Behringer A500 Amplifier: Objective Test Results

[mike c]

24 CFM

http://search.digikey.com/scripts/DkSearch/dksus.dll?Detail?name=P9739-ND

it's mighty quiet - if you put some sort of cover and/or absorption materials near that amp/fan, im guessing you can kill the sound some more. try one

that's one sensitive SPL meter though ... 32db?

at the very least, the modded EP2500 should be quieter than your overhead fan or ACU

 

[Mitcon]

Hmm, will have to have a look and see where I can ge those fans (in Australia) and give the EP2500 some serious thought.

My SPL meter goes from 30dB - 130dB though I must admit I don't think it's extremely accurate but I use it more for adjusting levels so as long as it's constant is more of what I'm concerned with. That reading the room was quiet without and sound/TV noise so any music/movies would increase the NF prolly enough as you say to not even notice the fan. I don't think I would need to slow it down to be quieter and not sure you would want less airflow.

Well I guess I'm back to making a choice between the EP2500 and the Biema Q400, shame as I really liked the idea of no fan. Thank you for all the help Mike.

Cheers
Wayne

 

[mike c]

Hmm, will have to have a look and see where I can ge those fans (in Australia) and give the EP2500 some serious thought.

My SPL meter goes from 30dB - 130dB though I must admit I don't think it's extremely accurate but I use it more for adjusting levels so as long as it's constant is more of what I'm concerned with. That reading the room was quiet without and sound/TV noise so any music/movies would increase the NF prolly enough as you say to not even notice the fan. I don't think I would need to slow it down to be quieter and not sure you would want less airflow.

Well I guess I'm back to making a choice between the EP2500 and the Biema Q400, shame as I really liked the idea of no fan. Thank you for all the help Mike.

Cheers
Wayne

you're welcome!

i'm from the Philippines ... so getting the fans shouldn't be THAT hard for you

 

[Mika75]

Re High frequency issues

Hello all, I decided to upgrade to the A500 after a lot of reading which included this forum. I recently read here of the high frequency issues that some have had, & was wondering is it something that is very noticeable? should I be able to hear it? or maybe I just got lucky with a good one
I'm very impressed with it by the way, dead silent power supply ( upgraded from an Ebony 4 x 450 @ 4ohm which had 2 plate type psu's = noisy hum! ..hasn't been sold yet) & cannot pick the difference in playback.
It's middle of summer here in Aus, and when my room temps hover around 26C and the amp is at full tilt, it can't be touched ...although she hasn't missed a beat yet

 

[WmAx]

Hello all, I decided to upgrade to the A500 after a lot of reading which included this forum. I recently read here of the high frequency issues that some have had, & was wondering is it something that is very noticeable? should I be able to hear it? or maybe I just got lucky with a good one
I'm very impressed with it by the way, dead silent power supply ( upgraded from an Ebony 4 x 450 @ 4ohm which had 2 plate type psu's = noisy hum! ..hasn't been sold yet) & cannot pick the difference in playback.
It's middle of summer here in Aus, and when my room temps hover around 26C and the amp is at full tilt, it can't be touched ...although she hasn't missed a beat yet

It's no subtle thing! If you have the problem, it will show up as a little bit of static type sound on the edge of sharp transients like a piano solo. Play piano solo - if you don't hear a distinct static type noise after sharp key strikes - then your amp is fine.

-Chris

 

[Mika75]

Play piano solo - if you don't hear a distinct static type noise after sharp key strikes - then your amp is fine.
-Chris

Thks Chris, played Romeo & Juliet off the All the Road Running dvd today, piano solo at the start, sounded nice and clean as always ...looks like i got lucky
Another question regarding clipping lights, I do play up until i see the red blink momentarily (and did with the other amp i have aswell) music stays loud and clean, and feels as though there's plenty of headroom. How accurate are these indicators, would they just a subtle warning or should i never ever let the amp run at that level ?

ps. i just noticed this thread has had 121,084 views

 

[WmAx]

Thks Chris, played Romeo & Juliet off the All the Road Running dvd today, piano solo at the start, sounded nice and clean as always ...looks like i got lucky
Another question regarding clipping lights, I do play up until i see the red blink momentarily (and did with the other amp i have aswell) music stays loud and clean, and feels as though there's plenty of headroom. How accurate are these indicators, would they just a subtle warning or should i never ever let the amp run at that level ?

ps. i just noticed this thread has had 121,084 views

Actually, people clip more often than they think they do! The A500 puts out about 1.5-2x the power of the average HT receiver, so just imagine how much clipping you experience on those. It's okay for them to blink for a fraction of a second - that's normal at moderately high SPLs.

It's also why I use more like 1000 watts per stereo channel on my systems these days. I never see clipping lights these days.

-Chris

 

[onkyo606]

hi,
ive got a onkyo txsr 606 and a pair of cerwin vega ve 12's which are rated for 300 watts rms a peice. i have them hooked into the front speaker hookups and want to put more than 90 watts to each one so i dont any distortion. will the a500 hook up yo my 606 and if so do you think its sufficient power to do the job? if not any suggestions to go about this?
thanks

 

[markw]

hi,
ive got a onkyo txsr 606 and a pair of cerwin vega ve 12's which are rated for 300 watts rms a peice. i have them hooked into the front speaker hookups and want to put more than 90 watts to each one so i dont any distortion. will the a500 hook up yo my 606 and if so do you think its sufficient power to do the job? if not any suggestions to go about this?
thanks

Don't you already have this discussion underway in the thread you initiated on this? ...about two threads down?

 

[onkyo606]

yes i do but im new to this audioholics forums and thought that in this discussion there might be people with different opinions.

 

[markw]

Well, since you're new here, here's a friendly pointer.

yes i do but im new to this audioholics forums and thought that in this discussion there might be people with different opinions.

It's not polite to hijack someone else's thread, particularly when you have your own going strong right below it.

 

[Djizasse]

I was pondering on the A500 to power 2 Monitor Audio RS6.

I found this video in youtube. In this test the guy checks for distortion of a 1Khz sine wave. With the channel volume knob at full, everything is allright, but at less than full, distortion appears:
<object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" style="width:450px; height:366px;" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/RWj5CUl7rio">
<param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/RWj5CUl7rio" />
</object>

Is this the distortion noticed on piano notes? C6 almost corresponds to 1000Hz.


I've searched this thread for youtube references and found none.

 

[Phillyfan1138]

I had my amps gain all the way up and I heard the distortion on piano music. This occurred after several weeks of completely perfect playback. The only thing I changed was that I put my amp on top of my receiver. I thought this would be fine since my reciever is not actually powering any speakers. However, the receiver did get pretty hot, which presumably overheated the a500, causing the distortion. I have no proof of this, but I took it off the receiver and placed it in its original position away from other electronics and I do not hear the distortion anymore. I am however constantly afraid that it will come back.

I am listening in stereo mode to 6 ohm speakers. The amp is fed via rca from my yamaha 5670 receiver's pre-outs.

 

[lsiberian]

I had my amps gain all the way up and I heard the distortion on piano music. This occurred after several weeks of completely perfect playback. The only thing I changed was that I put my amp on top of my receiver. I thought this would be fine since my reciever is not actually powering any speakers. However, the receiver did get pretty hot, which presumably overheated the a500, causing the distortion. I have no proof of this, but I took it off the receiver and placed it in its original position away from other electronics and I do not hear the distortion anymore. I am however constantly afraid that it will come back.

I am listening in stereo mode to 6 ohm speakers. The amp is fed via rca from my yamaha 5670 receiver's pre-outs.

If you continue to fear. Then sell it.

 

[Phillyfan1138]

I wish, but what is the resale value of a problematic amp?

 

[Lordoftherings]

Any pictures of the A500?

Is this the longest thread in this "Amps, Pre/Pros & Receivers" section?

Also, is there any pictures of the Behringer A500 amplifier?
External (front & rear), plus internal?

I will greatly appreciate.

Bob

 

[Mika75]

Disassembled A500 amp by linux-works

my modification will have the volume controls (attenuators) hidden inside and set to '0db' or 'no attenuation'. I have not had any noise issues with the pots turned all the way up, and so I'll just leave them fixed at that position.

the LED board is not needed at all and can be removed with no harm to the amp or the sound quality.

the front panel will be a sheet of plastic or brushed aluminum that is cut to the exact size of the front (3.5" high by about 19" wide).

 

[Lordoftherings]

Ty.

Thanks Mika75, this is great. Plus a link too.

Was this picture at a certain page in this thread?

Bob

 

[Seth=L]

Thanks Mika75, this is great. Plus a link too.

Was this picture at a certain page in this thread?

Bob

page 16 if you are doing 10 posts per page.

 

[Lordoftherings]

Yeah, but...

page 16 if you are doing 10 posts per page.

Thank you Seth=L.

I did get to page 10, post #91, but I then decided to abort after seing the picture from that post.

* No arms intended, it's just a picture after all.

Bob