rotel or emotiva

[stevek]

hello,ok gonna go with an amp first.i have cm9 and cmc2 with a denon 3312,i really want to get the best performance i can for 2 channel listening on my budget.1000.00 i know a lot of you guys have experience with these 2 amps.or any other amp within the 1000 dollar budget.my local dealer warned me not to get to much power for these speakers and recommended rotels 125w line.thanks steve

[longgone]

... a Mcintosh 2205 is in that budget. 200 per channel. beautiful. excellent performance. Check the forums or Audio Classics.

[htsteve]

stevek,

I would order an Emotiva amp. About the time that comes in, borrow a Rotel from your dealer. Take it home and demo it side by side. If you like the Emotiva, keep. it. If you like the Rotal, buy it and send the Emotiva. I believe they have a 30 day return policy.



Hope this helps.



PS - Longgone's suggestion is an excellent one.

[stevek]

thanks for the imput guys.i will check out the macin tosh also.i plan on taking my time with this.the denon sounds really good to my ears it just dosent have enough power.says it 125x7 but it shuts down on me when i bump up the volume.

[wkhanna]

The Mac is a good suggestion.

Might I table the RB-1090 for your consideration?

It's obviously out of production now, so used is the only option, but is perfectly placed at the limit of your budget.

Basically a duel mono @ 380 wpc 8 ohm AFA specs go.......
.....Sound-wise, mine (bought used) puts a grin on my face every day.

link to review

[tanwn]

i have a rotel 1090, emotiva xpa 2. To my ears, i prefer the rotel as it is has a sweeter top end and the bass goes deeper.

[wkhanna]

.......my local dealer warned me not to get to much power for these speakers and recommended rotels 125w line......

HTGuide Rule #1: There is no such thing as too much power.
HTGuide Rule #2: See HTGuide Rule #1.

Seriously, based on that statement alone, your dealer is a jerk (bad thing), or, he is just trying to save you $ in the short term (not quite as bad).

Do you need more than 125 watts? Not necessarily.
Will more power hurt your speakers? Yes, if you play them loud enough to damage your ears. But so will trying to play them with an under-powered amp.

As you approach the upper limit of the power output of an amp, it begins to induce distortion. Distortion is what breaks speakers, not necessarily SPL (sound pressure level measured in db’s). Think of a power amp like a water faucet. As the valve nears full open, the stream of water goes from an even controlled and focused powerful stream to a turbulent, uncontrolled gusher.

I personally like your approach. Get a good amp now, and as you upgrade the rest of your components in the future, your amp will still be capable and grow with your system, not soon to become the weak link.

JMHO YMMV

Enjoy!

[stevek]

thanks guys, this is the reason i made this post.always good to hear different opinions.my dealer is actually a great guy i have been buying equiptment for over 10 yrs from him.always get a nice 15% discount.he has even offered to get me b stock at a 30% discount if i wanted to save money.he sells rotel but the cost of the emo amps are hard to pass on.again thanks for all your help.
steve

[stevek]

wkhanna thanks for the link.looks like its definitly one to consider

[dan87951]

I think the dealer is just trying to prevent you from burning out a voice coil on the CM9's. It's very easy to do as the speakers are so clean and distortion free at higher volumes that you don't realize you have blown a VC until its to late. I actually did this by accident not knowing when I had my pair of CM9's connected to a my monoblock XPA-1's. All was covered under warranty. My advise would be to buy a XPA-2 and be careful with the volume not to damage the speakers. I'm not a big fan of rotel I think their quality has gone down hill.

Dan