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Dali Helicon 300 with Sansui 9090DB = disaster??

Hi,
I am a total newbie and started buying for the first time in my life (I am 40) decent audio gear (because finally I can, I am a photographer, so it took me a while...), but with very little guidance. All I did was reading tons of threads and bought used from ebay and this site on a whim.
Someone with much more knowledge pointed out to me yesterday that the Dali speakers I just bought are 4 ohm speakers and won't be a good match for my Sansui 9090DB, which I bought to a large extend simply because I loved the retro look of it and people had good things to say about it. I have not even received the speakers yet, but after reading more threads there are conflicting opinions out there, ranging from "everything will be fine" to "I am going to blow my Sansui if listening to music loudly" (which is my full intention!).
Any expert advice? Obviously the speakers were the bigger commitment financially, so I would consider getting a more modern receiver if I needed to.

One more thing to consider is, that if I had to buy another receiver, I would like it to have at least an optical audio input, if not HDMI input, so that I could use it for my projector as well as for stereo listening of music. I am not that interested in surround sound, all I see myself doing is adding a subwoofer, for HT as well as music.

Thanks for any input and helping out a novice!
Nick
sx70nk
11 responses Add your response
dcstep
1,518 posts
 
Hi, welcome to A'gon.

There will not be any problem at all, so far as your amp blowing up, etc. Your Sansui is rated at 110 watts into 8 ohms, which should be plenty. The DALI's 4 ohm nominal impedance will not be too low for the amp. (Solid state amps aren't that sensitive to impedance, at least when it's that high. Getting below 2-ohms starts to become a concern).

I've not tried the Heliccon 300, but I have tried the DALI Helicon 400 which really seemed to like a lot of power to control the bass. If your bass is really bloomy and a little overblown, it's probably the need for a better amp and more power, say 200+ watts into 4 ohms. (It sounded best when we used 1000 watts into 4 ohms monoblocks, really).

Try what you've got, you've got a "cheap" amp mixed with some really nice speakers that'll reveal any weakness in your system. If it turns out that the amp can't do the DALIs justice, then consider a used Bryston and use the receiver's "Pre-Out" to drive the separate amp.

Dave
sx70nk OP
4 posts
 
Thank you Dave,

This is very comforting advice!
dcstep
1,518 posts
 
Glad to help.

Remember, if you're not entirely happy with the Sansui/DALI combination, you can still run with it for a while until you can afford a better amp. Speakers have gotten a lot more demanding of amplifiers since the Sansui's day. I find the DALIs, in particular, to be sensitive to amplification, particularly their bass. Still, your sound might not be optimal, but you will not be harming anything by sticking with that combination.

Dave
lapierre
547 posts
 
Love the retro look of the Sansui. A good couple of applications of Tung Oil and black wax should do wonders for the wood.

Ensure you have great speaker cables and consider using new fuses from Isoclaean or HiFi Tunning. The Helicons need a fast cable IMO that can not only carry highs and mids but maximum bass as well.

Any other questions?
jond's avatar
jond
5,847 posts
 
I agree with Dave you should be fine with that combo, but those Dali's really deserve a nicer amp. I agree that Bryston is a good source of affordable power and nice sound. Also consider the Odyssey (sp?) amp as another affordable ss option. I'm a tube guy myself and a good push pull amp, say a Jolida or something else Chinese could be had for under $1K. If tubes don't intimidate you give it some thought, most folks who try tubes never go back. Happy listening!
sx70nk OP
4 posts
 
Thanks again Dave, Lapierre and Jond!
Lapierre, what cable should I get?
Jond, I am pretty open and not intimidated by tubes, but of course I don't know anything about tubes. If you throw a couple specific models (i.e. what Bryston?) at me that are good values (under 1 K sounds good), i will gladly spend even more time on researching audio gear than the 5 hours I am putting in every evening for the last few weeks. Seriously!
sx70nk OP
4 posts
 
Jond, also, what is a push pull amp? At the Jolida website I see two categories, hybrids and tubes.
lapierre
547 posts
 
Depending on your budget you can find great cables without spending a ton of money. Browse the "goN" for great deals on used cables. Looking for performance/price look at list below which has entry level to very high end to meet your budget. As always you need to listen first.

AntiCable http://www.zeroimpedance.com
DH Labs Q10 http://www.silversonic.com
Analysis Plus http://www.analysis-plus.com
AudioQuest http://www.audioquest.com
Acoustic Zen http://www.acousticzen.com

Pierre
steidlguitars
90 posts
 
Welcome to the madness (and the fun).

I have found the Helicon series to be remarkably revealing of changes in downstream gear (amps, cables, tubes, you name it) more than any other speakers I have ever owned.

For me, the magic happened when I changed from a high power SS amp (Musical Fidelity A5, 250 wpc) to a medium powered tube amp (Rogue Tempest, 90 wpc). As Dave mentioned above, high power always provides better control of the woofers, however tubes add a life to the music that I've never heard from any SS amp that a mere mortal like me might own.

So hopefully you'll love the synergy with your receiver; but know that the Dalis will reflect most any improvement you throw their way.

Enjoy!
sx70nk OP
4 posts
 
I want to thank all the good advice from everybody. Today, finally, my Dali's arrived. So I can finally begin to set up my system. So based on Steidlguitars own observations, I will start off changing (and comparing) my generic Radio Shack speaker cables to better ones, getting something from Pierre's list. I am very curious about this, as there are endless comments on the myth vs reality of improved sound through better cables.
if there is interest, I will post my observations. Next round will be the amp, but that might have to wait a little.
Nick
dcstep
1,518 posts
 
Have a fun weekend. ;-)
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