Need to find an amp

[wiak2]

I need an amp that can power a pair of Epos ELS-3. I'm willing to pay up to $200, and don't mind getting something used. So what should I look for in an amp?

Epos ELS-3
Description: Two-way, reflex-loaded, magnetically shielded, stand-mounted loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" (24mm) aluminum-dome, neodymium-magnet tweeter; 5" (130mm) polypropylene-cone woofer. Crossover frequency: 3kHz. Power handling: 100W. Frequency range: 65Hz-20kHz. Impedance: 4 ohms nominal. Sensitivity: 87dB/W/m.
Dimensions: 10.5" H (270mm) by 6.75" W (174mm) by 7.5" D (195mm). Weight: 10 lbs (4.5kg).
Finishes: light or dark cherry vinyl.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: 216a & b.

 

[Adam]

Welcome to the forum!

Two things come to mind to look for in an amp for those speakers.
1. You'll want an amp that can adequately and safely drive low impedance loads. Those speakers are 4 ohms nominal.
2. Depending on how loud you like to listen to music/movies, you'll want a decent amount of power because those have a moderately low sensitivity (87dB), which means that it takes more power to drive them loud.

Now, how much power is always open to debate here. I got a 200W/channel amp and am happy with how it works with my NHTs that have a similar sensitivity.

Others here will surely chime in. I'm not sure where the best places are to get a used amp, but I think that's your best bet given your budget and the requirements that I think exist.

Adam

 

[mazersteven]

Behringer A500

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Behringer-A500-500W-ReferenceClass-Studio-Power-Amplifier?sku=480780&src=3WWRWXGB&ZYXSEM=0

 

[wiak2]

That looks pretty good. Will I be able to use this if I want to upgrade to 5.1 later on?

 

[Adam]

Behringer A500

Thanks, Mazer. Wow, I did take too much time off from this forum. How could I forget that one?

 

[Adam]

Will I be able to use this if I want to upgrade to 5.1 later on?

Certainly. It would only power two of the speakers, but you could add on one or more additional amps for the other speakers.

 

[wiak2]

Certainly. It would only power two of the speakers, but you could add on one or more additional amps for the other speakers.

Awesome. Thanks a lot for your guys help!

 

[mazersteven]

Certainly. It would only power two of the speakers, but you could add on one or more additional amps for the other speakers.

Like this

 

[wiak2]

Like this

Woah, it may take me a while to get there. haha

Quick question:
I'd like to hook up a Audio-Technica AT-PL120 Professional Direct-Drive Turntable to this amp. Will the pre-amp in that turntable work alright?

 

[Adam]

I'd like to hook up a Audio-Technica AT-PL120 Professional Direct-Drive Turntable to this amp. Will the pre-amp in that turntable work alright?

Do you want to connect the turntable directly to the amp? Yeah, you can do that. It looks like you'll have to adjust the volume of the left and right speakers independently that way, but it shouldn't hurt anything.

 

[Adam]

Less power, but perhaps more convenient is an amp like this Dayton: http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/pshowdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-812

It's only 75W/channel into 4 ohms, but it has a single volume control.

 

[gus6464]

Honestly anything with over 50 watts can power the Epos ELS-3. Trust me on this as I used to use a pair for my 2ch system and they are still in my closet. While Epos says they are 4ohm speakers they just dip down to 6ohms and stay at 8ohm through most of the FR.

Here are the measurements done by stereophile.
http://www.stereophile.com/budgetcomponents/104epos/index4.html

Good choice of speakers btw

 

[wiak2]

Less power, but perhaps more convenient is an amp like this Dayton:

It's only 75W/channel into 4 ohms, but it has a single volume control.

That one may be better. Is there a chance of blowing out the ELS-3 speakers with the other amp?

 

[wiak2]

Honestly anything with over 50 watts can power the Epos ELS-3. Trust me on this as I used to use a pair for my 2ch system and they are still in my closet. While Epos says they are 4ohm speakers they just dip down to 6ohms and stay at 8ohm through most of the FR.

Here are the measurements done by stereophile.
http://www.stereophile.com/budgetcomponents/104epos/index4.html

Good choice of speakers btw

Thanks for the info. I read that review earlier when I was picking speakers.

On the Dayton APA150, it says "# 2 x 75 watts RMS power @ 4 ohms, 1 x 150 watts RMS bridged mono @ 8 ohms." Does that mean it only does two channels at 4 ohms? I'm confused.

 

[Adam]

The Dayton will run two 8-ohm speakers, but the max power output will be less than it will be for two 4-ohm speakers. If it's 75W/channel into 4 ohms, then it will be 37.5W/channel into 8 ohms - I'm pretty sure of that.

 

[Adam]

That one may be better. Is there a chance of blowing out the ELS-3 speakers with the other amp?

Assuming that the amp is linear with impedance (and that statement applies to my previous post on the power output of the other amp), then most likely - no. The Behringer is 230W/channel into 4 ohms, so it would likely be 115W/channel into 8 ohms. Most of the time speakers get blown by amps that are underpowered, not overpowered. Underpowered amps will clip, and that's bad for the speakers.

 

[Adam]

A gotta kick start my brain sometimes...sorry. When I first started into this thread, I assumed that you had a receiver or pre-amp and were looking for an outboard amp for those speakers. Based on your question about hooking the turntable up to it, perhaps you don't have a receiver or pre-amp.

So, if that's the case, check out the Onkyo 505 ($190 at Amazon.com). It, or any similarly priced receiver, might be exactly what you're looking for...or maybe not.

 

[wiak2]

A gotta kick start my brain sometimes...sorry. When I first started into this thread, I assumed that you had a receiver or pre-amp and were looking for an outboard amp for those speakers. Based on your question about hooking the turntable up to it, perhaps you don't have a receiver or pre-amp.

So, if that's the case, check out the Onkyo 505 ($190 at Amazon.com). It, or any similarly priced receiver, might be exactly what you're looking for...or maybe not.

Yeah actually, that may be the best idea. I was told by someone not to get a receiver, but that one looks pretty good. That's 75W at 8 ohms right?

 

[wiak2]

Assuming that the amp is linear with impedance (and that statement applies to my previous post on the power output of the other amp), then most likely - no. The Behringer is 230W/channel into 4 ohms, so it would likely be 115W/channel into 8 ohms. Most of the time speakers get blown by amps that are underpowered, not overpowered. Underpowered amps will clip, and that's bad for the speakers.

That makes sense since power equals current squared multiplied by resistance (or impedance). Finally my physics major coming to the rescue.

 

[Adam]

That's 75W at 8 ohms right?

Yep, sure is.