Ravin Posted August 12, 2020 Share Posted August 12, 2020 Hi Folks I have a decision to make, and will appreciate inputs and advice on a 5 channel (or more) amp, please. Budget = $4,000 Use Preference = 60% music / 40% movies My AVR is a Marantz SR6014 Option 1 - Chord SPM 2400, 5 channel power amp (used) - have tested it at home as I was lucky enough to have it loaned. It drove my Sonus Fabers well, and added good depth & stage in the room. Musicality was decent too. My (relatively amateur) thoughts are they are made by a HiFi focussed company who've extended to a HT product and so the HiFi qualities have carried through, creating a nice balance for music and movies. Am told this is a high-end product, that retails in 5 figures (woah!). Option 2 - Been introduced to Elektra. I don't know this product much but I've been told they are great, and musical as well - which is a priority. Fits the budget, brand new; Is Aussie made, which adds a lot of confidence to my purchase decision. I would love to get more feedback. Any thoughts from owners and use experience on these products will help me lots. I know of other brands out there - Anthem, Emotiva, Parasound etc - but the reason why the above-mentioned products are high on the list is the budget. I am really wanting to work within the $4K mark. Thanks all. Ravin (New to this, and loving it:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest niterida Posted August 12, 2020 Share Posted August 12, 2020 I just bought a second hand Crestron 16x60wpc (bridgeable to 8x220wpc) for $400 and it sounds awesome. The actual amps inside are made by ATI which is a respected amp in the U.S. It is powering my Wharfedale PA speakers and they now sound as good as the Krix demo room I auditioned a few weeks ago. Usually plenty of them on ebay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoopy8 Posted August 12, 2020 Share Posted August 12, 2020 With 60% music, you should be considering a setup like this: Get a 2 channel integrated from the Classifieds to drive your mains. Later, you can then consider a multi channel amp for the HT speakers. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted August 12, 2020 Author Share Posted August 12, 2020 20 minutes ago, niterida said: I just bought a second hand Crestron 16x60wpc (bridgeable to 8x220wpc) for $400 and it sounds awesome. The actual amps inside are made by ATI which is a respected amp in the U.S. It is powering my Wharfedale PA speakers and they now sound as good as the Krix demo room I auditioned a few weeks ago. Usually plenty of them on ebay thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted August 12, 2020 Author Share Posted August 12, 2020 (edited) 20 minutes ago, Snoopy8 said: With 60% music, you should be considering a setup like this: Get a 2 channel integrated from the Classifieds to drive your mains. Later, you can then consider a multi channel amp for the HT speakers. Hi Snoopy8 - thanks, love the pic. I had that setup and have separated the mains with a 2ch integrated into a separate room. Hence the search now for a multi channel for the room where the family watches movies. An amp that does music well (good enough) will be the preference thanks again Edited August 12, 2020 by Ravin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoopy8 Posted August 12, 2020 Share Posted August 12, 2020 8 minutes ago, Ravin said: Hi Snoopy8 - thanks, love the pic. I had that setup and have separated the mains with a 2ch integrated into a separate room. Hence the search now for a multi channel for the room where the family watches movies. An amp that does music well (good enough) will be the preference thanks again You must have a large collection of multi channel music to spend 60% of the time on it. Suggest being patient for a multi channel amp to appear in the Classifieds. They do pop up from time to time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest niterida Posted August 12, 2020 Share Posted August 12, 2020 Thread on AVS Forum about the Crestron : https://www.avsforum.com/threads/the-ultimate-budget-11ch-atmos-amp.2980852/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thezone525 Posted August 12, 2020 Share Posted August 12, 2020 (edited) What about 5 of these? They sound incredible for both music and HT, they fit anywhere and 5 of them will only set you back $2k. https://emotiva.com/collections/amps/products/pa-1 Oh and they come with a 5 year warranty. Edited August 12, 2020 by thezone525 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted August 12, 2020 Author Share Posted August 12, 2020 1 hour ago, niterida said: Thread on AVS Forum about the Crestron : https://www.avsforum.com/threads/the-ultimate-budget-11ch-atmos-amp.2980852/ Thanks for the link - looks like an interesting option and glad you’re loving it too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted August 12, 2020 Author Share Posted August 12, 2020 1 hour ago, thezone525 said: What about 5 of these? They sound incredible for both music and HT, they fit anywhere and 5 of them will only set you back $2k. https://emotiva.com/collections/amps/products/pa-1 Oh and they come with a 5 year warranty. Emotiva’s have made a name for themselves and the mono’s pack quite a punch - thank you for sending the link. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted August 12, 2020 Author Share Posted August 12, 2020 Any Elektra or Chord owners with comments? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quark Posted August 12, 2020 Share Posted August 12, 2020 1 hour ago, Ravin said: Any Elektra or Chord owners with comments? Elektra amps are excellent - you'll notice a big improvement over the 6014's internal amps. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wood Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 I picked up an Elektra Theatre 7 earlier in the year from a forum member and noticed a huge improvement. Incredible value for money and being made in Australia is a big plus for me. I pulled it out of my system to sell so I could upgrade to the current HD version but because the trigger stopped working I first need to send to Arthur, which I’m not doing at the moment given I’m in Sydney and he’s in Melb. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted August 13, 2020 Author Share Posted August 13, 2020 6 minutes ago, Wood said: I picked up an Elektra Theatre 7 earlier in the year from a forum member and noticed a huge improvement. Incredible value for money and being made in Australia is a big plus for me. I pulled it out of my system to sell so I could upgrade to the current HD version but because the trigger stopped working I first need to send to Arthur, which I’m not doing at the moment given I’m in Sydney and he’s in Melb. Sorry to hear about the trigger problem (hopefully not a trend), and hope you're able to resolve when circumstances allow. I am intrigued by this brand Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nevyn72 Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 While it will always depend on your specific speakers I have on the pre side; - Denon 4311 (for HT) and Primare Pre32 (for music with HT bypass) Running through and older (non-HD) Elektra Theatron To a set of Paradigm Sigs. This combination is absolutely sublime...... Wood, don't be shy about couriering your Elektra to Arthur, that's what I did (I'm in Sydney too) and perfect during this Covid period. I even got him to put it in a new box and packing for the return for a small extra cost as I didn't have the original packaging..... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
betty boop Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 On 12/08/2020 at 6:57 PM, Ravin said: Budget = $4,000 Use Preference = 60% music / 40% movies My AVR is a Marantz SR6014 Certainly well Worth adding amp in mix as have found self On 12/08/2020 at 6:57 PM, Ravin said: Option 2 - Been introduced to Elektra. I don't know this product much but I've been told they are great, and musical as well - which is a priority. Fits the budget, brand new; Is Aussie made, which adds a lot of confidence to my purchase decision. I would love to get more feedback. Excellent amps, have owned 3 gen of those over many years. Excellent product and excellent local after sales. I probably look for Electra theatre 7 and later. Theatrehd if wanting balanced. If not theatrehd I’d factor in a service, just age and Arthur updates the contacts in there to current ones uses in the HD series ... 23 hours ago, Wood said: pulled it out of my system to sell so I could upgrade to the current HD version but because the trigger stopped working I first need to send to Arthur, which I’m not doing at the moment given I’m in Sydney and he’s in Melb. Good move to send, though do check make sure trigger working on the marantz or try triggering Elektra off something else. As the triggers on marantz though never happened to me have seen off one go with folks overseas good to isolate which gear with the fault if haven’t already Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wood Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 42 minutes ago, Nevyn72 said: Wood, don't be shy about couriering your Elektra to Arthur, that's what I did (I'm in Sydney too) and perfect during this Covid period. I even got him to put it in a new box and packing for the return for a small extra cost as I didn't have the original packaging..... Ah, that’s a great idea. I don’t have original packaging either! What service did you use? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted August 14, 2020 Author Share Posted August 14, 2020 1 hour ago, Nevyn72 said: While it will always depend on your specific speakers I have on the pre side; - Denon 4311 (for HT) and Primare Pre32 (for music with HT bypass) Running through and older (non-HD) Elektra Theatron To a set of Paradigm Sigs. This combination is absolutely sublime...... Wood, don't be shy about couriering your Elektra to Arthur, that's what I did (I'm in Sydney too) and perfect during this Covid period. I even got him to put it in a new box and packing for the return for a small extra cost as I didn't have the original packaging..... Thanks for the feedback. Two pre’s for music and HT running through a single power amp - nice !!! I am so new to this and it’s great learning about the various ways everyone is setting up! my confidence in Elektra is going up by the day - thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted August 14, 2020 Author Share Posted August 14, 2020 59 minutes ago, betty boop said: Certainly well Worth adding amp in mix as have found self Excellent amps, have owned 3 gen of those over many years. Excellent product and excellent local after sales. I probably look for Electra theatre 7 and later. Theatrehd if wanting balanced. If not theatrehd I’d factor in a service, just age and Arthur updates the contacts in there to current ones uses in the HD series ... Good move to send, though do check make sure trigger working on the marantz or try triggering Elektra off something else. As the triggers on marantz though never happened to me have seen off one go with folks overseas good to isolate which gear with the fault if haven’t already Awesome thanks for sharing your experience. The local after sales support and ability to modify seems like a huge plus! How do I buy an Elektra 7 HD from Sydney!? That’s the big question now 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
:) Go Away (: Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 I have never had Elektra amps so cannot say but have heard good things about them. Personally, I am an Anthem Fan including their power amps, can't go wrong with either of Elektra or Anthem. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quark Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 2 hours ago, Ravin said: Awesome thanks for sharing your experience. The local after sales support and ability to modify seems like a huge plus! How do I buy an Elektra 7 HD from Sydney!? That’s the big question now Not sure you have any Elektra dealers in Sydney. Try Carlton AV in Mel, Macleans in Bne or Melbourne HiFi. Typically you should be able to do a deal better than RRP - perhaps 20% off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted August 14, 2020 Author Share Posted August 14, 2020 1 hour ago, Quark said: Not sure you have any Elektra dealers in Sydney. Try Carlton AV in Mel, Macleans in Bne or Melbourne HiFi. Typically you should be able to do a deal better than RRP - perhaps 20% off. Thank you - will call them today 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted August 14, 2020 Author Share Posted August 14, 2020 Got informed by Melb HiFi these are made to order with a 2mth lead time. Woah! But a good product cant be rushed I suppose. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
betty boop Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 25 minutes ago, Ravin said: Got informed by Melb HiFi these are made to order with a 2mth lead time. Woah! But a good product cant be rushed I suppose. my first elektra(some years ago now) i was told 4-6 weeks and bang on 4 weeks i got a call it was there to pick up 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted August 14, 2020 Author Share Posted August 14, 2020 Oh man - the wait for the Elektra is killing me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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