Emotiva equipmet, how good is it?
Owned a XPA-2 for a while (for a planned Home Theatre, which never eventuated). My higher end Amps showed up the XPA-2 limitations in 2 Channel. For a Heavy in Weight Amp, it's a little lightweight in Performance. Lacks Slam and Grip on Bass, Cymbals are like they are being Tapped instead of Struck. They are what they are, and if you're on a tight budget they can fill the void till funds permit something better. Or they will do the job if you are more "casually" into audio, unlike many on here who are always looking to up the ante in Performance. |
Since about 2010, I've owned various pieces of Emotiva gear. Overall, they represent great value. In my opinion, the Amps are best suited for home theater, as I have no desire to upgrade my amps due the sheer power and bass presence they present. It is in two channel performance where they show their limitations. Hop this helps. Good luck. |
I just switched out my Krell KSA-200s with xpa-1 gen 2 mono blocks and there are no negatives to my ears. The Emotivas have no noise, which the Krell had a slight hum and could be heard from several feet away with the volume at zero. They also suck a lot leas power and to me sound more open. I’ve owned other Krells, Musical Fidelity (A300’s three times and what a great little integrated), Peachtree Audio 220se (awesome class d), PS Audio Stellar 700 (kinda disappointing but still good) and many more I have forgotten in my 50 years of audio love. I think it’s the speakers that make the system. Currently running Focal 1038be’s ($13k new and very revealing) supported with an Oppo 105d and a Marantz 8801 pre/pro. The synergy I’ve found is excellent. Past speakers running the gamut of Martin Logan, Paradigm Signature and Studio Refs, and some cheapies. It’s all in the speaker. Can’t stand audio snobs and Audiogon tends to have quite a few. |
As a 2+ year owner of a XSP-1 Gen 2 preamp I have nothing but praise for this pre-amp. I picked it up new for 15% off the then current price direct from them. The pre adds or subtracts nothing from the sound, It works very well with with my reconditioned Carver M500t amp. The pre did not remove any of the warm somewhat tubey sound from the Carver. I credit that to the Direct Short Path Analog Mode the pre has. It has a great remote. My speakers are Magnepan 1.7's are they sound better than when I was using the preamp section of a Vintage H/K receiver. It has matched well with anything I have hooked up to it and the sub woofer controls are extensive and appreciated. Your mileage and opinions may vary. Have a Happy Holiday season. |
I realize the XDA-2 is out of production, besides the OP was asking about Emotiva amps. I only stated my experience with an Emotiva product because he was curious about quality of their products. I did not dismiss Schitt DACs, I only said I tried a couple a while ago and heard no better sound quality with them. The XDA-2 and the Schitt DACs were very similar in sound quality. I never said they were bad. I only tried them because my son was auditioning different DACs and asked me if I wanted to compare them to my DAC before he sends them back. I really don't remember the models, I would have to ask my son. When I purchased the XDA-1 they cautioned me that the volume should be kept at maximum, I believe, and only use a preamp for volume control or sound quality would be degraded. I believe it said that in the manual. I did not realize they were marketing it as a preamp also. Maybe that was before I bought mine. However, the XDA-2 can be used as a preamp because it uses a resistive ladder volume control, which does not degrade the sound quality. Anyway, I just wanted to describe my experience with one of their products. |
FYI to the OP, the XDA-2 is long out of production. Their current dac may be better. LJG, you must understand, when Emotiva was selling the XDA-1, they were calling it a digital preamp, and marketing it as such. Doesn’t that seem just a little wrong headed?? Also, you dismiss Schiit Audio but have obviously not tried more than one or two models or versions of their DACs, or else you would have at least mentioned one such model. they currently offer 7 separate models. The multibit stuff they have is amazing to me. When I tried the entry level Modi Uber, I immediately realized it was superior to the XDA dac. So I upgraded to the Bifrost Multibit and the detail it gives with warmth is something Emotiva could never achieve. Ymmv. |
Interesting how some people find the Emotive XDA-1 bright, but I never did. I would say it was brighter sounding than the XDA-2 but never harsh or too bright. I cannot stand a bright sound or any speakers with a harsh high end. For instance Klipsch speakers come to mind. Several of my friends have them and I cannot listen to them for a long period of time before fatigue sets in. In fact many speakers with a metal dome tweeter, I find to be too bright for me. I did audition a couple of the Schitt DACs a while back but I preferred the Emotiva XDA-2. By the way the XDA-2 does have a lossless volume control so it can be used as a preamp but the XDA-1 does not and should never be used as a preamp. |
I had an Emotiva XDA dac. It was the brightest and thinness sounding piece of crap I ever heard. You get what you pay for. The worst were the very bright and ugly led’s. It could burn holes in your eyeballs. Never again, I got conned My experience was similar to yours for the XDA-1. Somewhat thin and bright sounding which made it harsh at higher volumes. Emotiva said it had lossless volume when it first came out so I bought it for preamp duties. But when I auditioned it the volume ramped up so fast from zero to 15(out of 80 steps or so) that it was too loud at this point depending on the music being played. Emotiva did fix this, by changing the firmware, but then they public ally admitted that it didn’t have lossless volume, which makes it useless as a pre. Which is the reason I bought it. And this is on top of it being bright sounding. it became clear to me that they didn’t really know what they were doing. Their flagship 2 channel pre was delayed two or 3 years and with one delay announcement Lonnie said that when paired with the XDA, the soundstage collapsed, so they needed to rework things. Either they didn’t have control of the design process, or worse still, they did with the screw ups being directly their fault. at the end of the day, Dan L. Is a businessman first, making deals and cutting costs. He doesn’t design anything and pays people mostly in China to design and make whatever at a certain price point. i prefer Schiit Audio these days because the founders design their own stuff, and obviously know what they are doing. The dacs, headphone amps and amplifiers all work as intended with no surprises after the fact. I’d advise the OP to put them on the short list as well. |
Get mine, get mine! Get what I got and validate my decision. ;^) But seriously, I looked into the Class D suggested by @rar1 an was amused to find this in one of the reviews: " I bought a pair of Totem Dreamcatcher speakers two weeks ago and the next day the right channel went out on my vintage Yamaha CR 1020 receiver. ....... This Class D Audio amp is a keeper." |
My experience with the Emotive DACs has been very positive. Not at all bright or thin sounding. I purchased 3 Emotiva XDA-1 DACs about 8 years ago for my 3 systems. I had them for over 3 years and during that time compared them to other DACs at similar prices but preferred the Emotivas. I replaced the XDA-1 with 3 XDA-2 DACs about 5 years ago and have been using them since. The XDA-2 was a definite improvement over the XDA-1 with a fuller, richer, warmer sound and the resistive ladder volume control so it could be used as a DAC and preamp. I would characterize the XDA-1 as neutral to slightly bright and the XDA-2 as neutral to slightly warm. Over the last few years I have auditioned several DACs costing 5 to 6 times the price of the XDA-2, but I preferred the XDA-2. Regarding the blue LEDs, they have a dimmer button so they can be dimmed to barely noticeable. In fact the LEDs on my other components are brighter than the dimmed Emotiva LEDs. |
I echo the sentiments here. All the Emotiva stuff I've heard is mid-fi at best. Bright, tinny and hollow. It's funny how many people will chase "giant killers"... every few months there's a new one to empty their wallets when they would be better off to invest in quality gear and enjoy it rather than chase the bargain. |
If Emotiva stuck the exact same amp as their differential balanced amp in a fancy Dagostino chassis and marked it up 10x, people would be loving it. Actually, scratch that...the ripoff Dagostino broke on the test bench 2 times in a Stereophile review. I think the Emotiva would fair even better. Very few amps are worth more than $5k and when you pay more than $5k, it's mainly for the chassis and heatsinks not actual parts. Plus, half the markup is due to the distributor and another half for the dealer. They also add a premium to trigger people's perception that high cost equals high performance...something that Payless Shoes just exposed in a recent test where they simply marked up their normal shoes 10x and fooled everyone. Unless you are getting something revolutionary like the Berning amps that nobody else can make (albeit still overpriced), I would recommend Emotiva for virtually any budget if you are buying brand new. And yes..I have heard/owned many of the other major amps ARC, McIntosh, Parasound, etc and tons of others over the years. My ultimate favorite for best performance and price is a modified McCormack, but that's off subject. |
As an XPA Emotiva amp owner(until I sold it off) I have to differ with some of the comments. I had the amp paired with a pair of higher end speakers, and it’s weaknesses showed up. Not very accurate bass, overly bright at higher volumes and this with laid back speakers. I was using the XDA-1( what they billed as a dac/digital pre amp) and really both were mediocre. I will say that although I think their entry level stuff is still mediocre, I can’t speak to their top of the line stuff these days. but I’d give most of it a pass, look at Schiit Audio for a pre and amp if you want lots of bang for your buck these days. They are serious audio heads and design their own stuff, and have it built locally from the ground up. |
Prefer a new integrated?- Including a DAC- Give the Nuprime IDA-8 a listen (if you don’t have a local dealer, check out the Sonic Unity website with a 30 day trial), or the NAD C368, which is the start of their modular designs and has an impressive power upgrade path (also lots of dealers!). One school of thought- don’t bother with an integral DAC, as this aspect is in a constant stage of flux, just go with the best basic integrated you can. It has been many years, but I have owned a couple of great sounding integrateds from British Fidelity (which evolved into Musical Fidelity). I saw another contributor’s recommendation of a MF M2si from Upscale Audio. Haven’t heard it, but it looks like a bargain. Kevin Deal at Upscale is also the US distributor for PrimaLuna and a tube guru. |
My only experience was with purchasing their XMC-1 pre/pro and thank goodness for their return policy. It was simply unlistenable to me. I did not want to be in the same room with the sound of it... And that's trying both its D/A conversion, and the analog pass through.... even the analog path was not transparent. I've picked up a used Anthem D2V and LOVE it.... it sounds great, great user interface... and the analog path is very good. I listen to the analog outs of my OPPO 105. Yes i know there is better 2-channel out there, but this is fine for this system. |
My experience with Emotiva was limited to their powered speakers. The good- exceptional sound for the dollar spent and space required. The bad- reliability. One speaker woofer failed in the first 60 days. The Emotiva response was friendly and fast- they sent a new pair. The exchanged pair lasted about 3 months (actually about a calendar year, but these are in a snow bird bedroom system , and are packed away for 9 months a year) before one started smoking. This time it was sent to TN for repair. The turn around was quite good. I used them for another month or so, then traded them in for an NAD D3020 & speakers- very happy. A friend, who is an accomplished electrical engineer and audiophile/dealer of 40 years, bench tested an Emotiva surround processor/pre and found it to be noisy and of mediocre build (this was about 5 yrs ago). It seems to me that Emotiva’s forte is power amps and it’s really hard to find anyone who gives you so much power for so little outlay. The comments above may have little relevance in terms of those products or what you are considering. I would second the recommendation for a Hegel H-80. This amp is open, smooth and capable of driving 4 ohm speakers very well. I also agree that some Chinese built stuff is very well made. My second recommendation for an integrated is such a product - the PrimaLuna Prologue Two. I have had both of these amps for several years. They are built like tanks, easy on the ears and below $1000 (probably substantially). |
The short answer is, excellent. I have the Emotiva 1L monoblocks and the XSP-1 preamp going on three years now. I made a few simple modifications: upgraded the fuses in all three boxes and upgraded the binding posts in the blocks to Furutechs. My front end is PS Audio Direct Stream dac Jr and the PWT (cd transport). Speakers are Kef LS/50 + 2 SVS model 4000 subs. I put a lot of effort into acoustic treatment of the listening room. I once believed that I would need to upgrade to "more expensive" components because $ = sonic improvement. Perhaps it does, but my system sounds so good (especially after the recent PS Audio Snowmass software upgrade for the dac Jr) that I no longer feel the need to spend more money. Not only is Emotiva good value for money, but also on an absolute level, once you tweak it and once you have a good room (room acoustics are 50% of the battle) you'll feel like you no longer need to search and can instead sit back and just relax with your music collection. |
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As a current owner of a XPA-2 Gen.2 and XSP-2 Gen.2 past three years, I can honestly say, NOBODY can touch them in terms of cost/performance ratios. These are NOT Mid-Fi junk, but well designed, very well built units that compete with older, better known and MUCH more expensive brands. Don't let the "Made in China" scare you, as MANY "high-end" brands outsource their products there also (Krell and Parasound are great examples). China has proven to be a world class manufacturer of electronics. The XPA-2 Gen.2 (Discontinued) offers huge power reserves, runs cool even when driven hard and never sounds harsh or strident. In fact, it doesn't sound like anything. It neither adds nor subtracts from the sound as far as I can discern. It performed extremely well with my Magnepan MG-1.7s and my current Source Loudspeaker Technologies 7211 Reed Towers. The XSP-2 Gen. 2 (Current Product) offers plenty of connectivity, precision stepped ladder volume control, hi-pass/low-pass bass management and is fully balanced. Again, this unit sounds as neutral as anything I have ever heard and is dead quiet. If I had negative to say about them, is that I hate the blinding blue power button LEDs and the cosmetics are exactly the most beautiful. In fact, they seem a bit too industrial for me. I do prefer the likes of Parasound's HALO series with the soft curves and all. |
You can not go wrong picking up a pair of XPA 100’s. I have a pair in my main system that are being used most of the time. While I can get a better sound with my Pass XA30.5 the XPA’s do quite well holding their own at this price point. Im preamping with a upgraded Sonic Frontiers Line 1 or when using my Modwright LS 100 preamp its a whole different sound that I like much better but I prefer the sophistication of the Line 1’s volume control not to mention that part of the upgrade is better chips for that purpose. The line 1 is better with a tube based amp as it can not "color" the sound as well as the Modwright. In a good way of course. As many will say pairing a tube based amp or pre with solid state amp or pre is often the way to go. (either the amp or the pre tube and the complimenting unit be the opposite so to speak)I also really like that the Line 1 has the read out screen and much more of an incremental volume control. The modwright is remote controlled although we are talking motorized volume control . At any rate. . The XPA’s are a bargain. Well made. Not a hiccup since Ive bought. Bought them originally to give a bit more power for my ML’s. Finding a pair used would be an even better deal. |
I have had pretty much all the generations of Emotiva amplifiers. I would say they are very excellent for the money and actually compete at a higher level. However, everyone likes a slightly different sonic signature. As far as the comments about "clinical and brightness", I will agree on some situations. The "Gen 2" switchable Class A/AB circuit had a compromise in the Class AB setting where the bias circuit wasn't optimized and you actually got waveform crossover distortion (when the waveform transitions between positive and negative polarity). This caused a slight bright edge to the sound. Also, stock XPA amps were on the bright/harsh side, but this can be fixed with fuse upgrades. XPR amps were slightly soft and cold sounding due to the stock fuses they had in those amps (but were voiced slightly warmer than the XPA). Gen 3 is very good, but not as good as previous generations because of switching power supply. It's lacking the bass punch/power and it just doesn't quite sound as real/there as the previous generation. |
I have not used any of the Emotive amps but i have used their DACs. About 8 years ago i purchased my first stand alone DAC which was an Emotive XDA-1. I was pleased with it and later added 2 more to my other systems as i started streaming my ripped CDs wirelessly. Later the Emotiva XDA-2 came out and I purchased 3 of them for $200 each and sold the XDA-1s. The XDA-2 was a definite step up from the XDA-1 and could also be used as a preamp. For $200 each they were a steal. I still am using them and over the years I compared them to other DACs costing 5 to 6 times the price and could not really tell a significant difference. I have never had an issue with their DACs with 3 in use for about 8 years. Regarding the Yamaha A-S801, it is a really nice integrated with a nice built in DAC which would save you money by not having to add a separate DAC. "Accessories for Less" has refurbished ones available at various times. The last time they were $599 for a refurbished unit. One of my sons purchased one for his system and is very pleased with it. It would be a nice fit with your present speakers. |
Schwantner as a brief XPA owner who's experience went up in a little puff of smoke I suggest you seriously consider the overall trend of these responses disregarding any positives that do not offer a direct in home comparison. zerobias' is exactly correct. Those of us who can hear the affects of speaker, interconnect, and power cabling are warning you ("bad mouthing") that with your current speakers its quite possible you will experience the sonic tradeoffs vs cost that this product offers. When you visit an audio brick and mortar and mention your interest in any particular brand or price point you'll have just done 75% of their work. Do not mention your budget. Convey your readiness to purchase if you hear the presentation your seeking. Using the same recording ask to hear their most extravagant system to give yourself an up to the minute sonic baseline to judge how much your willing to give up sonically. If you purchase this product carefully read and follow ALL the guarantee / warrantee information included in the packaging and printed from the website at the time of purchase. Be very clear regarding dissatisfaction as well as functionality and failure procedures for returning and shipping responsibilities. Verbal information is worthless. Any communication with this company should be done by delivery confirmed registered mail within the manufactures timeframes. And remember to have fun. |
I'll break with the crowd here. I had an XPA 2 Gen 2 for several years. It was a very good amp, sounded as good as amps costing many times more than I paid. The amp was well made with quality parts. The NAD's, Parasounds and such have nothing on the Emotiva's. Keep perspective here, the folks bad mouthing Emotiva are the same folks that will pay hundreds, if not thousands of dollars for interconnect cables, speaker cables, and power cords (wire). |
I've owned three of their amps, and used them with several different sets of speakers. I think they are really good, and great for the cost. But, I also found them a little fatiguing. I think it's because they are a little on the "clinical" side. In my system, especially with B&W speakers (805N, 803N, 9NT), I found it to be a little bright, and crisp. You won't describe them as "warm" for sure. In the end, I think it comes to synergy. It was a good match, but not best possible match with B&W. They could match well with warmer sounding speakers. If you can audition them, then there's your answer. |
in one of my systems I am running a Cary pre-amp into 2 xpa-1 gen 2 Emotiva monoblocks running in Class A (manual or auto switchable) I am biased toward hybrid systems I like the power of SS monoblocks, Very happy with the set-up and the Emotivas have performed flawlessly for several years now. I work from home and they are on constantly. In another configuration I have a pair of xpa100s running the surround channels and again every effective in that position. |
I live in TN and spent the better part of an afternoon at Emotiva recently. They are a great bunch of folks who are dedicated to offer high quality audio components at budget prices. They would probably earn more respect if they doubled all their prices as we are wired to not believe anything can be of quality if its cheap. I listened to their high-end 2-channel system with a pair of their older 600 watt mono block amps. It had their top of the line CD player, Preamp and their larger tower speakers. It sounded fantastic and I think the retail on the whole system was under $5k. They offer a 30-day satisfaction return as well. What you aren't going to get....yet....is a known and stable resale value. One of my friends has an awesome system with McIntosh Preamp, CD Player & Tuner with PSB speakers. He has an Emotiva 2-channel amp that sounds fantastic. My tour ended in the owner's office where he has the least expensive system set up that I think is only around $1500 for everything. It also sounded great. I know its a bit of a leap of faith, but if you are a solid state lover, I think you will be happy with their products. Good luck! |
IMHO the difference an amplifier makes in sound is subtle - to my ears. I have 3 power amps - a Emotiva XP2, an old Cambridge 200 watt and an even older Phase Linear 400 S2. Remarkably the old Phase sounds really good powering some Yamaha 1000's running without a preamp as the Phase has volume controls. |
I’ve been using an Emotiva setup for 3 years and love it. I have a setup close to the initial system that someone else above started with. It’s their XSP-1 stereo pre-amp and the 2nd gen XPA-2 amplifier. Nothing but love for it. FWIW, which probably isn’t much for the internet, a couple buddies and I did a bunch of component head to head listening events. All blind taste testing for ears. When we did the pre-amps, several people picked my XSP-1 as their favorite, most picked a Spectral as the winner. We demoed like 11 pre-amps that people had in their houses either in active use or storage. The XPA-2 amp was similar. Power in spades though compared to some of the smaller high end stuff that people brought to the get together. I have the Sherbourn PA-50 which is pretty much they same as the small Emotiva amp you’re looking at. It’s a nice little amp that’ll power most any smaller bookshelf. For its footprint it’s hard to beat. |
I had 2 Emotiva XPA-1 amps. My late 1970s Amber Stereo 70s in bridged monoblock mode sonically sounded so much better than the XPA-1s, but the Ambers did not provide extra overall oomph that the higher power XPA-1s delivered in my current larger listening room. I now use Bryston 7B3s, but for the money, Emotivas deliver a pretty good package for the price point. |
I currently own an XSP-1 and I just upgraded from my 2 XPA 2 GEN 2 to 2 XPR 2. The older Emotiva amps had huge trsnsfomers and lots of headroom. The newer amps all have switch mode power supplies. I still have both of my XPA 2s with over 2 years warranty left and transferable if anyone is interested! |
Wow this is all very helpful. I am going to try and audition a few items at my local shop. They sell the Emotiva and others. I like some of the other suggestions and am looking at those too. I also look at the Cambridge AUDIO CXA80 and wondered if anyone had thoughts on this. Please keep it coming it is good to be educated. |
I'm still a neophyte, but I first heard about Emotiva because of their big XSP-1 preamp, which gets great praise across the board. I follow them somewhat because I am quite interested in their PA-1 Class D monoblocks. It's driven by the same ICE power module that all the big names use, their implementation looks elegant both physically and eletrically, and you can't beat the price. I listened to a set at a dealer attached to some Focal Chorus 716's and a REL T5i and they REALLY sang. At their price point, the only real competition I've seen mentioned are the Outlaw M2200, and the argument for them is generally just that they're Class A/B and handle higher-current equipment, like Maggies, better. From my research, Emotiva exists in a VERY competitive market segment, so most of the arguments against them are going to be in relation to brand loyalty and known synergies, not any black mark against their sound or quality (save the people who've had egregiously bad experiences, of which my research has turned up few). |
The Emotiva pieces I have liked the best are their CD players. In your position, I would consider the following: Musical Fidelity M2si Integrated amplifier @ $600. Super deal at the price. I own this amp and MF products for the last 20 years. Reliable and nice sounding. https://www.upscaleaudio.com/collections/sweet-deals/products/musical-fidelity-m2si-integrated-ampli... Or and here comes the Class D flames. No matter, great sounding amp. CDA 250 power amp @$450 https://classdaudio.com/cda-250c-class-d-audio-power-amplifier.html with this preamp Parasound Zphono @ $250 https://www.audioadvisor.com/prodinfo.asp?number=PAZPHOUSB All in at $700. I own both set-ups and these would do your speakers justice and allow you add a turntable at some point. Rich |
As sbank said, your speakers are definately up to the task - I found a good review on the, this was the conclusion. `The Dreamcatchers are very attractive, and are not fussy about set up. They deserve to be mated with high quality electronics despite their diminutive size and moderate price. They are musically involving in a way that makes the listener really want to focus on listening. They are tough speakers to relegate to background music. To sum up, there is certainly lots of competition in the “budget” book shelf speaker market. But I feel the Totem Dreamcatchers are a step ahead of the class when compared to similarly priced models from Paradigm, Epos, B&W, and PSB. If shopping for speakers in the $500-$600 range, the Totem Dreamcatchers are a must listen.` |
I think Emotiva equipment is excellent. If you don’t have $20K+ speakers you can’t tell the difference. Maybe not even then. Don’t get me started on ABX experiments. Sources and speakers far outweight any amp. Buy them. Try them. Send them back if you don’t like them. Plenty of reviewers have praised the company. Find out for yourself. |
For what is worth I own a pair of Emotiva differential monoblock amps [XPA-1L] powering a pair of B&W CM1 [84db] and they sound great in my room to my ears. I use an ARC LS28 preamp and the trio is superb. Emotiva is good bang for the buck. Here is a review [https://goo.gl/Gi8hF9] in the review their most egregious complaint was the finish, but my amps were perfect. |
I’ve owned two Emotiva amps. The DR differential series better than their standard xpa. That said I found the amp to cause listening fatigue which is a combo on many things but when I changed the Emotiva it was reduced. They have a home trial. Give them a call to discuss. The Parasound and NAD reccomendation others have made is good too. NAD integrated with Dirac room correction is amazing. The Music Room has pre owned gear at a great price. You might find something there. Gutenberg at CNET has some good reviews for equipment normal folks can afford and enjoy. At the end of they day an actual demo in your house is the only opinion that matters. Plenty of online store offer generous trial and return policies. Audio Advisor was helpful to me. Good luck. I sold 2 Emotiva’s recently. |
