XPA-3, XPA-5 or DR3

[chisag]

I have been out of the audiophile loop for a looooong time but I am moving to a new home and I am looking to replace some of my system. So I have quite a few choices to make starting with the MC700 to replace my Meridian 565 Processor. Since I have 3 Hales Transcendence 3's for my front end I was using 2 Ayre V3's and some Marrantz MA500 mono amps for the 2 rear channels. I use the combination of Cardas wiring and posts along with Cardas interconnects and speaker cable that were used by both Hales and Ayre so the sound was very rich and warm. This brings me to the Emotiva choices:

1. XPA-5 driving all 5 channels.

2. XPA-3 for the front end with the MA500's driving the rears.

2. XPA-DR3 driving the front end with the MA500's driving the rears.

If the consensus is the DR3 is warmer/richer and better at driving large speakers like the Transcendence 3's I don't mind paying the difference between the XPA-3 and the DR3. That said the convenience of driving all 5 speakers with the XPA-5 certainly sounds like a good idea as well.  

I appreciate any advice from those of you that have the above amps. Thanks in advance! 

[creimes]

Hey chisag,

I'm not familiar with those speakers, I tried looking up specs and see they are 4ohm nominal and 87db efficiency which is on the lower side so more power may be beneficial, also right now you get 20% back in Emobucks so with the XPA-DR3 you would get $400 back, i would suggest the refurbished XMC-1 which are the XMC-1's that customers are trading in on the newer processor line, they upgrade the HDMI board with the 4K board and resell them and IMO is a upgrade over the MC700. All that said the XPA-3 or XPA-5 is no slouch either so and XPA-3 or XPA-5 and XMC-1 would also be great. In the end it's your money but many of us here are able to help spend it haha.

Cheers,
Chad

[chisag]

Thanks creimes for responding. I am not getting any other replies and I want to order and take advantage of the 20% discount so I think I will just go with the XPA5 for convenience. Really wanted some comparisons of XPA5 and DR3 from those that have owned and/or compared but I am running out of time.

I am a little concerned coming from stereo Ayre amps that cost 3k each but times have changed so much I am sure there is not a direct $ comparison with the advances in technology. The MA500s run a little warm so I would prefer to go XPA5 unless the sound difference with the DR3 is at least different enough to justify running 3 amps instead of 1.

[cawgijoe]

I own the current version of the XPA-5 and it works wonderfully in a 5.1 system running three Thiel speakers across the front and two Emotiva ERD-1 surrounds. Handles the Thiels with ease. The Thiels are rated at 4ohms or less. I think you will be happy.

[chisag]

Thanks cawgijoe. My journey to Hales included Vandersteen, then Thiels and finally Hales. I worked at the Electronics Show with Spectral in Chicago and got to meet and talk with Richard Vanderstreen, Tom Thiel and Paul Hales. The convienience of the XPA5 outweighs a small sonic difference with the DR3. If it were an obvious difference I would go with the MA500's in the rear but nobody has chimed in highly recommending the DR3 over the XPA5. My main concern was the warmth of sound with these two amps. It took me many years to put together the combo of Ayre and Hales for the most accurate and warm neutral sound. I was never a fan of the more analytical sound of several other audiophile amps and speakers.

As an aside, I have an Oppo for my main Blu Ray DVD player but my Pioneer Elite Player I would use in the bedroom stopped working and is not repairable. Seems there is no software update ... WTF Pioneer? I looked at some Blu Ray DVD players for my bedroom that has Hales Transcendence 1's and was a little shocked to see most only had HDMI connections and no RCA audio outs so I cannot connect them to my Denon Receiver. I guess that is how out of the audiophile loop I have been.

[rzelinka]

This thread is also of interest to me.

I would like some advice and perspective from current XMC-2 owners and the XPA line of amps please. I am in the market for a Dolby Atmos capable system. A little about my current configuration which is a Dolby 7.2 setup.

I have two Rotel RMB-1095 amps which are rated at 200 WPC into 8 ohms
Using an Outlaw Audio 976 processor
My 2 front channels are Definitive Technology BP2000TL’s
My center channel is a Definitive Technology CLR 3000
I have 4 Definitive Technology BPVX/P for the rear and surround back channels
My subs are 2 Hsu Research ULS15’s

I only watch movies which are streamed by an Apple TV and don’t listen to music in a room which is 13x15x8 and therefore have been looking at an Emotiva XMC-2 for processing. I’m a little anxious about all the reports of bugs and slowness. I admit for every one who posts issues with this, there’s an equal number of posts to say it’s a great processor. Curious to learn what others were experiencing.

At the same time, I’m considering selling my Rotel amps in favor of an XPA-DR3 for the front sound stage and pair of XPA 5 channel amps for the surrounds and height channels. One thing that has me a little reluctant about the XPA-DR3 is that my main LCR are powered even though they’re set to small in the processor and all LFE goes to the two subs. Reading the owners manual for the DR3 it clearly says not to plug in powered speakers to the amp. I suppose I could keep my LCR channels unplugged. I welcome thoughts here please. Is an XPA-DR3 overkill and should I just go with the standard XPA3 for the front stage channels?

Thank you in advance for any replies

[davidl81]

Jan 19, 2021 20:41:03 GMT -5 rzelinka said:

This thread is also of interest to me.

I would like some advice and perspective from current XMC-2 owners and the XPA line of amps please. I am in the market for a Dolby Atmos capable system. A little about my current configuration which is a Dolby 7.2 setup.

I have two Rotel RMB-1095 amps which are rated at 200 WPC into 8 ohms
Using an Outlaw Audio 976 processor
My 2 front channels are Definitive Technology BP2000TL’s
My center channel is a Definitive Technology CLR 3000
I have 4 Definitive Technology BPVX/P for the rear and surround back channels
My subs are 2 Hsu Research ULS15’s

I only watch movies which are streamed by an Apple TV and don’t listen to music in a room which is 13x15x8 and therefore have been looking at an Emotiva XMC-2 for processing. I’m a little anxious about all the reports of bugs and slowness. I admit for every one who posts issues with this, there’s an equal number of posts to say it’s a great processor. Curious to learn what others were experiencing.

At the same time, I’m considering selling my Rotel amps in favor of an XPA-DR3 for the front sound stage and pair of XPA 5 channel amps for the surrounds and height channels. One thing that has me a little reluctant about the XPA-DR3 is that my main LCR are powered even though they’re set to small in the processor and all LFE goes to the two subs. Reading the owners manual for the DR3 it clearly says not to plug in powered speakers to the amp. I suppose I could keep my LCR channels unplugged. I welcome thoughts here please. Is an XPA-DR3 overkill and should I just go with the standard XPA3 for the front stage channels?

Thank you in advance for any replies

I would call Emotiva and ask them about the DefTechs and the DR-3 amp.

That being said I own a RMC-1, DR-2, and a XPA-9 in an Atmos 7.2.4 setup. The only reason I bought the DR-2 is that I listen to a decent amount of two channel music and I wanted a dedicated two channel amp for that. For movies my XPA-9 does amazing. It pushes my center channel effortlessly. I would have no reservations in a pure HT setup running an XPA-11 for a 7.2.4 setup.

[tropicallutefisk]

Unfortunately, I can't tell you how the DR3 would compare to the XPA-5. However, I do own three DR1s and would say they are not warm, but not dry or analytical either. Mine are driving 3.7i Maggies and a CC3 center channel. I've tried driving them with a McIntosh MC152 and was very disappointed. The Mc sound is nice and warm, but that MC152 could not really drive my 3.7is to their full potential. The bass was lacking and the system just sounded like it was starving, no "pop". Just mellow. Previously, I had a Rotel RMB1075 5 channel amp. That amp was very nice and actually was probably a better match than the Mc for my speakers. At a dealer's listening room I heard an Ayre amp with Maggie 1.6QRs. I don't know the model, but it sounded very sweet with the Maggies. Very neutral and very detailed. But I would not have described as "warm". Then again what I call warm may not be correct. Warm, to me, is that thick syrupy sound you can get from certain tubes in tube amps. Whereas I describe neutral as a pleasant sound that doesn't cause ear fatigue. And using my definitions I would say both that Ayre I heard and the DRs are very neutral and easy on the ears. IMO I would not spend extra to get the Ayre amp over the DR amp. At least not without a good in home demo. To sum this up, I have never been happier with my system than I am now and a good part of it is the DR/Maggie combo.

[bonscott]

Jan 19, 2021 20:41:03 GMT -5 rzelinka said:

This thread is also of interest to me.

I would like some advice and perspective from current XMC-2 owners and the XPA line of amps please. I am in the market for a Dolby Atmos capable system. A little about my current configuration which is a Dolby 7.2 setup.

I have two Rotel RMB-1095 amps which are rated at 200 WPC into 8 ohms
Using an Outlaw Audio 976 processor
My 2 front channels are Definitive Technology BP2000TL’s
My center channel is a Definitive Technology CLR 3000
I have 4 Definitive Technology BPVX/P for the rear and surround back channels
My subs are 2 Hsu Research ULS15’s

I only watch movies which are streamed by an Apple TV and don’t listen to music in a room which is 13x15x8 and therefore have been looking at an Emotiva XMC-2 for processing. I’m a little anxious about all the reports of bugs and slowness. I admit for every one who posts issues with this, there’s an equal number of posts to say it’s a great processor. Curious to learn what others were experiencing.

At the same time, I’m considering selling my Rotel amps in favor of an XPA-DR3 for the front sound stage and pair of XPA 5 channel amps for the surrounds and height channels. One thing that has me a little reluctant about the XPA-DR3 is that my main LCR are powered even though they’re set to small in the processor and all LFE goes to the two subs. Reading the owners manual for the DR3 it clearly says not to plug in powered speakers to the amp. I suppose I could keep my LCR channels unplugged. I welcome thoughts here please. Is an XPA-DR3 overkill and should I just go with the standard XPA3 for the front stage channels?

Thank you in advance for any replies

Emotiva does not recommend Using the DR Amps with powered speakers.  The XPA work just fine.