Which Monoblocks To Get?

[ajm1503559545]

heard probably in a completely different room as well no doubt. so hard to compare.

Too often overlooked as a big factor when comparing.

I'm still betting it's the bottom end that's missing.

[vassp]

heard probably in a completely different room as well no doubt. so hard to compare.

I would still very much suggest demoing some other amps to see what gains can be made with that line of upgrading. might soon tell you its either a line worth pursuing or a complete waste of time taking you no where or just somewhere else not necessarily the step forward your looking for.

Yep makes a lot of sence, id rather swap the amp out and see what happens. at least ill know. but i do have a feeling that my speakers could be a little fuller with the mids.

this is were i have to be careful and not change my speakers and overload my room with base.

[vassp]

Too often overlooked as a big factor when comparing.

I'm still betting it's the bottom end that's missing.

probably right about the bottom end. will be interesting to see what happends when i try something else.

About my budget, im not sure realy how much i wonna spend, i think its flexibale but as i said in the first post i dont want to spend ridiculous money.

Ill keep my eyes open for a bargain so im in no rush.

[ajm1503559545]

Perhaps get some measurements done in the room, you might find there are some modes in the room sucking out the mid range.

My bet is still that you've got no bass and all you're hearing is mid range upwards.

[ajm1503559545]

Dbl post

Edited August 15, 2011 by ajm

[vassp]

Perhaps get some measurements done in the room, you might find there are some modes in the room sucking out the mid range.

My bet is still that you've got no bass and all you're hearing is mid range upwards.

im going to do a few changes to the room, also i will be putting in dedicated power line just for the hifi.

[vassp]

My brother-in-law has a couple of McIntosh power amplifiers he's purchased on eBay. He is very happy with them and swear by them. They are older, possibly vintage, ones but still seem to work well.

Dan.

Hey Dan, yeah ive heard good things about them. theire new stuff is supposed to be pretty good too.

[Gutty]

MF A5 Power For Sale

Power Consumption: 750W (compared to your Pearls 220W max consumption)

Output: 255WPC into 8ohm, 416WPC into 4ohm.

This amp will drive all but the most difficult speakers with ease....

Edited August 16, 2011 by (_*_)

[GaryCook]

I apologise in advance if this sounds a bit harsh. A friend of mine has a set of Helicon 300’s, stand mounted in a small lounge room and so I have a little bit of experience with the brand. The 300’s, with a sensitivity of 86 db, have a recommended amplifier power of 50 to 200 watts and we found they needed every bit of the 200 watts to perform at their best. The Helicon 400‘s, have a recommended amplifier power of 50 to 300 watts and based on our experience with the 300’s my opinion is they will need every bit of the 300 watts to perform at their best. Hence why I suggested a pair of monoblocks with that level of grunt, plus some.

Secondly and perhaps more importantly, while I was very impressed with the Helicons’ middle and top, beautiful clarity, I was underwhelmed by their bottom end. My friend is a dedicated 2 speakers only stereophile and shunned sub woofers until I added an old one of mine to his set up for testing. Some 2 years later he hasn’t sent it back, says something I guess.

So, while I have no personal experience with Helicon 400’s, my suggestion would be to at least try 300 watts or so of amp power and then add a sub woofer for the test.

Cheers

Gary

[vassp]

MF A5 Power For Sale

Power Consumption: 750W (compared to your Pearls 220W max consumption)

Output: 255WPC into 8ohm, 416WPC into 4ohm.

This amp will drive all but the most difficult speakers with ease....

Thx will look into it.

very powerful.. it will be like going from a WRX to a VIPER.

[vassp]

I apologise in advance if this sounds a bit harsh. A friend of mine has a set of Helicon 300’s, stand mounted in a small lounge room and so I have a little bit of experience with the brand. The 300’s, with a sensitivity of 86 db, have a recommended amplifier power of 50 to 200 watts and we found they needed every bit of the 200 watts to perform at their best. The Helicon 400‘s, have a recommended amplifier power of 50 to 300 watts and based on our experience with the 300’s my opinion is they will need every bit of the 300 watts to perform at their best. Hence why I suggested a pair of monoblocks with that level of grunt, plus some.

Secondly and perhaps more importantly, while I was very impressed with the Helicons’ middle and top, beautiful clarity, I was underwhelmed by their bottom end. My friend is a dedicated 2 speakers only stereophile and shunned sub woofers until I added an old one of mine to his set up for testing. Some 2 years later he hasn’t sent it back, says something I guess.

So, while I have no personal experience with Helicon 400’s, my suggestion would be to at least try 300 watts or so of amp power and then add a sub woofer for the test.

Cheers

Gary

Yep Gary i think youve nailed it on the power required to run these speakers well...

some even run these speakers with 500watts Pass Labs amps. they are some serious gear.

ill let you know how it goes once ive swapped the room around a bit...

SUBS do come in handy (for two channel)and even some of the most extreme hfi set ups use them.... will be something i will do later on though.

[betty boop]

MF A5 Power For Sale

Power Consumption: 750W (compared to your Pearls 220W max consumption)

Output: 255WPC into 8ohm, 416WPC into 4ohm.

This amp will drive all but the most difficult speakers with ease....

I agree be very suprised if has any difficulty driving the speakers in question. But look guys even with that example show you watts ain't watts. That amp has 8 output devices per channel. Compare that with 2 of the same the Elektra t7 uses. Or 4 per channel the integrated version uses. And yet power amp and integrated rated at 250w per ch. The Elektra t7 is rated at 185wpc and have seen and heard the t7 drive 18" subs down to under 2ohm load. If an amp can do that can drive anything !

[myrantz]

18" subs down to under 2ohm load.

You folks are real hardcore... I have TVs smaller than that...

[vassp]

Bumb,.......

 

hey guys...I’m still with the same set up but changed my room around. Still got the same hardware but added a jl audio e110 sub for my movies and music. Great addition and great for music, went the ten inch for speed. I am looking at either going a Prima Luna evo 400 intergrated  or the Prima evo pre with a couple of Emotiva mono blocks, even considered the ps audio m700 Monoblocks  but heard they’re a little spicy- not a good match for my speakers. Hope everyone is good. Anyone using the Prima Luna gear?

Edited August 31, 2019 by vassp1503562426

[gemini07]

Just to repeat what others have said: there are many superb amps out there, including some very powerful Australian examples, so I suggest you try to audition various options with your Helicons in situ. 

 

Also, don't underestimate the impact of your preamp on the sound character - you should consider the amp and pre as a combination.

 

When considering other people's opinions re combinations, bear in mind what music YOU like compared to what they like (or what they think you like).

[vassp]

Yes, bet there are so many amps, l listen to mostly everything except heavy bass music. I don’t play loud, just need a fuller sound without driving the hell out of my speakers with big volumes. Heard my speakers with some Naim power and pre amp setup and they sounded really amazing.  a nice valve pre amp would be awesome, but if the Prima Luna evo 400 integrated can do the trick I’ll be going that way, just have to get a demo when stock comes in hopefully next week. 

[Ittaku]

50 minutes ago, vassp1503562426 said:

Bumb,.......

 

hey guys...I’m still with the same set up but changed my room around. Still got the same hardware but added a jl audio e110 sub for my movies and music. Great addition and great for music, went the ten inch for speed. I am looking at either going a Prima Luna evo 400 intergrated  or the Prima evo pre with a couple of Emotiva mono blocks, even considered the ps audio m700 Monoblocks  but heard they’re a little spicy- not a good match for my speakers. Hope everyone is good. Anyone using the Prima Luna gear?

Impressive, coming back after an 8 year break. What's your budget?

[vassp]

On 31/08/2019 at 11:23 PM, Ittaku said:

Impressive, coming back after an 8 year break. What's your budget?

Around 6k to 10k give or take., my main dilemma  is whether to go pre and power or integrated in the new Prima Luna evo 400 range.

[Ittaku]

4 minutes ago, vassp1503562426 said:

Around 6k to 10k give or take., my main dilemma  is whether to go pre and power or integrated in the new Prima Luna evo 400 range.

Do you still have the same speakers? Those who have the PrimaLunas (not necessarily the new ones) rave about them. They seem to be happy campers.

[vassp]

20 minutes ago, Ittaku said:

Do you still have the same speakers? Those who have the PrimaLunas (not necessarily the new ones) rave about them. They seem to be happy campers.

Yes still have the Dali, only change from 2011 was adding a sub. Jl audio e110.

[Ittaku]

27 minutes ago, vassp1503562426 said:

Yes still have the Dali, only change from 2011 was adding a sub. Jl audio e110.

They're 4 ohm speakers, but the primaluna evo 400 integrated has 4 ohm taps, and 70W. On paper it should be a good match at least.

[H.E. Pennypacker]

Hi OP

 

I have a long history of Dali ownership (including Euphonia ms4).

 

I currently run Rubicon 8s (a non-direct, slightly lower price point replacement for the helicons).

 

I have historically run Krell (KMA-160 and an s300i).

 

The Dalis are notoriously difficult to drive (more so than their impedance rating implies they will be).

 

I found the PL Dialogue premium really struggled running them (particularly the bass).

 

I currently run Electrocompaniet pre/pwr to get the valve-ish sound.

 

I am about to have the pre and power fully serviced to maybe move them on (have a bit of a luxman desire at the moment), but I haven’t decided if I will move them yet.

Edited September 4, 2019 by furtherpale

[vassp]

4 hours ago, furtherpale said:

Hi OP

 

I have a long history of Dali ownership (including Euphonia ms4).

 

I currently run Rubicon 8s (a non-direct, slightly lower price point replacement for the helicons).

 

I have historically run Krell (KMA-160 and an s300i).

 

The Dalis are notoriously difficult to drive (more so than their impedance rating implies they will be).

 

I found the PL Dialogue premium really struggled running them (particularly the bass).

 

I currently run Electrocompaniet pre/pwr to get the valve-ish sound.

 

I am about to have the pre and power fully serviced to maybe move them on (have a bit of a luxman desire at the moment), but I haven’t decided if I will move them yet.

Yes, thanks for the reply. I found the same with my speakers, so hard to get that sound, l wonder  if the more powerful Prima Luna hp or evo 400 will drive them, someone from another forum said his helicon 400 realy opened up when he added a booster to his Primaluna integrated amp. The amp by itself did not have enough for the helicon according to his experience and not sure what music he played. So I am thinking am l better off with a pre and power amp? Value is obviously with the integrated but l don’t want to move sideways from my marantz. I can’t wait for a demo.

[vassp]

5 hours ago, Ittaku said:

They're 4 ohm speakers, but the primaluna evo 400 integrated has 4 ohm taps, and 70W. On paper it should be a good match at least.

Hope so, but these helicon speakers need juice, and I’m not even a high volume user, l just play at mid volume but l want to enjoy my amp at low to med levels, which at the moment my system only gets going when l crank it. Which is not what I’m after. 

[H.E. Pennypacker]

6 minutes ago, vassp1503562426 said:

Yes, thanks for the reply. I found the same with my speakers, so hard to get that sound, l wonder  if the more powerful Prima Luna hp or evo 400 will drive them, someone from another forum said his helicon 400 realy opened up when he added a booster to his Primaluna integrated amp. The amp by itself did not have enough for the helicon according to his experience and not sure what music he played. So I am thinking am l better off with a pre and power amp? Value is obviously with the integrated but l don’t want to move sideways from my marantz. I can’t wait for a demo.

IME, Dali speakers require quality power (high current)... everything I tried that I liked also happened to be the ‘power doubling’ (current power amp is 100x2 @ 8ohm/200x2 @ 4ohm).

 

Ideally you want to try it at home before purchasing.

 

MF amps have the grunt too (I just don’t care for them).

 

If you want bass slam with a tube sound, Electrocompaniet is the go.

Edited September 4, 2019 by furtherpale