A/V receiver and Legacy Focus SE speakers

Legacy Focus are very good speakers that deserve better than an AV receiver to realize their full capabilities.  From past Stereophile measurements the Focus drop below 2 Ohms once in the bass and again in the lower mids, which will be hard for any AVR to deal with because their power supplies typically aren’t robust enough to effectively handle that load.  But beyond that the preamp sections in AVRs are not that good either, and preamps are critical so this is a further bottleneck to better performance.  With speakers of this caliber what you should do is get an AVR with preamp outputs (I recommend Yamaha) and then get a good quality stereo integrated amp with a HT bypass that you connect to the AVR via the front L/R preamp outs on the AVR and the speakers would be connected to the integrated (all your stereo sources are also only hooked up to the integrated, not the AVR).  When hooked up this way HT operates as normal when the HT bypass input is chosen on the integrated and the AVR is in control, but when you choose the inputs of your stereo sources on the integrated it takes over and the AVR is completely out of the signal path for stereo listening, which is what you want.  You need an integrated that is stable to 2 Ohms, and the Hegel H190 would be a good choice, and the Musical Fidelity M5 or Parasound Hint6 would also work among others.  Anyway, the bottom line is the Focus are very good speakers that really deserve more than an AVR.  Running them with an AVR is like putting budget all-season tires on a Porsche or Ferrari — yes they’ll still work but you won’t realize the full potential you paid for.  Just my $0.02 FWIW, and best of luck. 

 A waste of great speakers...

I should mention if you’re still happy with your current AVR and it has preamp outs all you really need is the integrated stereo amp and you’re good to go. 

+1 @soix 

The issue with these speakers is the impedance is punishing in the bass.  

I remember going over these speakers with anohter A'goner who managed to do a lot of measurements.  The entire speaker crossover left me scratching my head as to their goals.  It seemed a better speaker for an active crossover and separate amps. 

@soix …You guys are awesome, with my Klipsch speakers going bye bye in my home theater I need new front mains and center channel speakers…at 72 lately my ears are ringing a lot so looking for some non-fatiguing speakers and the Legacy Focus se were recommended…the Yamaha RX-A2060 I bought new has been ok.. It has preouts and have been using the Pass Labs XA-25 amp powering the Klipsch Fortes IVs..sounds mediocre at best..

I am selling off my two channel system and want to be able to have home theater and two channel listening all in one system. Lately my ringing ears is making it impossible for extended two channel listening so what’s the point. So an integrated with a decent Dac, enough power and airplay that plays nice with the Yamaha A/V and the Legacy speakers..for home theater and two channel when desired. And has a trigger so everything comes on and stays in standby when off..damn I don’t want to much…or different speakers if there is a better option..

While I have a dedicated Martin Logan home theater system and separate two-channel audio system(s), if I had to do it all over again, I'd ditch the home theater setup altogether, and just go back to a fully dedicated two channel stereo system for both. 

A few years back I went into one of the upper tier Magnolia Audio stores within a BestBuy, and had the sale guys put their best 2-channel systems in play, dragging amps over from the audio room into the AV room.  We played the same BluRay concert tracks back and forth several times. Tried 2-3 multi channel movies too. The higher power 2-channel stereo system with the two larger front speakers was simply amazing. They seemed quite puzzled by it all, LOL. Was funny, shoulda seen their faces :)    All of the tracks were recorded in stereo tracks to begin with before they became multi-channel. Just sounded better too, overall.  Maybe sometimes simple is better in some cases, fwiw.  Go figure. 

I believe the PS Audio Stellar Strata also has a HT bypass feature and should have enough power.  They have a free trial period so you can return it if it doesn’t work for you.  I don’t own one…I have a 2-channel system with a Yamaha rn-2000a receiver and use HDMI-arc for TV and movies.

@soix I do have a Pass Labs preamp XP-12 with HT by-pass wondering if I get a different amp and keep my preamp, dacs and streamer …

Yeah the Pass pre should be a huge improvement I’d think.  Definitely get that in there, and the XA25 may work given the relatively high sensitivity of the Focus — certainly worth a shot. 

10-4, will give it a try…but a intergrated would eliminate a lot of gear…one with a big enough amplifier,Dac and airplay..built in..

For your purposes, I would go with either an Emotiva AVR if on a limited budget, or an Anthem AVR at the higher end. Enjoy!

I went down that road about 15 + years ago. I had a Yamaha RX-V 1500 pre HDMI unit that was 120 wpc with JBL 4312’s front and Klipsch Heresy II’s rear. I had a Klipsch center and sub with an Oppo dvd player. This was pre Blu-Ray and I then added a Sony Blue-Ray and a Panasonic Plasma TV. Later I acquired an Oppo 105 as I enjoyed concert DVD’s and movies. During this period I also had a 30 wpc tube integrated and Schiit started so I bought their first Bifrost DAC. What I found in playing with that gear was the Yamaha was way underpowered to run the JBL’s and I borrowed a Modwright KWI 200 integrated to fully realize their potential. So I switched to 2.1 and went with tubes as I like tubes but we’re not going there. For you to pair your Yamaha with Legacy would be like pulling a 5th wheel trailer with a Tesla. If you must use the Yamaha consider either more efficient speakers or a better amp. At 67 I suffer from tinnitus due to medication and noise exposure. If you decide on Legacy you will need more power and that level of speaker deserves better quality gear hence more money. You’re trying to play on two different levels , one being the Yamaha and the other “ Airplay “. Your Pass / Klipsch combo is nice for a 2.0 rig. I think by trying to piece random stuff together you are going to short change yourself. Pick the speaker you want and then get an amp that can adequately power it , the Legacy takes big power. If you use the Yamaha and Airplay your SQ is moderate for what the Legacy speakers are capable of. I eventually replaced my gear with a 2.1 system and focused on a better front end. I’m currently switching from low power tubes to 180 wpc tubes and purchased a pair of Tekton DI’s to try a big speaker on a budget ( please don’t burn me at the stake for saying Tekton ). If I had $10k I’d buy the Legacy or Fyne, but that’s me. The other thing to consider is you have Klipsch with horns and the room you use. I found that avoiding the horns and addressing glare , and reflections helped considerably with my ear issues and listening fatigue. Look it your room, get a speaker that YOU HAVE AUDITIONED , and then consider how you want to power it. Also keep in mind that as you move forward you will probably upgrade your source. Happy Hunting, Mike B.