CA 5100 and B&W 703's

[KRC]

Is anyone running this combo? I am upgrading from a Arcam AVR 200 (looking at SSP 300 as pre/pro). In stereo it is an increase of 10 watts but as we all know it is the supplied current from the power supply that makes the difference. Looking for an opinion.

KRC

[KRC]

Come on there must be someone out there running a CA 5100 with a 703 speaker.

[joetama]

I don't know about the CA 5100 but I want to run a CP-500 with my 703...

[KRC]

What is the rest of your Classe system. Correct me if I am wrong but the CP 500 is a preamp, what do you have driving your 703's.

KRC

[joetama]

Right now I don't have any Classe product in my system. I have used a SSP-300 for a short period of time till my dad wanted it back.

I used it with a Rotel RB-1080 and it seemed to work fantastic. My father uses his SSP-300 with his RB-1080 and 804S. Works out nicely as well...

[RebelMan]

KRC, what do you wnat to know about the CA-5100? Do you want to know if it has the guts to drive those 703 or are you looking for something else?

[KRC]

Hey Rebelman thanks for the reply, at a local dealer they had the 300 DVD player, CA 5200 and SSP 600 hooked up to 802's, HTM1 and other 800 series stuff. Dealer had a CA 2200 for running 7.1 and it was fantastic, which is where I want to watch myself. Like test driving a Porsche 911 and buying a Honda Civic. The dealer did not have any other Classe products to listen too. Salesman said the SSP 300 and CA 5100 will sound very similiar when driving my 703's and the rest of my HT. Right then, spidey sense was tingling. Cannot compare 100K CAD to where I want to be. I had a Classe amp before in my two channel stereo days, the smaller model Seventy which had tons of current and sound quality. Now I am moving up the food chain and spending this kind of money you need to use your head and not the emotion from an awesome demo (Band of Brothers, Ray Charles, Eagles, Dianna Krall, Holly Cole etc). So to answer your question, would they be similiar keeping in mind more power, 9K CAD DVD player, 800 series speakers, high end cabling etc. I asked the salesman if he would be getting the other products in but only if customer ordered. I have read all the online articles on the two Classe componets but hoping for an independant opinion. The 5200 easily drives the 802's and HTM1 so the 5100 should surely drive my 703's and from my research the SSP 300 is basically the same as the SSP 600 minus the balanced connections. WOW what a load of questions.

Kevin

[RebelMan]

KRC, if I understand you correctly, you want to achieve caviar performance on a pauper’s budget, yes? In terms of sonics an SSP-300 and CA-5100 combo will possess the similar Classe’ traits that an SSP-600 and CA-5200 has and the 600/700 Series systems will exhibit some similarities to the 800 Series too. But as complete systems the family resemblance while present will be less definitive in either brand. But in terms of raw power, the SSP-300 and CA-5100 should have no problem tackling your 703s and taking up residence in your home system. I've seen an Classe' CAP-2100 (100 wpc) confidently drive a pair of B&W 800D under standard operation.

[sikoniko]

One thing to consider: long term plans.

You need to answer if the 5100 will meet your long-term needs, should you upgrade to 800's down the road. Generally, it will. It will power the whole line decently, but realistically, if you ever plan on getting Diamonds, you will want the higher powered amp, such as the x200W+ options.

Also, keep in mind that the 2ch performance of the ssp300 is not equal to the ssp600.

[KRC]

Hey Rebelman, no it is not an issue of Paupers budget (and no issue taken), it is an issue of being burnt twice from a salesman that said half truths and what the customer wanted to hear to make the sale. He forgot the adage that in stereo stuff customers keep coming back to upgrade their eqiupment to usually higher end stuff from stores and salesman that do them right. He has lost me as a customer from two purchases I made. So now, as in anything, I do not trust a saleman until he/she proves her loyalty to me as well. I went to a new store/salesman to audition the Classe stuff and want to make sure I am not being told another story I wanted to hear. My present system I have a weird connection setup due to a salemans advice and now pay for it with having to use three remotes to make sources work. As Charlie Brown wouyld say "Good grief". So when I ask if others are running this combo, I want to make sure it will work.

Kevin

[KRC]

Hey sikoniko, I here what you are saying, but what exactly do you get by running 200 x5 versus 100 x5 besides the obvious. Since I run B&W speakers and want to continue to upgrade in that line, would it be better to eventually bi-amp with a pair of CA 5100's as I creep up the speaker line. Is the sound quality that much different when running these two amps through 800 series speakers?

Kevin

[sikoniko]

What I would do is try and map out your long-term goals. 5.1? 7.1?

IMO, there are a couple options from classe... and it really depends on your speakers.

I'll give you my setup as an example...

2x N802
1x NHTM1
2x SCM1

Currently I have a CA-3200 for the front and I hope to add a CA-5100 for the back 2, which will also give me expansion should I want to go 7.1, which I think I would.

So, if you bought the CA-5100, with a long-term goal of a similar system with diamonds instead, this would be great. My setup does not allow me to do something like a CA-5200, because of wiring and the rack in the back.

If you wanted 801's or 800's, I really feel like you would need to go with Mono's for all 3 (including the HTM1D to match). The back speakers could be 2100, 5100, or 5200 depending on your setup.

a couple of ideas to think about...

[specialized]

I don't know about the CA 5100 but I want to run a CP-500 with my 703...

I found that u have a 703... As i found out u have driven them first in small room then in bigger room..

What size is smallest room that u recomend for this speakers?

Are they too big for my room? (5.5m x 3.8m) ?


Darko

[joetama]

You have a PM back specialized.

But, short answer no I don't think your room is too small...

It should be just about right.