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Post by Boomzilla on Mar 12, 2019 19:25:57 GMT -5
Did you replace your A-300 with the PA-1s? I did.
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Post by rockman85 on Mar 13, 2019 11:33:30 GMT -5
Did you replace your A-300 with the PA-1s? I did. I may have to demo them too. What are they providing that the A-300 did not?
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Post by garbulky on Mar 13, 2019 13:00:03 GMT -5
I may have to demo them too. What are they providing that the A-300 did not? (Subjective impressions here) Better dynamics, bass, soundstage and grabs your attention more. For me the A-300 is ok. The tone is nice and the sound feels relaxed instead of compressed together but nothing much more to write home about. It's a functional amp that doesn't do anything wrong you can point to but not necessarily a great amp. However I do prefer it over the XPA-2 gen 3 because of a more realistic tone in the treble. I think the PA-1 is close to the level of an XPA-2 gen 2 (or XPA-1 gen 2) though there are somethings the XPA-1 gen 2 does better.
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Post by rockman85 on Mar 13, 2019 13:38:37 GMT -5
I may have to demo them too. What are they providing that the A-300 did not? (Subjective impressions here) Better dynamics, bass, soundstage and grabs your attention more. For me the A-300 is ok. The tone is nice and the sound feels relaxed instead of compressed together but nothing much more to write home about. It's a functional amp that doesn't do anything wrong you can point to but not necessarily a great amp. However I do prefer it over the XPA-2 gen 3 because of a more realistic tone in the treble. I think the PA-1 is close to the level of an XPA-2 gen 2 (or XPA-1 gen 2) though there are somethings the XPA-1 gen 2 does better. I feel similarly after owning the A300 for a while now. Just exactly what you said, its a GOOD amp, cant really fault it, but I am suspecting there is better out there. I wonder if you have heard the DR1, since the XPA 1 Gen 2 is basically out of reach unless I use ebay or audiogon.
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Post by garbulky on Mar 13, 2019 14:09:49 GMT -5
(Subjective impressions here) Better dynamics, bass, soundstage and grabs your attention more. For me the A-300 is ok. The tone is nice and the sound feels relaxed instead of compressed together but nothing much more to write home about. It's a functional amp that doesn't do anything wrong you can point to but not necessarily a great amp. However I do prefer it over the XPA-2 gen 3 because of a more realistic tone in the treble. I think the PA-1 is close to the level of an XPA-2 gen 2 (or XPA-1 gen 2) though there are somethings the XPA-1 gen 2 does better. I feel similarly after owning the A300 for a while now. Just exactly what you said, its a GOOD amp, cant really fault it, but I am suspecting there is better out there. I wonder if you have heard the DR1, since the XPA 1 Gen 2 is basically out of reach unless I use ebay or audiogon. Not out of reach at all You can post a want to buy (WTB) ad on the emporium on this forum. This way you skip the audiogon and ebay fees plsu you are dealing with more familiar people. I have seen XPA-1 gen 2's come up for sale often. There's one for sale right now with warranty up to 2023. Also the warranty is transferable on most Emotiva amps but you have to make sure the seller transfers it to you. Just click the link below. Imo you should be able to talk him down on the price. emotivalounge.proboards.com/thread/54343/emotiva-xpa-gen-pair-newIf I was in the market for an amp in that price range, the XPA-1 gen 2 is the best I've heard. It is a no-compromise amp in everyway. A monoblock so no interchannel distortion. Massive torroidal transformer compared to switching power supplies of unkown reliability. 180,000 mf of low esr capacitance. 60 watts class A power (not easy to do - there's a reason the DR amps don't have 60 watts of class A power). Fully balanced. Hefty heatsinks. No fans. 1000 watts @ 4 ohms. Stable fully balanced in to 2 ohms @1700 watts (this means the amp sees that load as 1 ohm and still runs!!) Just to give you an idea of how much build it has. The 60 watts of class A requires the amps to consume 300 watts of power all the time to produce it even when it's not making sound. Which means you have to have an amp that can handle that all day long (and not fail). Also there is a switch on the front so you can switch it in to low bias mode so it doesn't consume all that power if you don't want it to. Meanwhile the Hypex ncore monoblocks which are 400 watt monoblocks use switching power supplies and class D and even though it is very clean and great sounding, in the long run it's actual steady power output is 40 watts. The XPA-1 a tank. You won't find anything that has all of these features for even twice or thrice its price.
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Post by Boomzilla on Mar 13, 2019 14:39:09 GMT -5
I may have to demo them too. What are they providing that the A-300 did not? Hi rockman85 - What do the Emotiva PA-1 amps deliver that the A-300 does not? I see that Garbulky has already chimed in on that question and I don't disagree with anything he's said. But I'd chime in on some other things that I think the PA-1s do better. To wit: 1. Better channel separation - This almost goes without saying with mono blocks vs. multiple channels on the same chassis. In theory this shouldn't matter. As Mr. DYohn used to say - "inaudible is inaudible, and you don't get extra points for going above" (a bad paraphrase, but you get the idea). But in this case, I think I'd argue that the better channel separation may be audible. The PA-1s seem to throw a more holographic image. 2. Lower power consumption = cooler running = longer service life - Now this is also an arguable premise since there are a BUNCH of other variables (parts quality, design, etc.), but at least in theory, the PA-1x should be cleaner (less likely to attract dust since less air has to flow through the chassis), lighter (physically), and longer lasting than garbulky's XPA-1 mono blocks that need a LOT more air flowing through them to maintain their higher operating temperatures. Less airflow through the chassis = less dirt being deposited inside the amp. 3. Equivalent or better sound, depending on the speakers - The lower the speaker impedance (or the more reactive the phase angles), the more garbulky's XPA-1 (G2) amps will best the PA-1s. But with true 4 to 8 ohm nominal impedances (including 99% of the speakers on the market today), the sound of the PA-1s will rival any other amp I've heard, including the XPA-1s. These PA-1 amps punch WAY over their price category. Now I read a review today of some speakers where the reviewer was using some second-generation Crown XLS, Class-D, "pro" amps. In spite of the fact that the PA-1s share Class-D operation with those Crowns, the sound of the PA-1s is amazingly better to my ears. And it leads me to really wonder why one would attempt reviews with mediocre-sounding amps when the PA-1s are available for similar prices. But I digress - The PA-1s sound awesome with most speakers on the market (and yes, even better than the A-300 (which is no slouch of an amp on its own). So until I hear something better at an equivalent price, I'm sticking with the PA-1 amplifiers. Boomzilla
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Post by garbulky on Mar 13, 2019 15:15:44 GMT -5
Boomzilla : Re: the service life. The XPA-1 line (gen 1 and 2) have been around a long time (a decade). One of the longest running Emotiva amps. It speaks for its service that I haven't seen any reports of failure or significant issues reported here or anywhere. The A-300 on the other hand has had several reports of fan related problems. The gen 3 (non-dr) line with its switching supply has had at least one report I've read about DOA. (I've also not heard of issues with the PA-1 amp.)
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Post by rockman85 on Mar 13, 2019 15:25:45 GMT -5
I may have to demo them too. What are they providing that the A-300 did not? Hi rockman85 - What do the Emotiva PA-1 amps deliver that the A-300 does not? I see that Garbulky has already chimed in on that question and I don't disagree with anything he's said. But I'd chime in on some other things that I think the PA-1s do better. To wit: 1. Better channel separation - This almost goes without saying with mono blocks vs. multiple channels on the same chassis. In theory this shouldn't matter. As Mr. DYohn used to say - "inaudible is inaudible, and you don't get extra points for going above" (a bad paraphrase, but you get the idea). But in this case, I think I'd argue that the better channel separation may be audible. The PA-1s seem to throw a more holographic image. 2. Lower power consumption = cooler running = longer service life - Now this is also an arguable premise since there are a BUNCH of other variables (parts quality, design, etc.), but at least in theory, the PA-1x should be cleaner (less likely to attract dust since less air has to flow through the chassis), lighter (physically), and longer lasting than garbulky 's XPA-1 mono blocks that need a LOT more air flowing through them to maintain their higher operating temperatures. Less airflow through the chassis = less dirt being deposited inside the amp. 3. Equivalent or better sound, depending on the speakers - The lower the speaker impedance (or the more reactive the phase angles), the more garbulky 's XPA-1 (G2) amps will best the PA-1s. But with true 4 to 8 ohm nominal impedances (including 99% of the speakers on the market today), the sound of the PA-1s will rival any other amp I've heard, including the XPA-1s. These PA-1 amps punch WAY over their price category. Now I read a review today of some speakers where the reviewer was using some second-generation Crown XLS, Class-D, "pro" amps. In spite of the fact that the PA-1s share Class-D operation with those Crowns, the sound of the PA-1s is amazingly better to my ears. And it leads me to really wonder why one would attempt reviews with mediocre-sounding amps when the PA-1s are available for similar prices. But I digress - The PA-1s sound awesome with most speakers on the market (and yes, even better than the A-300 (which is no slouch of an amp on its own). So until I hear something better at an equivalent price, I'm sticking with the PA-1 amplifiers. Boomzilla Thanks for the thoughtful response, being that I took your advice with the Pendragons this really makes me want to try out the PA-1s. The journey continues... p.s. Have you seen Tektons new speakers, the Ulfberht, can't afford any time soon but they look like beasts. www.tektondesign.com/ulfberht-pmd-monitor.html
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