Stay with XPR-2 or switch to twin XPA-1's ? ?

[motobman]

We are moving soon and I will be able to let my Wharfedale Opus 2-3's breathe.... I primarily have a two channel setup only for music, cd, mp3 listening.... Would you switch to Mono blocks??? I have an XPR-2 and selling my XPA-2 Gen 2.....

Will probably setup the Klipsch RP - 280RP's in another room for now.

What do you think? Would you hear a huge difference between the XPR and monoblocks???


Thank you,



Moto

[etc6849]

I don't think you'd hear a difference. But if you decide on selling the XPR-2 and live near SC or will ship via freight (with pallet), please drop me a PM.

[brutiarti]

If you have high revealing speakers you might notice a small difference.

[boomzilla]

I doubt if you'd hear any difference. The Klipsch speakers are very sensitive, and you aren't taxing the XPA-2 at all with them.

[willcycle]

If you like smooth, musical treble in an amp that sounds as good as any high end amplifier available stick with your XPR-2 (the chassis is also of higher quality). I am sorry to see the XPR line discontinued. In my opinion it was the best value Emotiva offered in high end equipment. Even though I would give the nod to my Krell KSA 250, if the XPR-2 was available at the time I would have purchased it and saved the difference in cost.

[vneal]

All the above. But the monos are SOTA

[garbulky]

Hard to say. The XPR-2's treble is slightly laid back. The XPA-1 doesn't have that. I prefer my XPA-1 over the XPR-2. But the reality is the XPR-2 has about the same stuff as two XPA-1s. The XPA-1 does better at class A power and fully balanced. I like the class A power. It offers something more realistic to the sound - hard to say what though. That's really where the sound stuck out for me over the other emo amps. I also like the fully balanced nature (just because).
It also doesn't have a class H power supply which results in a very small bump in distortion when it kicks in.

If you had something lesser than an XPR-2 I would say jump on the XPA-1 gen 2 but I'm not sure since you alraedy have an XPR-2.

If you are looking for an upgrade maybe sell the XPR-2....and get FOUR XPA-1 gen 2s and bi amp. Now there you have 120 watts of class A and twice the power of the XPR-2. BUt of course things can get pretty ridiculous at that point for obvious reasons.

[vcautokid]

Hmm, good question. What do you get with the XPA-1 Monoblocks? Pure channel separation, and isolation. Independent everything from the power connection on. No chance of cross talk. Every Music lover's dream in the list of dreams realized. Yes Emotiva Audio sweetens the deal with the already famous Class A or Class A/B switch on demand.

Power wise is really close. The XPR-2 is already an incredible powerful dynamic, voltage and current delivering source to any loudspeaker with all the stops pulled, and all considerations ignored. Big Dan and Lonnie really made a statement here with the XPR amplifiers. From a packaging standpoint, one big amplifier, one location. One power connection and signal leads, done. Done very very well too.

With efficient speakers, the XPR is Warp drive pushing a feather. You just have immense headroom.

Now reality. Will the XPA-1's amaze with the above features, and or conditions? Will the Class A/AB switch, and isolation, and channel separation really matter that much in your listening? Will locating an additional chassis and signal leads create an additional system constraint issue?

Lastly will going to the XPA-1 vs. the already XPR-2 be a musical or entertainment game changer for you?

Also the intangibles that are bit harder to quantify. Which will create the sound that meets or exceeds your expectations? The XPR-2 or 2 XPA-1 Monos.

You could be what others have posted above. You might be better off staying with the XPR-2, as the XPR-2 is already a Big Block of Power amplifiers already. It is like a 600 cubic inch V12 vs. 2 283 cubic inch V8s? Which will you want? They both put down incredible power. Voltage is Horsepower, Current is Torque. They both are state of the art inside. You may not gain anything at all. And if you did, minor differences might occur. These amplifiers are so good, it is going to be difficult which one gets the nod. Yes you asked a good question.

[cleestedwood]

Not to hi-jack but where would two XPA-2 bi-amped fit in the mix?

[LCSeminole]

Personally I doubt the OP will gain or lose anything significant. Everything that has been brought up by member's posts up to this point are valid. In my experience the XPR's are more precise and realistic, as opposed to the warmth of the class A in the XPA. Otherwise, lets be honest, who here has experienced any crosstalk in their XPR-2? I haven't, and that doesn't say it can't happen, but I'm pretty sure Lonnie took this into consideration when designing the XPR-2 so that signals being superimposed on one another would be the least of his amplifier build concerns. Yes mono-blocks eliminate the crosstalk/channel separation argument, but at this level of Emotiva's amplifier line, not a concern IMO. The XPR-2 has a 2.5 kVA toroidal power transformer, where each XPA-1 has a 1.2kVA toroidal power transformer, so a very very very slight edge to the XPR, and if you are really using that amount of power, one should start thinking about hearing aids.

[boomzilla]

Jun 18, 2016 5:25:22 GMT -5 willcycle said:

If you like smooth, musical treble in an amp that sounds as good as any high end amplifier available stick with your XPR-2 (the chassis is also of higher quality). I am sorry to see the XPR line discontinued. In my opinion it was the best value Emotiva offered in high end equipment. Even though I would give the nod to my Krell KSA 250, if the XPR-2 was available at the time I would have purchased it and saved the difference in cost.

How interesting, willcycle - My experiences were the opposite.

The "smooth, musical treble" of my XPR-2 sounded slightly TOO laid-back and polite for me. I much prefer the sound of the Gen. 2 XPA-2 / XPA-1 amps. As to build quality, yes, the XPR got better parts, but it probably needed them to offset the huge thermal load placed on all components. The XPR ran twice as hot as the XPA series, in my experience, and every time the XPR amp was turned on or off, I was treated to an extended series of clicks and pops due to thermal expansion / contraction of (presumably) the heat sinks.

I sold my XPR, and was happy to see it go. I worried constantly about long-term reliability with that much thermal loading (and for the same reason that I don't like tube power amps). I didn't find the sound bad, but not as good as many other amps I've had (including the McIntosh MC352).

Now the XPA, Gen. 2 series, curiously, rivals anything I've heard at any price.

But of course my ears aren't yours, and I'm sure we value different aspects of amplifier performance.

Thanks for sharing - I enjoyed reading your impressions!

Boomzilla

[boomzilla]

Jun 18, 2016 10:08:56 GMT -5 cleestedwood said:

Not to hi-jack but where would two XPA-2 bi-amped fit in the mix?

Been there, done that - both with (2) Crown PS-400 stereo amps and with (4) XPA-1L mono-block amps. Yes, there IS an audible improvement. Is it enough to justify the cost? Not in my opinion.

In fact, just for giggles, I'm thinking of vertically bi-amplifying the bass & treble sections of my Axiom M100 speakers with four of the five channels in my XPA-5. It'll probably sound better than running each speaker from a single amplifier channel, but again - probably not enough to bother with.

So to summarize, for the same money, you'd probably get better performance with a better-quality amp rather than using two stereo amps for bi-amping. But of course, if you already have one stereo amp, and can pick up a second on the used market inexpensively, then yes, it'd be worth doing.

[DavidR]

Jun 18, 2016 19:50:52 GMT -5 boomzilla said:

Jun 18, 2016 5:25:22 GMT -5 willcycle said:

If you like smooth, musical treble in an amp that sounds as good as any high end amplifier available stick with your XPR-2 (the chassis is also of higher quality). I am sorry to see the XPR line discontinued. In my opinion it was the best value Emotiva offered in high end equipment. Even though I would give the nod to my Krell KSA 250, if the XPR-2 was available at the time I would have purchased it and saved the difference in cost.

How interesting, willcycle - My experiences were the opposite.

The "smooth, musical treble" of my XPR-2 sounded slightly TOO laid-back and polite for me. I much prefer the sound of the Gen. 2 XPA-2 / XPA-1 amps. As to build quality, yes, the XPR got better parts, but it probably needed them to offset the huge thermal load placed on all components. The XPR ran twice as hot as the XPA series, in my experience, and every time the XPR amp was turned on or off, I was treated to an extended series of clicks and pops due to thermal expansion / contraction of (presumably) the heat sinks.

I sold my XPR, and was happy to see it go. I worried constantly about long-term reliability with that much thermal loading (and for the same reason that I don't like tube power amps). I didn't find the sound bad, but not as good as many other amps I've had (including the McIntosh MC352).

Now the XPA, Gen. 2 series, curiously, rivals anything I've heard at any price.

But of course my ears aren't yours, and I'm sure we value different aspects of amplifier performance.

Thanks for sharing - I enjoyed reading your impressions!

Boomzilla

Good point about the heat issue. Heat kills electronics faster than most everything else. My canuck audio buddy has always said to avoid used Class A amps because they have been cooked.

[DavidR]

Jun 18, 2016 8:12:57 GMT -5 garbulky said:

Hard to say. The XPR-2's treble is slightly laid back. The XPA-1 doesn't have that. I prefer my XPA-1 over the XPR-2. But the reality is the XPR-2 has about the same stuff as two XPA-1s. The XPA-1 does better at class A power and fully balanced. I like the class A power. It offers something more realistic to the sound - hard to say what though. That's really where the sound stuck out for me over the other emo amps. I also like the fully balanced nature (just because).
It also doesn't have a class H power supply which results in a very small bump in distortion when it kicks in.

If you had something lesser than an XPR-2 I would say jump on the XPA-1 gen 2 but I'm not sure since you alraedy have an XPR-2.

If you are looking for an upgrade maybe sell the XPR-2....and get FOUR XPA-1 gen 2s and bi amp. Now there you have 120 watts of class A and twice the power of the XPR-2. BUt of course things can get pretty ridiculous at that point for obvious reasons.

Isn't it great spending other people's money.
Just teasing Gar.

[tchaik]

Jun 18, 2016 11:53:42 GMT -5 LCSeminole said:

Personally I doubt the OP will gain or lose anything significant. Everything that has been brought up by member's posts up to this point are valid. In my experience the XPR's are more precise and realistic, as opposed to the warmth of the class A in the XPA. Otherwise, lets be honest, who here has experienced any crosstalk in their XPR-2? I haven't, and that doesn't say it can't happen, but I'm pretty sure Lonnie took this into consideration when designing the XPR-2 so that signals being superimposed on one another would be the least of his amplifier build concerns. Yes mono-blocks eliminate the crosstalk/channel separation argument, but at this level of Emotiva's amplifier line, not a concern IMO. The XPR-2 has a 2.5 kVA toroidal power transformer, where each XPA-1 has a 1.2kVA toroidal power transformer, so a very very very slight edge to the XPR, and if you are really using that amount of power, one should start thinking about hearing aids.

i just am unable to envision my amp sounding any better than it does now. long live my XPR-2. shame on me for not jumping when i still could on the XPR-1s.

just my 2 cents……….


tchaik………

[novisnick]

Jun 18, 2016 20:56:54 GMT -5 tchaik said:

Jun 18, 2016 11:53:42 GMT -5 LCSeminole said:

Personally I doubt the OP will gain or lose anything significant. Everything that has been brought up by member's posts up to this point are valid. In my experience the XPR's are more precise and realistic, as opposed to the warmth of the class A in the XPA. Otherwise, lets be honest, who here has experienced any crosstalk in their XPR-2? I haven't, and that doesn't say it can't happen, but I'm pretty sure Lonnie took this into consideration when designing the XPR-2 so that signals being superimposed on one another would be the least of his amplifier build concerns. Yes mono-blocks eliminate the crosstalk/channel separation argument, but at this level of Emotiva's amplifier line, not a concern IMO. The XPR-2 has a 2.5 kVA toroidal power transformer, where each XPA-1 has a 1.2kVA toroidal power transformer, so a very very very slight edge to the XPR, and if you are really using that amount of power, one should start thinking about hearing aids.

i just am unable to envision my amp sounding any better than it does now. long live my XPR-2. shame on me for not jumping when i still could on the XPR-1s.

just my 2 cents……….


tchaik………

Yes!!

                                                  
I couldn't have said it better!!

[willcycle]

Boomzilla,

As I am certain you know we listen to a system and not individual components. In addition, everyone's hearing is different. With my biamped Apogee Divas (full range three way ribbon speakers) any treble anomaly is laid bare. I also own an XPA-2 which I tried as the upper frequency amp (330 Hz crossover) and found it fatiguing after a short time. The XPR-2 (I have two) sounds very nice.

Comments about hot running class A amplifiers requiring more maintenance is true. Recapping will probably be required every fifteen years or so - though modern capacitors are better than what was available back in 1991. I recapped my Krells and it was a lot of work.

[boomzilla]

Hi again, willcycle -

Absolutely! System matching is paramount, and two less than stellar components can achieve synergy to provide exceptional sonics. If I remember the Apogee Diva reviews, yes, they were the most difficult to drive speakers on the planet AND they could be fierce in the treble with any amp that had the slightest glare, HF emphasis, or treble distortion. The XPR's laid-back treble is a PERFECT match for those speakers. I doubt that anything else would compare. How fortunate that you thought of the match! I'd LOVE to hear that system.

Enjoy - Boom

[Lsc]

I think with your Klipsches the XPR-2 is a good match. No need to spend more money on amps.

[willcycle]

Apogee Divas when using the simplified passive crossover for biamping is only a moderately difficult load of approximately 3.8 ohms. Your thinking of the Scintilla which is one ohm that an XPR-2 cannot drive but the KSA-250 can (works to .5 ohms).