Need integrated or receiver (I think)
-- Thu, 09/17/2009 - 10:50
Hi there,
A little background: I listen to music several hours every day. I listen to many types of music, but prefer my rock and metal tunes as loud as my equipment will bear. My equipment is old and pathetic (see below):
An ancient Technics A/V receiver (80wpc in stereo mode) at least 17 years old
JVC DVD player (for CD listening)
Apple iPod Classic (Apple Lossless to listen to converted CDs, do not buy songs from iTunes)
Athena LS-500 loudspeakers (recently replaced my beloved Advents that I was very happy with)
Pretty pathetic, I know, but the new loudspeakers introduced two new problems:
1. The top end is very strident and annoying, to the point of greatly reducing the treble knob on the receiver. This mutes other parts of the music and bothers me greatly. I tried changing speaker cables and interconnects to Monster Cable with no appreciable change.
2. Though the Athenas are not particularly inefficient, my old receiver cannot reach the output levels I was used to with the Advents. The volume knob runs out of steam a little after 12:00, with virtually no gain as a crank it up.
After doing some reading, the Athenas are somewhat well regarded budget loudspeakers, but I am afraid they are revealing the shortcomings of my other gear in ways the Advents did not. I have a budget limit of approximately $750 and am looking for a solution that will get my output levels back and reduce the harsh top-end.
Thanks for any help you can provide.
Mark
New speakers revealing problems?
I checked out the specs on your Athena speakers and the rated sensitivity of 90db suggests a relatively efficient speaker, although there is no mention of the nominal (or minimum) impedance of the speaker to give us a better sense of how difficult a load it presents to the amp. Having said that, if you listen in an average sized room my guess is that 50-100 w/ch should be more than enough to drive these speakers to ear bleeding levels. There are a number of threads in this forum requesting recommendations for integrated amps/receivers in your price range so I would definitely check those out (I would look at offerings from NAD, Rotel, Cambridge Audio amongst others that should do the trick). Most of all, I would recommend visiting your local high end audio dealer (hopefully you have at least one in your area) and listen to what they have in your price range. Since we are talking about electronics, you should be able to get 1 or 2 amps/receivers to take home on loan and listen to how they sound with your speakers and hopefully you will find something that floats your boat. If not, you can at least use the models that you tried with your speakers as a baseline with which to compare other options if the offerings at your local dealer turn out to not be a good match. At that point, your research online and in these forums ought to point you in the right direction. Remember, you can audition equipment from online retialers like AudioAdvisor, Music Direct, Acoustic Sounds, etc...if you do not have a local high end audio dealer. Many of these have flexible return policies. Hope this points you in the right direction. Enjoy and good luck.
Hi Mark!
I suspect that your "ancient" Technics receiver may be the root of your problem. The Athenas are nice speakers, and their treble isn't inherently harsh. I must agree with Mark_J that the new speakers are merely revealing amplifier problems.
Since you're going for new amplification anyway, why not consider a receiver with a subwoofer output? Getting the heavy current demand of the bass frequencies off the main amplifier's load will not only clean up the sound, but also allow for louder output without hash or distortion. Cmalak's recommendation for NAD, Rotel, and Cambridge gear is probably spot-on. May I also throw into your "to-audition" mix some Yamaha equipment? I've had good luck with even the cheap Yamaha gear and my Thiel speakers (which, like your Athenas are known as fairly revealing).
If you shop your local Craigslist, you can find used gear that will spare your budget. I just bought a full set of surrounds (nice Infinity front & rears, Carver center, and JBL 12" powered subwoofer) in perfect condition for $100.
Finally, may I cautiously suggest that you reexamine your volume preferences. "All loud - all the time" leads to SERIOUS hearing loss. I speak from the perspective of an industrial hygiene technician whose job included calibrating the hearing booth & running audiograms for approximately 1,000 employees per year in an industrial environment. The old guys, who didn't believe in hearing protection, went around shouting at each other thinking that they were speaking in a normal voice. If you want physical impact, may I suggest that you buy a "butt shaker" chair and let the sensation be applied directly to your body rather than to your eardrums.
Happy shopping - Boomzilla
A good sense of humor makes it ALL sound better!
Thanks for the advice guys. It is definitely an amp problem. I hooked up an old Kenwood receiver I had stashed away (used to have 2 systems in my old house and forgot I owned this unit). I think it is rated for 150wpc but I could be wrong.
The Athena's sound thunderous with this beast powering them. The high frequencies are softened and the bass is deep. However, I am also reminded why the Kenwood was in storage, you can hear audible distortion in the left channel, and it did it with my old Advents too.
So....it looks like I am amplifier shopping and will consider the ones you guys listed.
Also, thanks for the advice on hearing loss. I am 40 and my hearing is very good (compared to my ability to hear soft noises, etc compared to my two sons) and I have been listening to loud music and regularly attending heavy metal concerts since I was about 15. That said, you can never be too careful, and it sounds like you have some expertise in the field.
Mark
hi,
spend 400 for a integrated amp. open box or used, rotel, cambridge audio, nad, or marantz. spend 350 for a sub if you need more bass, or buy an external dac instead. cambridge audio dacmagic, or musical fidelity v-can. good luck!
-pablo
Post new comment