Post by gomer on Jul 30, 2013 11:05:58 GMT -5
So, I've been planning on upgrading my HT a bit. Currently running a pair of old Sherwood Newcastle AVP-9080 and AM-9080. These currently drive smaller monitors that are 85dB (2.83V) 1W/1M and I have plenty of headroom with my normal listening preference. In the future, I am planning on building much much more efficient waveguide speakers (SEOS) which are 94-98db efficient depending on which kit I go with.
So, given that I don't cycle through gear much, and that the AM-9080 is already enough power, I was contemplating using an AVR with an integrated amplifier. In particular, $599 Sherbourn SR-8100. As far as I can tell, the SR-8100 is almost like the UMC-200 + UPA-700. I recognize that the SR-8100 is has a slightly smaller transformer than the UPA-7 and there are no pre-outs, but I don't see that this is an issue.
An XPA-5 as an option is extreme overkill imo for such high efficiency, and I can't reason what I'd gain in my situation, by paying a lot more ($600 vs 1030) to allow for the possibility of starting with the UPA-700 and upgrading later. On the time scale of amplifier upgrade, we tend to replace the pre/pro first, and the AVR from Sherborn is already the same price as the Pre/pro from Emo.
Looking for feedback in case I am missing something with this thought process.
So, given that I don't cycle through gear much, and that the AM-9080 is already enough power, I was contemplating using an AVR with an integrated amplifier. In particular, $599 Sherbourn SR-8100. As far as I can tell, the SR-8100 is almost like the UMC-200 + UPA-700. I recognize that the SR-8100 is has a slightly smaller transformer than the UPA-7 and there are no pre-outs, but I don't see that this is an issue.
An XPA-5 as an option is extreme overkill imo for such high efficiency, and I can't reason what I'd gain in my situation, by paying a lot more ($600 vs 1030) to allow for the possibility of starting with the UPA-700 and upgrading later. On the time scale of amplifier upgrade, we tend to replace the pre/pro first, and the AVR from Sherborn is already the same price as the Pre/pro from Emo.
Looking for feedback in case I am missing something with this thought process.
