View Full Version : Amp recommendations for Sierra's
Looking for amp recommendations for my 3 (L-R-C) Sierra's plus my 4 (side & rear surrounds) CMT-170SEs.
I'd like to get a 7 channel amp and be done with it versus several amps.
Processor will be the Denon AVP-A1HDCI so balanced inputs would be a big plus.
thx
geoh
dallas
06-13-2008, 05:13 PM
Looking for amp recommendations for my 3 (L-R-C) Sierra's plus my 4 (side & rear surrounds) CMT-170SEs.
I'd like to get a 7 channel amp and be done with it versus several amps.
Processor will be the Denon AVP-A1HDCI so balanced inputs would be a big plus.
thx
geoh
Just my two cents, there's seems to be a lot of push for balanced jacks in high end devices nowadays. To me it seems to be a bit of snakeoil, as it costs more for the chips (and cables) but there really is no measurable benefit unless you are doing very long cable runs, like housing the amp in another room. And something people don't realize, is balanced signal aren't totally immune to interence, just more resistant than unbalanced.
Just my two cents, there's seems to be a lot of push for balanced jacks in high end devices nowadays. To me it seems to be a bit of snakeoil, as it costs more for the chips (and cables) but there really is no measurable benefit unless you are doing very long cable runs, like housing the amp in another room. And something people don't realize, is balanced signal aren't totally immune to interence, just more resistant than unbalanced.
Very true, at least in my experiences.......
That being said, if you got it why not use it.
I'm not getting much feedback yet:(
Maybe I should rephrase the question,
What are you fellow Sierra owners using to drive yours?
The Sierra's aren't very efficent, comparably speaking, but at the same time they aren't that difficult to drive and I'd like to have enough amp for the Sierra-2s when/if they come out:)
geoh
merrymaid520
06-14-2008, 03:14 PM
Geoh,
I am no expert, but I have demoed B&K, ICE powered NHT amps, & a proceed amp all on my sierras over the last few months.
I kept the proceed amp3 which is 150w x 3. This amp is extemely flat / neutral sounding and is a great match with my sierras. You can get a used 5 ch & a 2ch version or just get the 3 ch version and whatever for the rears since they are far less critical. I remind you though, that differences in amplification are very difficult to hear compared to 2 different speakers types.
Good luck!
Brandon
Geoh,
I am no expert, but I have demoed B&K, ICE powered NHT amps, & a proceed amp all on my sierras over the last few months.
I kept the proceed amp3 which is 150w x 3. This amp is extemely flat / neutral sounding and is a great match with my sierras. You can get a used 5 ch & a 2ch version or just get the 3 ch version and whatever for the rears since they are far less critical. I remind you though, that differences in amplification are very difficult to hear compared to 2 different speakers types.
Good luck!
Brandon
You're right.... hearing differences in amps is best left to the golden ear fellows, which I'm not a member of:)
Speakers on the other hand all have a distinct character that when compared directly against each other (A/B'd) are easy to discern.
This is how I came about being a Sierra owner:)
What I'm looking for in an amp is first,
enough power to drive the Sierra's with room to spare,
the amp must be as quite as possible... dead quite is best obviously,
the amp should NOT second as a room heater,
and since I've already over-extended myself with the Denon AVP,
the amp should be as reasonable as possible:)
geoh
curtis
06-14-2008, 04:11 PM
I am very happy with the IcePower 1000ASP based amp.
My center is driven by one channel of an ATI 1505, and it does not sound like it is left behind during movies or multichannel music.
I am very happy with the IcePower 1000ASP based amp.
My center is driven by one channel of an ATI 1505, and it does not sound like it is left behind during movies or multichannel music.
I'm looking long and hard at the D-Sonic Magnum 2500-7:D
If I had to decide right now that would be it!
geoh
DaveHo
06-14-2008, 06:03 PM
Acurus A200x3. I owned one of these previously. I now have the Aragon 8008x3. The Acurus was 90% of what the Aragon is. Biggest difference, the Aragon doubles as a space heater, the Acurus did not. Both Mondial products & readily available on the used market.
Nevermind, your looking for 7 channel, this is a 3.
-Dave
I'm running a Boston Acoustics A7200 7 channel amp, which is a Sherwood Newcastle A965 clone AFAIK.
It has NP at all driving my Sierras, and IMO it definitely sounds better than my Yamaha HT-5550 I used to drive them with.
cyberbri
06-25-2008, 02:58 PM
Lots of great deals on used gear at Audiogon.com.
dallas
06-25-2008, 03:07 PM
A number of us use Emotiva Amps also with good results. I don't think anyone hear has complained, to my knowledge.
I'm using the emotiva, but have never personally compared amps in this range.
drewface
06-25-2008, 04:51 PM
A number of us use Emotiva Amps also with good results. I don't think anyone hear has complained, to my knowledge.
I'm using the emotiva, but have never personally compared amps in this range.i've got an emotiva amp, but no sierras. i'm very happy with the amp paired with my 340SEs and 170SEs, though.
jrhooper1963
06-25-2008, 07:50 PM
I am driving my front Sierras and HTM surrounds with an Emotiva LPA1. It features 5 channels at 125 watts per, and 2 additional channels at 50 watts. The amp is quiet as a mouse, and does NOT get hot. My marantz receiver, while it does not get hot, gets much warmer than the emotiva. I am pleased with the amp, which I purchased as flawless B stock for $399. However, if I could do it all over again, I would have went with a 200 watt amp. My receiver is 90 watts per channel, and I found out after I bought it, that you have to double your wattage to gain three decibels. If I could do it over again, I would have probably bought a sunfire amp. I hear they sound a little better than emotiva. They also are not as heavy, and take up less rack space.
Robert7
07-12-2008, 10:40 AM
I would consider the Cary Audio Cinema 7 @200/channel and extremely musical. Should go perfectly with such a quality pre. good luck and have fun shopping.
dmitchell
11-05-2008, 08:20 AM
I've driven my Sierras with a couple of different Bryston amps. A 3B and a pair of PowerPac 120 monoblocks. They sound great... then again, almost anything sounds good when driven by Brystons.
anyone have experience with the sherwood a965? I am thinking of picking one up, or getting an LPA-1 for about half the price. not sure what to do.
anyone have experience with the sherwood a965? I am thinking of picking one up, or getting an LPA-1 for about half the price. not sure what to do.
See above.
As I stated, I have the Boston Acoustics A7200 amp, which is a clone(made by Sherwood- relabeled) of the A965.
No issues at all driving 3 Sierras and 2 170 SE's( 2 unused channels)
Solid amp, doesn't get hot, no noise, and no problems with mine, and I beat the crap out of it.
I Got mine used(in Mint cond.) for <700(a year or so ago), and I am very happy with it.
Don't know anything about the LPA amps.
GirgleMirt
11-07-2008, 05:43 PM
I've driven my Sierras with a couple of different Bryston amps. A 3B and a pair of PowerPac 120 monoblocks. They sound great... then again, almost anything sounds good when driven by Brystons.
You should have gone with B05E then and saved some $$$!
Seriously, how much difference did you find the amps make?
dmitchell
11-07-2008, 06:47 PM
"Seriously, how much difference did you find the amps make?"
Over what? Using a regular A/V receiver? Using the Brystons gives my Sierras a very large, very clean supply of power with plenty of headroom, thanks to the heavy duty transformers and short signal path. On top of that, the Bryston monos have a high damping factor, which means tight control of the drivers, and a seperate transformer for each channel... better separation and imaging.
I've never heard any Emotiva amps (to answer the previous poster), but I have heard that the newer ones (not sure about the LPA) are rebadged Parasounds. I ordered an Emotiva amp one time, but after the shoddy customer service I received from them, I sent it back for a refund.
Galwin
11-08-2008, 11:53 AM
[QUOTE=muzz;29624]See above.
As I stated, I have the Boston Acoustics A7200 amp, which is a clone(made by Sherwood- relabeled) of the A965.
No issues at all driving 3 Sierras and 2 170 SE's( 2 unused channels)
]
I too have the A7200 with 3 Sierra's up front. I'm very pleased with SQ and it has worked flawlessly. It's a real beast - about 80 lbs. - I read very positive reivews of the A965 at the time of its release.
alright, decided to go with a used 965 off eBay. Decent price after I get the $200 cash back from MSFT in 60 days ($665 shipped). I'll be waiting to pair it with either the new emotiva or outlaw pre/pro. It was difficult to not to be swayed by the "only" 100 watt/channel but I am certain that for my uses the amp will have plenty of power.
Since my receiver now (panny xr55) doesn't have pre-outs, is there any good way to test the amp when I receive it to make sure everything is working as advertised?
Now will come the tough decision--emotiva's pre/pro at $700 but possibly poor room correction, or the outlaw at double the price, but with apparently awesome room correction. I'm definitely tempted by the outlaw. The release of these products cannot come soon enough for me.
You need HDMI ebh?
If not, I have the Boston AVP7 Pre/pro(EXACT match for the A7200), and am looking to get rid of it for cheap$, just to give it a good home, right now it's just sitting here as I haven't put it up for sale..... I like it...I'm like that...I know, I know.....
Sounds pretty darn good if ya ask me, I just wanted HDMI.
[QUOTE=muzz;29624]See above.
As I stated, I have the Boston Acoustics A7200 amp, which is a clone(made by Sherwood- relabeled) of the A965.
No issues at all driving 3 Sierras and 2 170 SE's( 2 unused channels)
]
I too have the A7200 with 3 Sierra's up front. I'm very pleased with SQ and it has worked flawlessly. It's a real beast - about 80 lbs. - I read very positive reivews of the A965 at the time of its release.
It's above my couch, I had to lift it up there onto the shelf... yeah, it weighs alot.
You need HDMI ebh?
If not, I have the Boston AVP7 Pre/pro(EXACT match for the A7200), and am looking to get rid of it for cheap$, just to give it a good home, right now it's just sitting here as I haven't put it up for sale..... I like it...I'm like that...I know, I know.....
Sounds pretty darn good if ya ask me, I just wanted HDMI.
yeah, thanks. I'm looking for HDMI right now. Trying to decide what direction I want to go actually. I decided to pick up a Yammy 663 on eBay for cheap with the Live.com promotion. It will let me make sure my amp is working and should do enough for movies a few months before I make a decision about a pre-pro, at which time hopefully I will be able to sell the Yammy for close to what I got it for.
Now I'm starting to think a bit more about 2-channel performance issues. Whether I want an external DAC for my squeezebox, whether I should get a separate pre-pro for 2 channel etc (I don't think either the new outlaw or emo pre-pros has a pass-through to allow both to co-exist tho) or whether there is a way I can wire things so that I can connect my squeezebox directly to my amp and also connect the pre/pro receiver (which I am going to go post about somewhere else). But if you are letting it go for really cheap... :D
You need HDMI ebh?
If not, I have the Boston AVP7 Pre/pro(EXACT match for the A7200), and am looking to get rid of it for cheap$, just to give it a good home, right now it's just sitting here as I haven't put it up for sale..... I like it...I'm like that...I know, I know.....
Sounds pretty darn good if ya ask me, I just wanted HDMI.
muzz, what did you end up going with as a pre/pro with HDMI? I got my amp and would like to settle in on a good pre/pro now. Like I said, I'm looking at the emotiva and outlaw, but am open to other suggestions.
I actually was fortunate to find Circuit City was crashing the price on a Denon 988 (which is the 2808 for all intents and purposes), so I got that while it was on sale for like 1/2 off.
I looked around (even used), but couldn't find much that I was interested in, that was also HDMI 1.3 (which I wanted to be able to bitstream HD codecs), especially at the cost of the 988.
It works well, I have had zero issues with it.
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