Hello,
I’m a new owner of a set of B&W 702 S2, I was able to find them within my price point after the S3 stock came through. I have a couple of questions and clarifications that I need to wrap my head around to help me make the best decision for my budget.
I am currently building a setup and only have the two front and center channel speakers purchased. No amp at the moment. I’m around 60/40 Music/Movies mix, listening to music throughout the day and while cooking, then throw on a movie at night some days. I also have an ATV4K and XSX that I’d like to connect as well. Anyway, I’ve gone down the rabbit hole of figuring out how maximize the speakers and have a couple of questions:
Amp Budget: $2k - don’t mind buying used or being patient ;)
Speakers: 8Ω (minimum 3.1Ω), 90dB spl (2.83Vrms, 1m)
Recommended amplifier power: 30W - 300W into 8Ω on unclipped programme
Given my mix and inputs I was looking at purchasing the Marantz SR6015 for ~ $1400 to hookup my 3 channel system at the moment. It provides 110 W at 8 ohm for 2 ch. Covers the HDMI 2.1 box nicely and doesn’t have bad power output to start. And it gives me the option to use it as a pre amp for the FR/FL speakers.
Reading online, it seems that the speakers are extremely power hungry and will do very well with an integrated amp for the front two speakers. Websites suggest Hegel 390, Rotel RA-1592 (2x200W), or Arcam SR250 (2x250W). These dedicated amps are very much above my budget price point at the moment, but seem to have the consensus that they will maximize the speakers due to quality material, processing, and power.
1. If I were to purchase a dedicated amp for my speakers, am I “limited” to amps outputting above 110W of power to make it worth it over the receiver? Understanding that AVR don’t have the best processing compared to dedicated amps in general. Would for example a $500 65W amp be worth it?
2. Would a sub $1k amp along with the AVR be recommended? Or would purchasing the AVR and enjoying my system while waiting for a great deal on a dedicated amp in the future be better (as to not purchase an amp that does the job only to purchase a better dedicated amp in a year or two once my budget has time to recoup - makes me laugh a little knowing which forum I’m on! ;))
3. Lastly, with an open $2k budget, what what you recommend my amp purchase be. $1500 integrated amp, cheap AVR. $2K integrated amp, wait for AVR ( then I couldn’t hookup the center channel or HDMI devices). I listen to lossless audio on a mobile device, if that matters for sourcing!
Thank you in advance, very overwhelmed with the options, but very excited about finally building a system as I was using a soundbar previously :)
