Post by soulrider4ever on May 28, 2009 16:09:42 GMT -5
Mr. and Mrs. Speaker were sleeping soundly when they heard
Knock Knock
Who's There?
XPA-2 punches through the door into the speakers face and says EAT IT!
That's how I would sum up the XPA-2.
I've recently had the ability to compare the UPA-2 and XPA-2 head to head across 3 different sets of speakers.
The speakers were - Mirage OMNI 550 / Wharfedale Diamond 9.6 / Mirage OMD-15
I'd like to start this review by saying how much respect I have for Emotiva and all of there products are top notch.
Anyone considering a purchase, should just relax and do it - these are real people with real reviews of the product.
If I were to sum up the UPA-2 vs XPA-2 comparison - obviously the words that are going to come up over and over are
Headroom and Dynamics. So - obviously the problem with words is that they aren't truely understood until you hear it for yourself.
I suppose if descriptor words were used and everyone knew exactly what that meant, we would never need to actually listen.
So the best way I can describe to you is just in what I hear now, that I didn't hear before.
For example - R.E.M. - Losing My Religion - a song I've heard plenty of times, little did I know around 2:00 minutes in there are Violins playing in the background. Now - I know I'm fairly new to this game and you always read 'I've heard things I've never heard before!' - well that's what the XPA-2 does, and does it well. It feeds the speaker the signal, all of it - in all it's glory. You can hear EVERYTHING, clearly.
Now the UPA-2 really shined with the OMNI 550's, the difference between the 2 (other than the XPA-2 able to just play louder) speakers is simply it's 8 ohm impedence. I'd say if you have bookshelf speakers / highly efficient floorstanders and you don't need to play music at insane volume levels - the UPA-2 will kick a$$.
The flipside is the XPA-2, I can't max the volume out on any of the speakers, which I could do with the UPA-2 and it was plenty loud, just not SCREAMING loud like the XPA-2 gets.
In terms of soundstage, well - it's interesting because I love soundstage - that's why I own Mirage OMD-15's, these
are known for the large soundstage they place. The UPA-2 impressed me because it took these speakers 80% of the
way to bliss, which says a lot considering it's $300 price tag. The XPA-2 just left me speechless. I was stunned, for the first time - if it weren't for the fact that I was sitting on my plush couch - I wouldn't have been able to tell you I wasn't at the concert hall; the music just fills the room so convincingly that if I left my eyes closed, I really could see the band and hear every instrument.
I grabbed my brother in law and his buddy to come listen for a bit, they just started laughing when they heard me turn it up because it was just that good sounding. I asked them of there thoughts - and they just said it sounded so 'Clean' and 'Clear'. I then invited my Wife's sisters fiance over - he LOVED this amp and called it an 'eargasm' - Yup, this amp is that good. My wife's sisters response was 'Damn, that sounds good'
It's the kind of Amp that demands responses because it brings the listening experience to the next level - that even the more inexperienced, non audiophile eyes light up and the smiles come.
I could go on here in this review and breakdown a clean A/B test - but essentially the 2 amps sound near identical in sonic virtues at low listening levels, it'd be hard to discern which amp was being used. But once the volume goes up it begins to be clear the extra power is making itself known - especially in the lowend. Which brings me to a point if these weren't being run in full range mode, it'd be more difficult to tell the difference (something to consider).
The XPA-2 is the clear winner, would you have expected it any differently? Of course not. Is the UPA-2 really that good? Yes - for it's price it's phenomenal. Is it the best EVER? No. But that's what the XPA-1 is for
Knock Knock
Who's There?
XPA-2 punches through the door into the speakers face and says EAT IT!
That's how I would sum up the XPA-2.
I've recently had the ability to compare the UPA-2 and XPA-2 head to head across 3 different sets of speakers.
The speakers were - Mirage OMNI 550 / Wharfedale Diamond 9.6 / Mirage OMD-15
I'd like to start this review by saying how much respect I have for Emotiva and all of there products are top notch.
Anyone considering a purchase, should just relax and do it - these are real people with real reviews of the product.
If I were to sum up the UPA-2 vs XPA-2 comparison - obviously the words that are going to come up over and over are
Headroom and Dynamics. So - obviously the problem with words is that they aren't truely understood until you hear it for yourself.
I suppose if descriptor words were used and everyone knew exactly what that meant, we would never need to actually listen.
So the best way I can describe to you is just in what I hear now, that I didn't hear before.
For example - R.E.M. - Losing My Religion - a song I've heard plenty of times, little did I know around 2:00 minutes in there are Violins playing in the background. Now - I know I'm fairly new to this game and you always read 'I've heard things I've never heard before!' - well that's what the XPA-2 does, and does it well. It feeds the speaker the signal, all of it - in all it's glory. You can hear EVERYTHING, clearly.
Now the UPA-2 really shined with the OMNI 550's, the difference between the 2 (other than the XPA-2 able to just play louder) speakers is simply it's 8 ohm impedence. I'd say if you have bookshelf speakers / highly efficient floorstanders and you don't need to play music at insane volume levels - the UPA-2 will kick a$$.
The flipside is the XPA-2, I can't max the volume out on any of the speakers, which I could do with the UPA-2 and it was plenty loud, just not SCREAMING loud like the XPA-2 gets.
In terms of soundstage, well - it's interesting because I love soundstage - that's why I own Mirage OMD-15's, these
are known for the large soundstage they place. The UPA-2 impressed me because it took these speakers 80% of the
way to bliss, which says a lot considering it's $300 price tag. The XPA-2 just left me speechless. I was stunned, for the first time - if it weren't for the fact that I was sitting on my plush couch - I wouldn't have been able to tell you I wasn't at the concert hall; the music just fills the room so convincingly that if I left my eyes closed, I really could see the band and hear every instrument.
I grabbed my brother in law and his buddy to come listen for a bit, they just started laughing when they heard me turn it up because it was just that good sounding. I asked them of there thoughts - and they just said it sounded so 'Clean' and 'Clear'. I then invited my Wife's sisters fiance over - he LOVED this amp and called it an 'eargasm' - Yup, this amp is that good. My wife's sisters response was 'Damn, that sounds good'
It's the kind of Amp that demands responses because it brings the listening experience to the next level - that even the more inexperienced, non audiophile eyes light up and the smiles come.
I could go on here in this review and breakdown a clean A/B test - but essentially the 2 amps sound near identical in sonic virtues at low listening levels, it'd be hard to discern which amp was being used. But once the volume goes up it begins to be clear the extra power is making itself known - especially in the lowend. Which brings me to a point if these weren't being run in full range mode, it'd be more difficult to tell the difference (something to consider).
The XPA-2 is the clear winner, would you have expected it any differently? Of course not. Is the UPA-2 really that good? Yes - for it's price it's phenomenal. Is it the best EVER? No. But that's what the XPA-1 is for
. I'll add some more detailed notes in a week or so of my original break down.
