Pulled the Trigger. FINALLY!

[hawk14]

Hey Guys, after much going back and forth, reading reviews and such, losing out on used gear (Completely my fault) I finally settled on brand new XPA-3. Ordered today and will mate with my 20+ year old Nikko - 100 watt - 2 channel amp. For Now. ;D

Can't wait to get it and set it up and see/hear the improvement to my system!

Is there anyone dong a five channel setup like me with the XPA-3, and an older two channel amp? Are you satisfied with the sound of your rear channels?

Here's to Happy Emotiva listening!!

[0pter0n]

Hello Hawk,

I added an XPA-3 to my system and moved the UPA-2 to the rears. The fronts are Klipsch KG-4, center is an ERM-1 and the UPA-2 is driving Acculine A-1. I am delighted with the result!

Frankly, there are many amps which purport to be able to drive high-efficiency 4 ohm loads - it's not so simple. The XPA-3 handles the Klipsch with the greatest of aplomb yielding wonderful stereo as well as excellent HT results when adding in the center channel.

The UPA-2 on the Acculines is more than enough - the fact remains that the better the amp, the better the sound from your speakers. Since the kind of material your Nikko will be handling is less demanding than what you will be asking of the XPA-3, I expect you'll be delighted with the sound from the rears.

Let me also add that I ended up buying the XPA-3 after seeing that its price was equal or less than many of the used items. And this way, I get a 5 year warranty from a company proven to provide excellent service and unquestionably high quality.

What you may find, as I did, is that you may want to take another look at the position of your speakers, if possible. My wife was willing to accept the front speakers being placed only 6 feet from our listening position because the sound was so much better.

Enjoy and do let us know how it turns out for you.

[hawk14]

Thanks OpterOn, i just read your other post where you shared your experiences with the XPA-3. I'm glad yo hear that you're so pleased with the amp. I believe that I made the decision, as this will give me future flexibility. I will post pics and impressions on the whole experience!

[2infinity]

Congrats on the purchase Hawk! Let us know what you think. If the XPA-3 is anything like the 2/5 you will love it. I sure love mine!

[Deleted]

Hawk, welcome to the flock. How about a close up photo of that Nikko amp when you show some pictures. They made some nice equipment although that brand wasn't exactly a household name in the West. A friend had a Nikko amp years ago that was a model 130 or something close to that. It was dark and had handles. Very nice amp.

Sure you'll love the XPA-3. ;D

[hawk14]

thanks a lot guys. Im really excited. Normally how long has delivery taken? I received X series interconnects in about 5 days or so during the holidays.

I will be sure to take pics of the Nikko. Yes, it is the Alpha 130, and I still have the matching pre-amp and AM/FM tuner. Maybe I'll post pics of the whole set just for nostalgic purposes. ;D

But really, the Nikko has done well for me over the years, both for two channel listening and for mobil DJ-ing way back when

When home theater became popular in the late 80's-early 90's, I added a Yamaha processor that had center and rear channel amps. However, after buying a full-on AV receiver, I removed the Nikko and the Yamaha from the equation. Now with the XPA-3, the Nikko will be back in action for rear duty, at least until the UPA-1 comes out. .

[2infinity]

Hawk,

Delivery is usually very quick. Mine got here within 7 days on Fedex Ground. But then again, I don't live that far away.

[hawk14]

Ok that's cool, 7 days is what I kinda anticipated. Thanks 2infinity.

[Wideawake]

Yay! Welcome to the family Hawk!

[hawk14]

Thanks a lot, wideawake. I could have made a purchase a long time ago, but I kept going back and forth with which way I wanted to go; 5 channel, 3 & 2 combo, UPA vs. XPA. I felt like pulling my hair out at one point, but ended up going with the XPA-3 because I know I will have it for a long time and will still be in my system when I decide to cange speakers.

Received tracking info from Fedex today; the amp will be here Tuesday. Licking my chops !!

[hawk14]

Its Here! Actually, it got here last Tuesday, but I didn't get to pick it up from my mother's until the weekend. so, My mother calls and says that I have a package and that it took 2 FedEx guys to bring it in. ;D I laughed to myself thinking that this thing must be huge. Long story short, I finally hooked it up on Sunday, and did some brief two channel listening. My initial impressions are very favorable, but I will list the full story with pics a little later.

[hawk14]

Hey guys, here are my first impressions of the XPA-3. ITS FREAKIN HUGE! If any of you are familiar with downtown Brooklyn, there are a lot of brownstones, which are basically 3 and 4 story townhomes. Well I live in one of these and my theater room is on the third floor!! Suffice to say that I took breather after climbing each level with that beast. After dragging it into the room last Saturday, I had a drink of water and went to bed. Too tired to mess with any equipment at that point

The next day I spent good part of it disconnecting and rearranging gear and furniture. The amp is well-built but seems more front heavy than some of my other amps, as the weight was more evenly distributed with those other units. The other thing I noticed, and it's not a major issue, is that the power button does not feel like its metal, and therefore does not feel as solid or substantial as some the other power buttons on other gear. After finally getting everything set up, I popped in a cd. I have yet to listen to any movie soundtracks, but I believe the stereo test is the more critical test anyway.

I'm into fusion and a big Jean Luc Ponty fan, so I popped in one of his cuts from his Open Mind cd, and began to listen. I'm not into audiophile speak, but I'm going to be extremely candid. I noticed an immediate difference in the midrange and highs. In comparison, my old Yamaha now sounds dark to me. Thats not to say that I found the XPA-3 bright, but it definitely brightened up the sound in a very good way. All of the instruments were more focused, more detailed, and well placed. So much so, that I had to get up and make sure that the center speaker wasn't on. Thats how good the stereo image was. I didn't push the amp at all, as it was late when I did my listening, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to like what I here at increased volumes.

Later today, I will post pics of the system, including the old Nikko setup, and some old Polk 5's that I still have.

Great Job, Emotiva, keep up the good work. And to the members of this forum, thanks for all of the detailed information that helped, and confused at times, my decision making process. ;D