Hi All,
With my Beyma AMT units up and running with good results on a very low cost 80W PA amp, I am feeling that they really deserve something better. With modest power requirements, my mind got to thinking about home hifi power amps such as NAD, Acam, Quad etc. Whilst they will not be rugged, I will be the one lugging them around so can give them the care they will need!
Your thoughts and experiences please, and could there be much of a noticeable difference in sound quality?
Cheers, Carl.
With my Beyma AMT units up and running with good results on a very low cost 80W PA amp, I am feeling that they really deserve something better. With modest power requirements, my mind got to thinking about home hifi power amps such as NAD, Acam, Quad etc. Whilst they will not be rugged, I will be the one lugging them around so can give them the care they will need!
Your thoughts and experiences please, and could there be much of a noticeable difference in sound quality?
Cheers, Carl.
Have you in mind some data? (Tubes, chip, discrete, class A, AB, D, etc.)? Mono, stereo...
What input level? What load impedance? What power?
What input level? What load impedance? What power?
Input level anything from about 1V down, load impedance 8ohms/resistance 4.9ohms, around 100Wrms stereo. Sound quality more important than amplifier topology.
There are plenty of PA amps out there that I would consider to be HiFi.
Something class A/B from MC2 or Chevin would do nicely imho
TPL 150 has a very flat impedance curve but it is more like a 5 Ohm load from my own measurements.
Something class A/B from MC2 or Chevin would do nicely imho
TPL 150 has a very flat impedance curve but it is more like a 5 Ohm load from my own measurements.
Playing a 200 seat hall, I set fire to my dynaco ST120 with 8 ohm speakers. Solder melted, a wire sprang up & touched the case, base stopper resistors went up in an electric blue ball. OT's too. Overheating occured. The whole chassis was solder melt temperature.
Make sure device selected has adequate heat sinks, and probably a fan.
Sound was fine until the failure. I was using Peavey 1210 speakers.
Home use is 1/8 to 1 watt typically. I was using maybe 10 watts pretty level. The FTC watt rating method does not predict what will happen with level loads. It involves a low power extended soak, then a brief period of rated power out.
Certain very famous PA brands are famous because their power ratings are 24/7. This is not a regulatory compliance issue, it is just word of mouth among musicians & venue managers about what brands don't blow up.
I've found the PA amps I've bought sound better than anything hifi I had previously. Of course my equipment is very old, because I prefer domestic producers, which have been out of fashion in electronics for 40 years. PA vendors produced domestically until the mid 2000's anyway.
Make sure device selected has adequate heat sinks, and probably a fan.
Sound was fine until the failure. I was using Peavey 1210 speakers.
Home use is 1/8 to 1 watt typically. I was using maybe 10 watts pretty level. The FTC watt rating method does not predict what will happen with level loads. It involves a low power extended soak, then a brief period of rated power out.
Certain very famous PA brands are famous because their power ratings are 24/7. This is not a regulatory compliance issue, it is just word of mouth among musicians & venue managers about what brands don't blow up.
I've found the PA amps I've bought sound better than anything hifi I had previously. Of course my equipment is very old, because I prefer domestic producers, which have been out of fashion in electronics for 40 years. PA vendors produced domestically until the mid 2000's anyway.
Last edited:
These are the ones to go for:
MC2 Audio Amplifiers - Premium Pro Audio Amps
I use 3 of them at home. 😀
They are not that far from you in Honiton.
MC2 Audio Amplifiers - Premium Pro Audio Amps
I use 3 of them at home. 😀
They are not that far from you in Honiton.
Thanks All,
I like the look of MC2 gear but, as with anything of quality, it sure ain't cheap! At the moment I'm looking for used options until my budget allows!
Cheers, Carl.
I like the look of MC2 gear but, as with anything of quality, it sure ain't cheap! At the moment I'm looking for used options until my budget allows!
Cheers, Carl.
You were considering QUAD and a new power amp from them costs £1500 and delivers 140W/8Ω.
A new MC2 T500 costs £960 delivers 215W/8Ω with less noise and 2Ω stability.
Which is one reason I suggested them. Myself I used luck and patience to buy mine s/h at ridiculous prices but sadly those days are gone.
My T500 cost me £125 and the other two bigger ones £350 each but those days are long gone and double those prices would be a really good deal now.
A new MC2 T500 costs £960 delivers 215W/8Ω with less noise and 2Ω stability.
Which is one reason I suggested them. Myself I used luck and patience to buy mine s/h at ridiculous prices but sadly those days are gone.
My T500 cost me £125 and the other two bigger ones £350 each but those days are long gone and double those prices would be a really good deal now.
I'd probably just grab something like a QSC RMX amp and call it good. They measure as well as any HiFi amp, and run forever.
Chris
Chris
There are loads of power amplifiers that can do the job here but there is no reason to carry around some giant 50-60lb boat anchor anymore. Now I'm not gonna suggest that a Behringer iNuke sounds as good as a Nad.. because it doesn't, but there are plenty of semi lightweight pro amplifiers(post iron core xformer but pre digital) that sound every bit as good as a hi-fi amp and are built to handle the physical abuse of being trucked around. Top of my list would include a QSC PLX or Yamaha Pseries2.
Get a PA type rack mount amplifier, they will sound as good as99% of home Hi Fi amps, will be way more rugged, not only mechanically but electrically and are *designed* not to overheat even if used 24/7 at full power or even overdriven.
Home use Hi Fi , as well made as it can be, is NOT designed for full continuous power (not even 50%) , not designed for continuous transport , connections in general are meant to be made once and left there for a long time (bare end cables on screw or push in terminals) vs Pro Audio Speakon, plugs or banana posts and in that line of thought, many do NOT have short circuit protection, expecting user to install them in a home, at leisure, and triple checking wiring ... try that at 1 AM in a dark (and I mean **DARK**) Club stage, with DJ music blasting, drunk people bumping into you or worse: "trying to help" and many pushing you: "are you ready? .... you should have started playing one hour ago !!!!!"
Home use Hi Fi , as well made as it can be, is NOT designed for full continuous power (not even 50%) , not designed for continuous transport , connections in general are meant to be made once and left there for a long time (bare end cables on screw or push in terminals) vs Pro Audio Speakon, plugs or banana posts and in that line of thought, many do NOT have short circuit protection, expecting user to install them in a home, at leisure, and triple checking wiring ... try that at 1 AM in a dark (and I mean **DARK**) Club stage, with DJ music blasting, drunk people bumping into you or worse: "trying to help" and many pushing you: "are you ready? .... you should have started playing one hour ago !!!!!"
- Status
- Not open for further replies.