30 replies to this topic

[Brad24]

I took advantage of the recent sale at emotiva & made an investment in the XPA-2 power amp & the USP-1 pre amp.
I also grabbed their RCA interconnects. (their speaker cable is on its way still)
It worked out at about $1800 delivered to Perth for the whole lot

Ive got them running with my Cambridge audio 751 BD player & Krix neuphonix speakers
The emo gear also runs my fronts in a HT set up with my pioneer SC-LX 83 reciever

To say Im impressed is understatement of the year
So much power compared to what Im used to
The new amps have really made my neuphonix really sing
Im not sure of all the technical terms but the music is so more tight & well defined
Its like I can actually hear the individual instruments in the band

Cheers Brad

[kwtruk]

Totally agree with Emotiva mate, for such a small outlay there SQ improvement is very impressive. Does the HT bypass work well? I am waiting for the XSP-1 and use that, was tempted to get the usp-1 a few months ago, but saved the cash for the moment!

[Benje]

Brad

what did the Emotiva replace?

[L J T]

How do you find the volume control on the USP-1?

[Brad24]

Totally agree with Emotiva mate, for such a small outlay there SQ improvement is very impressive. Does the HT bypass work well? I am waiting for the XSP-1 and use that, was tempted to get the usp-1 a few months ago, but saved the cash for the moment!

The HT bypass gave me a bit of grief initially on hook up
I connected the the power amp via the full range outputs & the pre wouldnt work with the reciever.
I contacted emotiva who told me to connect via the Hi pass out puts & it now works fine
Its something they probably should have in the instruction manual

Brad

what did the Emotiva replace?

I was just using my reciever for music before getting the emo gear

How do you find the volume control on the USP-1?

Not sure what you mean mate, works fine
Im not really keen on the blue neon light around it when trying to watch a movie but its a very minor problem

[L J T]

Do you get much range on your volume control? Is it full volume at 9 o'clock on the USP?

[Brad24]

Do you get much range on your volume control? Is it full volume at 9 o'clock on the USP?

Mine isnt like that at all
Probably starts a 7 oclock & goes right arouns to 5 oclock

The remote control is totally different to the one in the user manual as well

[L J T]

So you can get almost a full turn of the volume control?

[Brad24]

So you can get almost a full turn of the volume control?

Yeah mate

[Brad24]

Is it ok to stack the pre on top of the power amp?

[SteveC]

Yeah the volume control is a bit hot on the USP-1 for my sensitive speakers. I was also hitting very loud at 10 o'clock. I'm running Rothwell attenuators and that has calmed things down a bit. Brad are you running the 751 direct analogue into the pre for music? You should notice a change in sound compared to your AVR.

[rantan]

Is it ok to stack the pre on top of the power amp?

I wouldn't.

Power amps like the Emo need as much ventilation as they can get and you also get vibration which isn't good for pre amplifiers.

[Brad24]

Yeah the volume control is a bit hot on the USP-1 for my sensitive speakers. I was also hitting very loud at 10 o'clock. I'm running Rothwell attenuators and that has calmed things down a bit. Brad are you running the 751 direct analogue into the pre for music? You should notice a change in sound compared to your AVR.

Yeah mate its loud at 10 oclock, I wouldnt of had it past 11 oclock
Im not sure what you mean by direct analouge into the pre for music, but I connected the pre into the 751 BD via the RCA CD points & to the AVR via HDMI
Is that correct?
The difference in sound compared to the AVR is a whole lot more than I was hoping for.
Yep Im impressed

[Brad24]

I wouldn't.

Power amps like the Emo need as much ventilation as they can get and you also get vibration which isn't good for pre amplifiers.

Cheers mate

[Ozcall]

Yep ! , keep the pre and power well seperated , for best cooling and for lowest electrical interference between the 2 units.

[Brad24]

Yep ! , keep the pre and power well seperated , for best cooling and for lowest electrical interference between the 2 units.

Cheers

[L J T]

Brad, are you a fan of the silver trim pieces? All my Emotiva gear is "naked". No silver trims, just the fasteners in their holes.

[Brad24]

Brad, are you a fan of the silver trim pieces? All my Emotiva gear is "naked". No silver trims, just the fasteners in their holes.

It doesnt bother me either way mate,

[Bomber Rock]

You can buy black trim from the website to replace the silver trim. I still have the silver, but I'm not a fan of it. Actually, its all the bright blue lights that get to me.

[Brad24]

You can buy black trim from the website to replace the silver trim. I still have the silver, but I'm not a fan of it. Actually, its all the bright blue lights that get to me.

You & me both
The light reminds me of a teenagers car with the lights underneath

[pchan]

Hi Brad,

even though I havent had the pleasure of auditioning the Emotiva the XPA-2 300W, it uses on semi output devices, highly likely they are the ones used in the SC projects, these devices have active thermal biasing tracking and are the latest. Nice purchase, great value for the money, you couldnt get better than this!

Make sure you have at least 5-10 cm from the pre!

For the ones that are concern over the volume control like myself check the XCM-1, this thing has a CS3310 as volume control, an intergrated analog control that will beat any normal mechanical pot or digital control, to back it up it also utilise a NJW 1298 selector. For $1499US very hard to beat!

Edited by pchan, 08 August 2012 - 11:14 AM.

[pelennor]

Brad, are you a fan of the silver trim pieces? All my Emotiva gear is "naked". No silver trims, just the fasteners in their holes.

I'm the same, I removed the silver trim pieces too, couldn't be bothered ordering the black trim ones.

And I'd also recommend spacing between the pre and the amp, I'm using hard rubber door stops to separate my UMC-1 and my UPA-1 (cheap, but it's stable enough with 4 of them, and it works).

[digitalhome]

I ordered and received the black trim pieces with mine. They come with black screws, but it looks best with the black trim and silver screw combination.

[initforthemusic]

So there is no issue with the XPA-2 being 230V.?

[Brad24]

None what so ever

[L J T]

So there is no issue with the XPA-2 being 230V.?

Should be no problems. Users in WA could experience problems, just like any other device that is 220 or 230V and intended for use in WA.

[Brad24]

Im in WA,
What problems could I experience?

[L J T]

Sometimes people in WA have noted their higher than average voltage. This can cause problems with power supplies in devices intended for 220 or 230v. Most electronics have a tolerance of 10% or so. People have reported upwards of 260 volts at their outlets.

I am not just talking about Emo gear, this includes gear from all manufacturers that are 220 or 230v.

[alistairm]

You'll have no problems with the Emo stuff. I used to regularly spike to 245v at my old house (in NSW), while running a pair of XPA-1 amps. No probs at all. I miss my Emotiva gear. It sounded great and I didn't lose much when I sold it on as part of the endless cycle.

[caminperth]

I took advantage of the recent sale at emotiva & made an investment in the XPA-2 power amp & the USP-1 pre amp.
I also grabbed their RCA interconnects. (their speaker cable is on its way still)
It worked out at about $1800 delivered to Perth for the whole lot

Ive got them running with my Cambridge audio 751 BD player & Krix neuphonix speakers
The emo gear also runs my fronts in a HT set up with my pioneer SC-LX 83 reciever

To say Im impressed is understatement of the year
So much power compared to what Im used to
The new amps have really made my neuphonix really sing
Im not sure of all the technical terms but the music is so more tight & well defined
Its like I can actually hear the individual instruments in the band

Cheers Brad

 

Hi Brad - you're pretty much running identical setup to me on the amp side, though I'm currently using the Pioneer as the preamp. Did you ever try it setup this way? Do you think that the Emo pre would be a worthwhile upgrade?

 

Using B&W 683's as the mains..

 

Cheers,

Cam

Edited by caminperth, 10 February 2013 - 07:37 PM.

[Brad24]

Hi Brad - you're pretty much running identical setup to me on the amp side, though I'm currently using the Pioneer as the preamp. Did you ever try it setup this way? Do you think that the Emo pre would be a worthwhile upgrade?

 

Using B&W 683's as the mains..

 

Cheers,

Cam

G'day cam,

Initially I had my pioneers set up as a pre for listening to music in stereo & then added the USP1. The emo pre is a massive improvement over the pioneer

Id shell out the extra coin for the new pre amp

Cheers Brad