Amp Questoin.

[moreira85]

I am running a Yamaha HTR 5960 that i beleive has about 110 Watts per channel. If I was to add Adcom amp 100watts per channelto my front mains is that like downgrading? I guess my question is when you add an amp is it only the amp that is now powering your speakers and now the receiver does not send any watts to the speakers or do they both contribute to send more power.

If your receiver puts out 100watts per channel, whats the advantage of adding an amp that puts out 100 watts per channel or an amp that is 50 watts per channel?
appreciate the help.

 

[skizzerflake]

I am running a Yamaha HTR 5960 that i beleive has about 110 Watts per channel. If I was to add Adcom amp 100watts per channelto my front mains is that like downgrading? I guess my question is when you add an amp is it only the amp that is now powering your speakers and now the receiver does not send any watts to the speakers or do they both contribute to send more power.

If your receiver puts out 100watts per channel, whats the advantage of adding an amp that puts out 100 watts per channel or an amp that is 50 watts per channel?
appreciate the help.

Are you thinking of connecting the Yamaha speaker outputs to the Adcom? If so, don't...something bad will happen. If the Yamaha has a low level output for the front channels, you could plug them into the Adcom, but why? Sound wise, there isn't any sensible difference between 100 and 110 watts (up or down) and no benefit to plugging into another amp.

 

[moreira85]

no i would run the preouts from the receiver to the amp, my question is why do you add an amp that is 100 watts per channel when the receiver puts out 100watts per channel? what is the benefite of adding an amp?

 

[Nomo]

Adding that amp would not be a downgrade.
Look at it this way:
Regardless of what the specs on a receiver say, it does have the capability to deliver the rated watts to all channels simaltaneously. Although it may try. That's the idea behind an external amp to power the fronts; to relieve the receiver of the burden of spending power that could be used elsewhere.
That being said, your Yamaha is generally not lacking in power. Depending on the effeciency of your speakers, and the volume of your listening habits the extra power may be a waste of money.

 

[moreira85]

that makes sense, so it would take the load off the receiver, so if i have a yamaha receiver trying to deliver 100 watts to all channels, would adding an adcom amp that delivers 80 watts per channel drive the fronts to peak efficiency? i am just trying to find out if adding an amp is noticeable or beneficial.

 

[Nomo]

First of all running an amp through the pre-outs of the reciever takes the power of the amp section o the Yamaha out of the equation, the reciever will send no power to the front speakers. It doesn't seem like there is confusion on your end on that, but just to be clear.

Now you changed the rules. 80 Watts?

I personally, and again it depends on the speakers and the expected volumes, would not expect an 80 WPC amp to compare with the capability of your Yamaha.

This is of course my opinion.

 

[MDS]

i am just trying to find out if adding an amp is noticeable or beneficial.

Some people swear it will while others disagree, but here is the way to look at it to see for yourself if it would be a benefit or not.

Separate amps are designed to do one thing only - amplify. A receiver does lots of things - amplify, switch among all the sources coming into it, process the audio (pre-amp functions like decoding Dolby Digital), control the volume, and lots more. A receiver has one shared power supply for all the individual amplifiers and that is why the majority of them cannot drive all channels simultaneously to the rated power; ie if the Yamaha is rated at 100 wpc, each channel is capable of 100 watts, but not if all 5 or 7 are driven simultaneously.

Music will never require all channels to be driven simultaneously and the vast majority of the time you are only using a few watts. But as you turn the volume higher, the amps work harder and distortion levels increase. A separate amp will likely be able to be driven harder to higher volumes before the distortion becomes noticeable and using one from the pre-outs of the receiver frees up the receiver's amps to drive the other channels as has been said.

So...do you have a giant room and like to listen at extremely high volumes? If so, a separate amp may be of help. If you tend to listen at more moderate volumes, the separate amp will be supplying the same few watts as the receiver (although it may be a tad cleaner) and thus not working hard at all. It would be like driving a Ferrari at 50 mph - it's engine is hardly breaking a sweat.

The downside of separate amps, IMO, is extra cost, extra space and weight (they are heavy), increased cabling requirements and more difficulty with turning them all on (12 V triggers or power conditioners can do it though). For what? When it is only delivering a few watts for normal listening levels, it won't sound any different than your receiver. Some people seem to think that a 250 wpc amp makes their system that much better - but in reality they will never use anywhere near 250 wpc.

 

[Seth=L]

that makes sense, so it would take the load off the receiver, so if i have a yamaha receiver trying to deliver 100 watts to all channels, would adding an adcom amp that delivers 80 watts per channel drive the fronts to peak efficiency? i am just trying to find out if adding an amp is noticeable or beneficial.

The Adcom will have more dynamic power than the Yamaha. It will also drive more difficult loads that swing into maybe even 2 ohms. Even many 8 ohm speakers swing low in resistance at times and having the power to drive them will give you a more balanced sound at higher volumes. I wouldn't compare 100 Receiver watts to 100 Adcom watts, that would be like comparing apples to oranges. At stable volumes the amps should sound the same, as trasistor amps should all be nothing short of transparent if designed properly.

 

[moreira85]

thanks, i know there will be no input to the mains from the receiver if there is an amp powering them. I think you answered my question. I think i should stay away from the amp for now, and instead invest the money in a nice pair of Boston VR3 mains. I am really in need of new mains, my set up includes, Boston VR 910 center, Boston PV1000sub, Axiom QS8 surrounds, and my terrible white van denmark tower mains!!!! all powered by yamaha receiver.. thanks for help.

 

[Seth=L]

Some people swear it will while others disagree, but here is the way to look at it to see for yourself if it would be a benefit or not.

Separate amps are designed to do one thing only - amplify. A receiver does lots of things - amplify, switch among all the sources coming into it, process the audio (pre-amp functions like decoding Dolby Digital), control the volume, and lots more. A receiver has one shared power supply for all the individual amplifiers and that is why the majority of them cannot drive all channels simultaneously to the rated power; ie if the Yamaha is rated at 100 wpc, each channel is capable of 100 watts, but not if all 5 or 7 are driven simultaneously.

Music will never require all channels to be driven simultaneously and the vast majority of the time you are only using a few watts. But as you turn the volume higher, the amps work harder and distortion levels increase. A separate amp will likely be able to be driven harder to higher volumes before the distortion becomes noticeable and using one from the pre-outs of the receiver frees up the receiver's amps to drive the other channels as has been said.

So...do you have a giant room and like to listen at extremely high volumes? If so, a separate amp may be of help. If you tend to listen at more moderate volumes, the separate amp will be supplying the same few watts as the receiver (although it may be a tad cleaner) and thus not working hard at all. It would be like driving a Ferrari at 50 mph - it's engine is hardly breaking a sweat.

The downside of separate amps, IMO, is extra cost, extra space and weight (they are heavy), increased cabling requirements and more difficulty with turning them all on (12 V triggers or power conditioners can do it though). For what? When it is only delivering a few watts for normal listening levels, it won't sound any different than your receiver. Some people seem to think that a 250 wpc amp makes their system that much better - but in reality they will never use anywhere near 250 wpc.

I am glad I see things from this point of view now, you pretty much had to hit me over the head with a rock to believe it. Now I can save money and time that might have been wasted comparing sonically identical amplifiers.

 

[Seth=L]

thanks, i know there will be no input to the mains from the receiver if there is an amp powering them. I think you answered my question. I think i should stay away from the amp for now, and instead invest the money in a nice pair of Boston VR3 mains. I am really in need of new mains, my set up includes, Boston VR 910 center, Boston PV1000sub, Axiom QS8 surrounds, and my terrible white van denmark tower mains!!!! all powered by yamaha receiver.. thanks for help.

Ha, I am using a white van passive sub from Theater Innovations alongside an AR sub as temps untill I get my real sub fixed. I had an unfortunete accident and had to buy a new car instead of fixing my M&K.

Boston Acoustics, I believe they are fairly efficient. You may not need to get an amp anytime soon anyway. I definitely would not have spent money on an amplifier for the White vans speakers, even if they have low resistance.

 

[moreira85]

thanks everyone I learned a lot about amps, I liked to use my system for mainly home theater movies. any benefit in going with an amp that amplifies 5 channels, or do people typically amplify just the mains?

 

[highfihoney]

thanks everyone I learned a lot about amps, I liked to use my system for mainly home theater movies. any benefit in going with an amp that amplifies 5 channels, or do people typically amplify just the mains?

If after you get your new mains you decide you need more power then just add an external 2 channel amp for your mains,buying a 5 channel amp wont get you much as your rears are not using much power in the 1st place & the recievers amp should be able to power the center channel with ease.

 

[Nomo]

I started with a Yamaha RX-V1500 alone.
Then amplified my fronts with a 100WPC Onkyo M-282.
I feel I heard a slight improvement in sound. Worth the money spent? Probably.
Recently, with the help of an AH-Emo contest, I replaced the Onkyo with a Emotiva LPA-1 powering all channels.
Sound improvement? Honestly, with my current speakers, better, but nothing incredible.

 

[moverton]

thanks, i know there will be no input to the mains from the receiver if there is an amp powering them. I think you answered my question. I think i should stay away from the amp for now, and instead invest the money in a nice pair of Boston VR3 mains. I am really in need of new mains, my set up includes, Boston VR 910 center, Boston PV1000sub, Axiom QS8 surrounds, and my terrible white van denmark tower mains!!!! all powered by yamaha receiver.. thanks for help.

This is a good idea in general. You money is much better spent on upgrading the speakers. In general I would say spend about double on speakers than you do on receiver/amps. Just my general impression of the ROI curve. The most commmon mistake I see people make is buying $1200 receivers and hooking them up to a $500/pair speakers. They would be much better off reversing it.

 

[mtrycrafts]

I am running a Yamaha HTR 5960 that i beleive has about 110 Watts per channel. If I was to add Adcom amp 100watts per channelto my front mains is that like downgrading? I guess my question is when you add an amp is it only the amp that is now powering your speakers and now the receiver does not send any watts to the speakers or do they both contribute to send more power.

If your receiver puts out 100watts per channel, whats the advantage of adding an amp that puts out 100 watts per channel or an amp that is 50 watts per channel?
appreciate the help.

What problems or issues do you have right now with that Yam?
What speakers are you driving, their impedance and sensitivity? Your listening habits, volume, and room size?
You may not even have an issue here. If you are just curious, MDS explained it pretty well. Just remember though, you will not need full power to all the channels at the same instant and may be stressed if the power need to two happens to be at the same instant at full power.

 

[erviv]

My two cents worth. I have a Yamaha RXV2400, with Paradigm studio 60 fronts. I have recently added a Bryston 4BSST amplifier to the system. I purchased it only after trying one out on my system. Like other people have reported, it is best to try the equipment out first, to see if the change is significant. I had previously tried another amplifier and did not notice much difference. I did notice sufficient improvement with the Bryston amp, even at modest sound levels, for me to make the purchase. In terms of Home Theatre, there was also an overall improvement to the sound (centre, surround and rears are powered by the Yamaha) although less obvious, in my opinion, than strictly two channel sound.

 

[PENG]

I am running a Yamaha HTR 5960 that i beleive has about 110 Watts per channel. If I was to add Adcom amp 100watts per channelto my front mains is that like downgrading?

After reading the manual of the 5960 I would say that any 100WPC Adcom is an upgrade in terms of distortion level. The 5960's output is 115W for each channel at 1 kHz, 0.7% but will drop to 100W at 8 ohm 0.06%, may be less for 20 to 20,000 Hz. Its dynamic output may be equal or better than the 100WPC Adcom for 2 Ch music when the power supply only have to feed 2 channels. As others mentioned, it is better to work on the speakers first before worrying about an amp.

 

[moreira85]

Hey Thanks Everyone, I Love This Site, I Am Going To Forget The Amp For Now And Upgrade The Towers. I Am Running Yamaha Receiver To Boston Vr910 Center, Boston Pv1000 Sub, Axiom Qs8 Surrounds, Then For Mains I Have These Denmark Tower White Van Speakers!!!! I Think My Money Would Be Better Spent Buying The Boston Vr3's And Then In The Future I'll Add An Adcom Amp Or Do Some Demoing To See If I Notice A Difference In Taking The Stress Off The Receiver.

 

[majorloser]

Hey, you might find a good deal on a used amp at a pawn shop or on-line that you can play with in the future. The speakers are the MOST important part of any system. Spend the money where it counts then come back and tweak the system.

I got rid of a fairly expensive 7-channel amp and replaced it with seven inexpensive pro amps. And before that I had a receiver.

There's always room to feed that "upgraditis" hunger.