First foray into separate 2-channel amp, 200wpc


Hi, I am thinking of purchasing my first powerful 2-channel amp, to use with my Yamaha RX-V1800 receiver. This is kind of an experiment, so I don't want to spend a fortune. I need to see if a powerful amp will take better control than the Yamaha of my Monitor Audio Silver 9i speakers I just picked up. I am thinking of a minimum of 200 watts/channel. I am looking at spending up to around $500. I will probably want to find something used here on Agon.

So far, I am most drawn to an Adcom GFA 5500 here on Agon, although I am aware there are many other brands in that level of amp. I am aware of Emotiva, and wonder if anybody feels a new or newish Emotiva will be better in any significant way than the 5500. This will need to be a good performer on both music and movies.

Or, since the Yamaha is fairly powerful for a receiver, is there a likelihood that the Adcom of something similar will not make a detectable improvement?

Any other suggestions? Thanks.
mtrot

Showing 1 response by soix

The tightest amp for bass I've had in my system was a Bryston 2BSST. If bass control is what you're looking for this might be a brand worth exploring. They won't mellow out or make anything seem warm and fuzzy, but they sure get an iron fist control over woofers in my experience. There's a 3BST on sale here for a little more than your looking for, but ain't that always the way?

Also, you may experiment with different interconnects and speaker cables that could tighten things up as well. I once had the Zu Cable Julian speaker cables in my system, and they also damped and tightened up the bass considerably. Just another avenue to consider.

Oh, and last but certainly not least and also the least expensive option, have you experimented with speaker placement yet? The further out you get the speakers from the corners and away from the front and side walls will tend to make bass less boomy. Even if you don't plan to keep the speakers out that far into the room, it's instructive just to play around with it to see what happens.

Best of luck.