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cmb5286

Junior Audioholic
alright im a total newb when it comes to this kind of thing
im looking to purchase some klipsch rf-82s
i have an onkyo receiver (tx-sr503)
its capable of 75w per channel
my question is: is this enough to drive these klipsch's?
everything ive read tells me no
what are my options?
should i get an amp or what?
i just have no idea
thanks for any help
 
adk highlander

adk highlander

Sith Lord
Klipsch speakers have a very high sensitivity (usually 92db) so you don't need alot of power to drive them. That does not mean you will not notice an amp when listening at near or reference volume. I have Klipsh speakers and I did notice quite a bit of difference in the dynamics of movie soundtracks (headroom) and the ability to drive all the speakers at high volume levels without any worry of clipping and damaging the speakers.

Does that model have pre outs to add an amp?
 
Last edited:
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cmb5286

Junior Audioholic
yeah it does have preamp outs
what are my choices for good amps under $800
ive heard emotiva or rotel bounce around these forums
another question ive seen xlr inputs on some amps i was looking at.
what are these for?
 
adk highlander

adk highlander

Sith Lord
I have an Emotiva amp and am very happy with it. I guess the question would be is how many channels to you want the amp to power?

Emotiva's RPA-1 is a great 2-channel for under 700 and they have the IPS-1 which is 150x7 for 899 on sale. The LPA-1 is on sale for 449 (5x125) and the new XPA-5 which will be 200x5 (call to reserve).

The xlr inputs are for specific prepro's that offer balanced outputs. The only Emotiva that has balanced inputs is the MPS-1. I have a prepro that has balanced outputs and I use XLR cables in my system. I doubt there are any sonic differences I just wanted to use those type of connections because I could:D.
 
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cmb5286

Junior Audioholic
actually i take that back
i just looked in the back and i only have a sub preout
so looks like i need either a new receiver with preouts or a preamp? am i right in my thinking?
what are some good quality brands to look out for in that department?
 
adk highlander

adk highlander

Sith Lord
Most mid level receivers will offer pre outs. Onkyo 805 is a gread model and may have enough power where you will not need the amp.

If you are really interested in the speakers I would get them first and see if you need to add more power. You may be just fine with the 503 for your room. How big is your room?
 
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cmb5286

Junior Audioholic
yeah i was either thinking the 705 or 805
i think i may just get the klipschs and wait and see
my room is about 20'x15' (apartment- living room)
is there any danger to underdriving speakers?
ive heard about clipping and whatnot and tinny sound
 
adk highlander

adk highlander

Sith Lord
I would not worry about underdriving the Klipsch's unless you are playing it VERY loud with a very dynamic soundtrack. That is a reasonable size room so I would go with the speakers first and wait until you think you need more power. Then when you move up with the other equipment you can decide if you want to go with separates and what other options you need (HDMI etc.)
 
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cmb5286

Junior Audioholic
thanks so much for your help
i know more now than the past month of research
 
F

fmw

Audioholic Ninja
20 wpc is plenty to drive speakers that sensitive. You don't need another amp.
 
mtrycrafts

mtrycrafts

Seriously, I have no life.
alright im a total newb when it comes to this kind of thing
im looking to purchase some klipsch rf-82s
i have an onkyo receiver (tx-sr503)
its capable of 75w per channel
my question is: is this enough to drive these klipsch's?
everything ive read tells me no
what are my options?
should i get an amp or what?
i just have no idea
thanks for any help
I will more than agree with fmw that you don't need any other external amps with this set of speakers. I checked. They are rated as 8 ohms and 98 dB spl 1w/1m.

Those are very sensitive speakers and 1 watt of power will drive your neighbors to call the police.:D Don't forget, you are in an apartment.;)
 
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cmb5286

Junior Audioholic
alright well i understand what you are saying mtrycrafts
i guess my question is : is underdriving detrimental to the speakers?
 
P

PENG

Audioholic Slumlord
I will more than agree with fmw that you don't need any other external amps with this set of speakers. I checked. They are rated as 8 ohms and 98 dB spl 1w/1m.

Those are very sensitive speakers and 1 watt of power will drive your neighbors to call the police.:D Don't forget, you are in an apartment.;)
I just read a review today on a 20Wx2 Luxman Class A integrated amp and the reviewer said the limited power may only be a problem for the COMBINATION of a large room, high bass signal and low sensitivity speakers. Funny we keep hearing people talking about the huge improvements they hear simply by adding a powerful amp, when there are all kinds of expensive high end low (relatively speaking) power amps that people are able to enjoy.

Back to the point, I would agree that despite the claims that some Klipsch models impedance could dip low, most mid end receivers should be able to drive their 92 dB/W/M or higher models in most 2000 to 3000 sq.ft homes.
 
mtrycrafts

mtrycrafts

Seriously, I have no life.
alright well i understand what you are saying mtrycrafts
i guess my question is : is underdriving detrimental to the speakers?
Under driving those speakers with a 75 watt amp? I don't think you will get that chance as it will be plenty loud well before then.

If you don't use it as a concert speaker, 130+ dB, you will not have any issues. You will have 117 dB at the at full power, not counting any dynamic peak capability of that amp. You will not be under driving them.
 
Seth=L

Seth=L

Audioholic Overlord
yeah i was either thinking the 705 or 805
i think i may just get the klipschs and wait and see
my room is about 20'x15' (apartment- living room)
is there any danger to underdriving speakers?
ive heard about clipping and whatnot and tinny sound
Well, well, well.:D


The Klipsch Reference 82's. Good speakers IMHO. If you ask me, you should get an amplifier for those speakers. They can sing quite well if powered correctly. I fear the TX-SR503 by itself, even in a room as small as yours, will be inadequate if you ever do want to play them at a decent level of output. I base this solely on impedance drive cabability and the TX-SR503 lacks in this department.

I used to own a TX-SR502 and it powered some PSB Century 600i floor standers. It struggled with those speakers because A.) they where not very efficient and B.) probably weren't the most even loaded speakers. I know the Klipsch are not very even loaded, and you may have some issues with harshness in the tweeters when they dip, and they dip low, in impedance.

You mention the TX-SR705 and TX-SR805. Both are good receivers, but was really sets them apart are the internal amplifiers. The TX-SR705 weighs less than 30 pounds and has THX Select certification (I don't believe one of the merits of this certification is 4 ohm compatibility). The TX-SR805 however is THX Ultra certified, and is stable into 4 ohm loads. It has substantial amounts of headroom with its oversized power supply. You also get a few benefits of enhanced connectivity with the TX-SR805 with some other niceties as well.

Now if you don't need HDMI features and just power and fidelity you can spend less than $400 and get the JVC RX-DP20 or RX-DP15 at Onecall. They are factory refurbished and come with a 90 day warranty I believe. I can personally atest to the power and fidelity of these receivers as I used to own the RX-DP9, which uses the same principle amplifier design as the other models I mentioned. I also think the JVCs look much better than most any receiver I have ever looked at. In terms of power they have benchtests to prove they are true power houses. They are stable in 4 ohm loads and can belt out their specified power rating for 2 channel with both channels operating. Like the TX-SR805, these are 50 pounders, so shipping will be a tad high, but you will know where that weight went when you are powering your speakers.:)

The face plate on the JVCs are mechanical two step drop down. They offer pretty much the full function of the remote under that door.

Ignore the counter and limited supply number, they keep resetting the timer and getting more units. That doesn't mean this deal will last forever, but dont' trust that once the time shown runs out your chance is gone.:)

http://www.ecost.com/Detail.aspx?edp=37273512

And the next one is not timed, and I would recommend buying the RX-DP20 over this one, but in the case the RX-DP20 would disappear, the RX-DP15 is just as capable in terms of power.:)

http://www.ecost.com/Detail.aspx?edp=38672988

Good luck with your system.:)
 
Seth=L

Seth=L

Audioholic Overlord
Under driving those speakers with a 75 watt amp? I don't think you will get that chance as it will be plenty loud well before then.

If you don't use it as a concert speaker, 130+ dB, you will not have any issues. You will have 117 dB at the at full power, not counting any dynamic peak capability of that amp. You will not be under driving them.
The impedance drops on these speakers can sound nasty even at lower output levels.:cool: I have heard it done, it just doesn't sound that great with low-fi gear behind it.

Now a 20 watt per channel tube amplifier is another story entirely, they can driver virtually any load and can be driven past their spec'd power for longer periods of time before sounding bad.:)
 
Seth=L

Seth=L

Audioholic Overlord
alright well i understand what you are saying mtrycrafts
i guess my question is : is underdriving detrimental to the speakers?
I wouldn't worry about damaging the speakers with the Onkyo, but I do think they will sound better with an amplifier that can handle the impedance swings those things can impose. I remember reading a benchtest that said they dropped as low as 3.2 consistantly (perhaps lower on shorter term basis) and that would be more dangerous for the receiver than the speakers most likely.
 
Seth=L

Seth=L

Audioholic Overlord
props ninja for your wisdom:D
Honestly I wish I was a Samurai (which strangely is a lower post count than Ninja) as Samurai are much more honorable IMO. But posting a lot has its price.:D

I apologize for the threadjack...
 
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