn't considered any of these before, other than rotel. my attempt at soliciting assistance was mostly to gain an understanding of the pros/cons of using a receiver or separates, and also some thoughts on different brands to use with my current equipment. so, sorry if i wasted your time with my repetitive question...

You did not waste my time, maybe the other way around by how I framed my response to you. Let me start over:

Sound quality is all about speaker choice and room acoustics. Different rooms will need different speaker placement and/or acoustical treatments. The technology for building amps that send a virtually transparent signal to your speakers is mature, straight forward, well understood and inexpensive. IMO the point of diminishing returns on receivers kicks in real hard around $500 to $600 or so. After than amplification choice should be based on the features you need and should have pre outs should you want to add amps down the road.

Does that help porkfish or do you still think I am full of it?

Nick

 

[Seth=L]

You did not waste my time, maybe the other way around by how I framed my response to you. Let me start over:

Sound quality is all about speaker choice and room acoustics. Different rooms will need different speaker placement and/or acoustical treatments. The technology for building amps that send a virtually transparent signal to your speakers is mature, straight forward, well understood and inexpensive. IMO the point of diminishing returns on receivers kicks in real hard around $500 to $600 or so. After than amplification choice should be based on the features you need and should have pre outs should you want to add amps down the road.

Does that help porkfish or do you still think I am full of it?

Nick

This is for the most part true. The only advantage to getting seperates would be the ability to handle low impedance drops, which the Klipsch could be prone to doing with low frequencies at higher output levels. Acoustic treatments and placement will still be much more effective than just adding power.

 

[wire]

I am looking to buy a receiver/amp/pre-amp to power my Klipsch Chorus speakers. This is basically my starting point and I want to add to them. I don't have a ton of money (about $500-1000, maybe a little more) to buy a receiver/amp-pre right now (i will buy used). But, I would like to start buying pieces that would eventually add up to something nice. What should my next move be - receiver, separates? I am looking at the NAD, Rotel, CA, Arcam, etc. gear. I don't want Onkyo, Sony or Yamaha type "Best Buy" gear. Give me something that is, at least, a step above these entry-level pieces. If they cost much more, then so be it. I am looking for something not only now but something with future value too. My space is moderate (20X15 or so). I will definitely add a center speaker and maybe a couple of rear speakers in the future. However, I have a couple of Polk bookshelf speakers to pair with these, but they are clearly inferior to my Klipsch. I will probably never have seven speakers so 7.1 is not important. I do watch a lot of movies and listen to XM on DTV, along w/CDs - probably 50/50 CD/DTV. I have a Toshiba 46" HDTV with 1080i that I will have hooked up with a DTV HDTV receiver. I don't know that much about all of this, but I have tried to give as many specs as I can so that hopefully somebody that knows a lot more than me can give me some suggestions for amplification and further speaker recommendations...

Hi Can the Klipcsh be bi amped ?
If so look into a Sunfire Power Amp , you can bi amp them so your Highs get a Class A sound ( smooth and nice ) and your Bass a Class B ( deep and tight ) sound . Its a lovely amp and will sound great bi amped .

The Sunfire Amp has 2 sets of speaker posts for each channel , 1 is voltage source and the other is current source .
If you use the Amp Bi amped , Voltage to drive the drivers and Current to drive the tweets , you get the best of both worlds .
If you know anything about Bob Carver , you know about his older Carver amps that where just T moded and thats all you got ( some ppl. liked it , some didn't , lack of Bass , but clear highs )
He still uses that same resistor in the new Sunfire Amps , but now you have a option on how you want the Amp to sound .
You can find these amps used for about 1k or under .
Now you just have to figure out a Pre option , i say go used .

 

[porkfish]

You did not waste my time, maybe the other way around by how I framed my response to you. Let me start over:

Sound quality is all about speaker choice and room acoustics. Different rooms will need different speaker placement and/or acoustical treatments. The technology for building amps that send a virtually transparent signal to your speakers is mature, straight forward, well understood and inexpensive. IMO the point of diminishing returns on receivers kicks in real hard around $500 to $600 or so. After than amplification choice should be based on the features you need and should have pre outs should you want to add amps down the road.

Does that help porkfish or do you still think I am full of it?

Nick

Nick,
Never said you were full of it dude. I was simply saying that I had done some research and haven't found enough info to make a decision, so I thought I would be more specific in asking. I was hoping I could get some responses from guys like yourself, seth and the others to help me narrow some things down. I know just enough about this stuff to get myself in trouble if I try to regurgitate any of it.
I'm unfortunately not in an acoustic friendly environment at this moment due to my current room availability. However I'm looking at the near future which is why I am throwing this out to get some help. I don't necessarily care about shaking my walls down. I know my speakers are very efficient and need less power to get more out of them. I was just looking for the "right" fit for my speakers, if there really is such a thing; and I know it is very subjective, to get the best sound possible for music and theater.
Your statement about dimishing returns is exactly the type of advice I'm after. I don't want to waste a lot of money if I can get virtually the same performance from a less expensive set-up. Maybe I'm too vague in my questioning and I don't really know what I want yet. But I think I may be leaning toward a reciever with pre-outs to get me started with the ability to expand later. Any favorites???

 

[AVRat]

Porky, eh eh , you're on the right track. The purchasing decision is a bit of a balancing act; better receiver or lesser receiver w/amp or pre/amp. With the Chorus, I'd push Nick's reco' up a notch solely because of the 15" woofs. Those puppies need a little more juice to get them pumping properly. Perhaps if Emotiva's feature set meets your needs would be the way to go.

 

[Nick250]

Rat, while it would not be my first choice the Emotive has been well received as a good amplification setup, but I really don't think one would hear improved sound. However I could be wrong, because I have not heard the setup. Here is a upgrade I really like.

Stay with the original $600 receiver recommendation and add an x sub for $199, set the speakers to small which will take a big load off the receiver. Now that will really make a significant improvement sound quality IMO and gives one a good bank for your buck. The options are limitless, but I think this is a solid one.

Nick