Consumer Advisory:Emotiva

[AcuDefTechGuy]

As for Adcom, they recently decided(from now on) to offer only 2-channel amplifiers...

I spoke to the North American Adcom Rep about 2 months ago.

You can still buy a 200 x 5Ch amp from Adcom (GFA-5705). Street prices are probably well under $2K (MSRP $3K).

But I see nothing wrong with your current Adcom amp. 175W x 5Ch is usually more than enough for most cases. You could just add a smaller 2Ch Adcom amp (like GFA-555) for the other 2Ch, like for Atmos 5.1.2.

 

[lovinthehd]

If this were a hypothetical test question, in your experience, what do you think is the usual likely causes of this customs hold?

Don't know about hypothetical test questions as that's not relevant, it's not a test question. Customs holds are for various reasons, and sometimes they will simply not share the reason. It is also sometimes used as an excuse by various people in the logistics chain to explain delays that may even be non-customs related particularly (i.e. more on the freight side of things). Really impossible to know in this case. Nothing you can really do to expedite them in most cases either (other than provide specific info/documentation Customs may require).

 

[PhilCohen]

Early in the morning on January 30th, the $1999 refund appeared on my credit card, luckily before the next bill is printed.
I'm in the process of assembling a complete home theater system to hold in "museum grade condition"(I.E. not to be used unless equipment in my present-day system fails and becomes unrepairable). I started off by buying an Oppo UDP-205 (modified region-free) ordered the day after Oppo announced that it was exiting from the consumer audio/video business.And I sent my broken-down BDP-83 to Oppo for repair (which they did quite nicely) I now have 3 Oppo Blu-ray players(I also have a BDP-83 & BDP-105D, both modified region free). The idea was to protect my ability to play SACD & DVD-Audio discs in the future. But now my purchases are being made to save lots of money while my state is one of only 20 which does not have an internet tax, the idea being that this entire set of spare equipment will last for all of my remaining years (I'm 62). My next purchase was a spare A/V preamplifier. I already owned an Integra DHC 9.9, so I bought its present-day descendant, the Integra DRC R 1.1, but while it was the best choice at the $2500 price point, it has a serious shortcoming: its internet connection is not wireless, and my modem/router is in another part of my house. I don't know if there is external equipment that would enable me to overcome that problem. Then again, the Integra's internet features mostly concern music rental/streaming, which i have no interest in.
My next purchase in my "Museum grade" system will be either a 55" Sony OLED T.V. or a 5.1 speaker system by Klipsch. In my prsent day speaker system (JBL studio series, S312II in front and rear, S-Center & S120P subwoofer) I use full sized speakers in rear, since my surround sound interest is mainly with surround sound rock music remixes; not movie soundtracks, and I presently have a Panasonic 54" plasma set. If I buy the Klipsch speakers, I'd being going with their top "Reference Series" models, again with full sized speakers in the rear. It's nice to have the $1999 back in my hands, so I can consider my next purchase. No power amplifer for now. My ADCOM still works fine, and my experience with Emotiva has left a sour aftettaste in my mouth (not literally. It's an expression.)
I started my idea of holding things in "Museum Grade Condition" with PUMA sneakers. There my motive was different: to buy a spare pair of sneakers before the product goes "out of print", so I've got two pairs of sneakers in museum grade condition, probably never to be worn.

 

[snakeeyes]

Early in the morning on January 30th, the $1999 refund appeared on my credit card, luckily before the next bill is printed.
I'm in the process of assembling a complete home theater system to hold in "museum grade condition"(I.E. not to be used unless equipment in my present-day system fails and becomes unrepairable). I started off by buying an Oppo UDP-205 (modified region-free) ordered the day after Oppo announced that it was exiting from the consumer audio/video business.And I sent my broken-down BDP-83 to Oppo for repair (which they did quite nicely) I now have 3 Oppo Blu-ray players(I also have a BDP-83 & BDP-105D, both modified region free). The idea was to protect my ability to play SACD & DVD-Audio discs in the future. But now my purchases are being made to save lots of money while my state is one of only 20 which does not have an internet tax, the idea being that this entire set of spare equipment will last for all of my remaining years (I'm 62). My next purchase was a spare A/V preamplifier. I already owned an Integra DHC 9.9, so I bought its present-day descendant, the Integra DRC R 1.1, but while it was the best choice at the $2500 price point, it has a serious shortcoming: its internet connection is not wireless, and my modem/router is in another part of my house. I don't know if there is external equipment that would enable me to overcome that problem. Then again, the Integra's internet features mostly concern music rental/streaming, which i have no interest in.
My next purchase in my "Museum grade" system will be either a 55" Sony OLED T.V. or a 5.1 speaker system by Klipsch. In my prsent day speaker system (JBL studio series, S320II in front and rear, S-Center & S120P subwoofer) I use full sized speakers in rear, since my surround sound interest is mainly with surround sound rock music remixes; not movie soundtracks, and I presently have a Panasonic 54" plasma set. If I buy the Klipsch speakers, I'd being going with their top "Reference Series" models, again with full sized speakers in the rear. It's nice to have the $1999 back in my hands, so I can consider my next purchase. No power amplifer for now. My ADCOM still works fone, and my experience with Emotiva has left a sour aftettaste in my mouth (not literally. It's an expression.)
I started my idea of holding things in "Museum Grade Condition" with PUMA sneakers. There my motive was different: to buy a spare pair of sneakers before the product goes "out of print", so I've got two pairs of sneakers in museum grade condition, probably never to be worn.

Why not just put money in savings for “HT maintenance”?

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

this entire set of spare equipment will last for all of my remaining years

Yeah, with techs changing frequently, why buy "spare equipment"?

Instead of spending the money right now for spare equipment, just put the money into a "HT Account" to be used any time in the future. Then you can buy the latest greatest new equipment.

 

[PhilCohen]

Yeah, with techs changing frequently, why buy "spare equipment"?

Instead of spending the money right now for spare equipment, just put the money into a "HT Account" to be used any time in the future. Then you can buy the latest greatest new equipment.

In the end, I expanded my collection of equipment to be kept in "Museum Grade Condition" by purchasing some Klipsch speakers, which arrived yesterday. They are four RF-7III, a RC-64III center channel speaker and a R-115SW subwoofer. I would advise you to get assistance unpacking these. I unpacked them myself. The most exhausting equipment unpacking of my life, especially lifting the carton off (after opening the carton and turning it upside down). YouTube equipment reviewer "Youthman" made it look reasonably easy, but I must remind myself that he is much more muscular than i am.
Why full-sized speaker in the rear? Because my main surround sound interest is with "Classic Rock" 5.1 remixes (and also SACD's with vintage 4.0 quadraphonic mixes, where the rear speakers must be able to reproduce deep bass) and I am not so much into movies and movie soundtracks, though I wouldn't rule out getting a 7-channel power amp and two small sattelite speakers, to have 7.1 capability.
I intend to continue my interest in "Museum Grade" products, from Museum Grade sneakers....to Museum Grade Speakers!

 

[shadyJ]

In the end, I expanded my collection of equipment to be kept in "Museum Grade Condition" by purchasing some Klipsch speakers, which arrived yesterday. They are four RF-7III, a RC-64III center channel speaker and a R-115SW subwoofer. I would advise you to get assistance unpacking these. I unpacked them myself. The most exhausting equipment unpacking of my life, especially lifting the carton off (after opening the carton and turning it upside down). YouTube equipment reviewer "Youthman" made it look reasonably easy, but I must remind myself that he is much more muscular than i am.
Why full-sized speaker in the rear? Because my main surround sound interest is with "Classic Rock" 5.1 remixes (and also SACD's with vintage 4.0 quadraphonic mixes, where the rear speakers must be able to reproduce deep bass) and I am not so much into movies and movie soundtracks, though I wouldn't rule out getting a 7-channel power amp and two small sattelite speakers, to have 7.1 capability.
I intend to continue my interest in "Museum Grade" products, from Museum Grade sneakers....to Museum Grade Speakers!

That is a killer setup. One thing I would note is that I am not sure what a R-115SE could contribute to a setup like that. I hope you are using a really low crossover frequency, because the RF-7s will be so much more capable in midbass, and will have so much more to offer than that sub. As for the center speaker, the ultimate would have been another RF-7. For the RC-64 design, make sure you are sitting directly ahead of that center. It is bound to have some real nulls off to the sides.

 

[PhilCohen]

I will (and always do) sit directly ahead of the center channel speaker....exactly in the middle of a 14" x 14" room. It is the "sweet spot" ; the exact, ideal place to hear surround sound mixes as the engineers intended. I sit on the floor in the exact middle of a square room.

 

[-Jim-]

I appreciate your interest in "Classic Rock" 5.1 remixes. I went into a little different direction with Concert DVDs and later Blu-Ray Concert Disks. If you haven't tried your favorite artist on a Blu-Ray Concert Disk, give it a try. With the lossless codecs available these days, the results can be impressive.

 

[PhilCohen]

I do collect rock music on DVD-video & Blu-ray video(My Blu-ray/DVD players are modified "Code-Free" Oppo BDP-83 ,BDP-105D & UDP-205). I collect many formats. DVD-Video, DVD-Audio, Blu-Ray Video, Blu-Ray Audio, CD, SACD,Laserdisc and occasionally vinyl. I've still got both portable and home equipment for DAT & Minidisc, though the DAT portable no longer works. Though I don't have a music server, so I burn Hi-Rez downloads to disc(using a program called "Burn by Soundforge") as DVD-Audio, and I also save the original FLAC files to data discs [DVD-R or DVD+R/-DL] in the event that I someday buy a music server. As for vinyl, I've never not had a turntable, since I got my first one at age 10 (in 1966)
My newest Blu-ray concert video (which will arrive from Japan in a few days) is "The Rolling Stones-Voodoo Lounge in Japan" (originally a Japan-only Laserdisc 2-disc set, which I've got). The new Blu-ray release will have remixed audio and presumably better video quality(though upconverted from 525-line SD) than the Laserdisc, which was fairly grainy, with analog video "noise"(color snow). It's packaged with a 2-disc SHM-CD of the audio.

 

[shadyJ]

I will (and always do) sit directly ahead of the center channel speaker....exactly in the middle of a 14" x 14" room. It is the "sweet spot" ; the exact, ideal place to hear surround sound mixes as the engineers intended. I sit on the floor in the exact middle of a square room.

Keep in mind that the RF-7s are intended to be listened to with ears at not too great of an angle with respect to the tweeter. If you are listening on the floor at a good distance from the RF-7s, that should be fine, but if you are close, that would not be optimal.

 

[PhilCohen]

With my existing speakers(JBL studio series S312II, S-Center & S120PII), I set up the speakers with the front Left & Right speakers pointing straight forward, but the Rear Left & Right speakers angled inwards. It was a speaker set-up suggested in diagrams included with early 5.1 SACD's.

 

[highfigh]

Early in the morning on January 30th, the $1999 refund appeared on my credit card, luckily before the next bill is printed.
I'm in the process of assembling a complete home theater system to hold in "museum grade condition"(I.E. not to be used unless equipment in my present-day system fails and becomes unrepairable). I started off by buying an Oppo UDP-205 (modified region-free) ordered the day after Oppo announced that it was exiting from the consumer audio/video business.And I sent my broken-down BDP-83 to Oppo for repair (which they did quite nicely) I now have 3 Oppo Blu-ray players(I also have a BDP-83 & BDP-105D, both modified region free). The idea was to protect my ability to play SACD & DVD-Audio discs in the future. But now my purchases are being made to save lots of money while my state is one of only 20 which does not have an internet tax, the idea being that this entire set of spare equipment will last for all of my remaining years (I'm 62). My next purchase was a spare A/V preamplifier. I already owned an Integra DHC 9.9, so I bought its present-day descendant, the Integra DRC R 1.1, but while it was the best choice at the $2500 price point, it has a serious shortcoming: its internet connection is not wireless, and my modem/router is in another part of my house. I don't know if there is external equipment that would enable me to overcome that problem. Then again, the Integra's internet features mostly concern music rental/streaming, which i have no interest in.
My next purchase in my "Museum grade" system will be either a 55" Sony OLED T.V. or a 5.1 speaker system by Klipsch. In my prsent day speaker system (JBL studio series, S312II in front and rear, S-Center & S120P subwoofer) I use full sized speakers in rear, since my surround sound interest is mainly with surround sound rock music remixes; not movie soundtracks, and I presently have a Panasonic 54" plasma set. If I buy the Klipsch speakers, I'd being going with their top "Reference Series" models, again with full sized speakers in the rear. It's nice to have the $1999 back in my hands, so I can consider my next purchase. No power amplifer for now. My ADCOM still works fine, and my experience with Emotiva has left a sour aftettaste in my mouth (not literally. It's an expression.)
I started my idea of holding things in "Museum Grade Condition" with PUMA sneakers. There my motive was different: to buy a spare pair of sneakers before the product goes "out of print", so I've got two pairs of sneakers in museum grade condition, probably never to be worn.

Why would you buy equipment that will likely remain in the boxes until after the warranty runs out? You're tying up a lot of money. If you have enough that it doesn't impact your life in any way, congratulations but your comments about wanting the refund to hit the bank before the next bill tells me that's not the case. Also, it's likely that some of what you have bought or will buy would cost less in the future.

 

[PhilCohen]

Unlike most types of home entertainment equipment where circuitry, manufacturing & technology improvements mean that you're getting more for your money than ever before, speakers now cost much more (and give much less) than in the past. I know that price increases are coming april 1st for Klipsch's "Heritage" line(exact reproductions of vintage 1950's & 1960's models). Whether there will also be imminent price increases for the "Reference" line is unknown, but i couldn't risk it. As I may have explained many posts back, I'm also taking advantage of the fact that my state is (for now) 1 of only 19 states that does not have an internet tax (I.E. coercing merchants with no store, warehouse or sales office in the customer's state to collect tax). If I were to wait, and my state would opt to enact an internet tax, the sales tax on this speaker system would have been $670. A definite deterrent again the purchase of non-essential luxury goods. And add in possible price increases from Klipsch. Now was the time to act.
By the way, I'm not storing my museum grade equipment in the original boxes. I take them out of the box and confirm that they are visibly in perfect condition. And, in the case of the Oppo UDP-205 Blu-ray player, I did test it with all the disc formats that it supports. I also briefly connect the UDP-205 to take firmware updates. The very last product that I will buy towards my Museum Grade system will be a T.V., because that's the item most likely to become obsolete. My present T.V. is a 1080p Panasonic 54 inch Plasma set, which still works fine. I can't accomdate a set larger than 55 inch in my bedroom. Yes, I know that 8K is coming soon, but the general consensus is that 8K's "advantage" over 4K will only be visible on sets larger than 65" (indeed Sony's first 8K sets will be 85" & 95"). and of course, it is unlikely that there will be an 8K disc format. As for 4K, there is still no over the air 4K broadcast standard. 1080p looks fine on my 54" set.

 

[Cos]

The bottom line is that it is too risky to buy from manufacturers that only sell direct to the consumers. Better to buy only major brands where the consumer can select from many dealers (both brick & mortar & online dealers) and only buy if the product is in stock. For me, it's a case of "Live and Learn". I decided to stick with the amplifier that i already own(Adcom GFA-7700, 175 watts into 8 ohms x 5 channels). For me, the 6th and 7th chnnels of a 7 channel amplifier would have been something to have only for possible future use. My present-day speaker system is 5.1. So is the next speaker system that I am considering purchasing. Of course, I can always add a 6th & 7th speaker.
Competing amplifiers in the same price range as Emotiva's "XPA-7 Gen.3" have a higher price and much less wattage that Emotiva's 200 watts per channel. The Integra would have been $300 more and offered only 140 Watts per channel. Marantz would have been $400 more and offered only 150 watts per channel. I may as well stick with my Adcom GFA-7700. As for Adcom, they recently decided(from now on) to offer only 2-channel amplifiers, so buying a newer Adcom is not an option. I may as well have my $2000 back, and the option of upgrading other equipment in my home entertainment system, perhaps my television.

Emotiva does have a dealer channel, my dealer in Napereville carries them. I was actually talking about Emotiva with him now that he sells them and he has had significant success selling the product. I am still sticking with Parasound Halos though .

 

[Cos]

Yeah.......not to sound offensive to the OP and hopefully not to pour any salt into the "wounds", but I am curious in general why people would buy an Emotiva 200x7 amp for $2,000 when they could buy an ATI-made 200x7 amp for $1600?

Just curious.

Maybe I should be quiet. My big mouth gets me in trouble.

I have looked at Emotiva Amps in the past. With Gen 3, the only reasons I could even think of is weight and heat, that and those ugly handles in the front of ATI that you love (Yes I know they are optional)

 

[Alex2507]

I am curious in general why people would buy an Emotiva 200x7 amp for $2,000 when they could buy an ATI-made 200x7 amp for $1600?

Well, Emo is museum grade and Monoprice is K-Mart grade.

Duh.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I have looked at Emotiva Amps in the past. With Gen 3, the only reasons I could even think of is weight and heat, that and those ugly handles in the front of ATI that you love (Yes I know they are optional)

Yep.

I think the optional big metal handles for the ATI cost like $100/pair or close to it.

For heat, the ATI stays really cool. And that’s the class-A/B.

I’ve owned the big 7Ch Emotiva amp. Not very impressed with the quality compared to the ATI-Tank quality.

If the Monolith has the same quality built and cool-temp, then it will be better built than Emotiva.

Better built + better price.

And the new Monolith $4K HTP-1 pre-pro based on the $10K Datasat pre-pro only helps the Monolith brand.

$2K Emo amp vs $1,600 Monolith/ATI amp?
$5K Emo AVP vs $4K Monolith/ ATI AVP?

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Well, Emo is museum grade and Monoprice is K-Mart grade.

Duh.

Haha. Yes. “museum grade”.

Emo is definitely Cheese-grade and the Monolith is ATI-Tank-grade!

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

In the end, I expanded my collection of equipment to be kept in "Museum Grade Condition" by purchasing some Klipsch speakers, which arrived yesterday. They are four RF-7III, a RC-64III center channel speaker and a R-115SW subwoofer. I would advise you to get assistance unpacking these. I unpacked them myself. The most exhausting equipment unpacking of my life, especially lifting the carton off (after opening the carton and turning it upside down). YouTube equipment reviewer "Youthman" made it look reasonably easy, but I must remind myself that he is much more muscular than i am.
Why full-sized speaker in the rear? Because my main surround sound interest is with "Classic Rock" 5.1 remixes (and also SACD's with vintage 4.0 quadraphonic mixes, where the rear speakers must be able to reproduce deep bass) and I am not so much into movies and movie soundtracks, though I wouldn't rule out getting a 7-channel power amp and two small sattelite speakers, to have 7.1 capability.
I intend to continue my interest in "Museum Grade" products, from Museum Grade sneakers....to Museum Grade Speakers!

Museum Grade Full-size (49” x 18” x 14”) surround speakers for 5.1 music?

I have Museum Grade RBH SX-T2/R Reference Towers (62” x 20” x 13”) for 5.10.4 music (DTS-NeuralX).