Have speakers, turntable, need amp recommendations

Eri Carman

New Member
I recently started collecting vinyl, and purchased an old Technics entry-level turntable that works really well (replaced old stock cartridge with Shure M92E). I found a great deal on a pair of Definitive Technology BP10b speakers, and have a large, open space that they can fill with sound (1000 square foot room with 8-15 foot ceiling). Now, I am looking for an amp that won't cost me too much (entry-level, mind you), but that can power the speakers well enough and that will give my vinyl the sound they deserve.

What am I looking for? Recommendations?

Thank you!
 
Yamaha fan-boy here.
The AS-500 is an excellent integrated amp, priced as mid-fi, and truly hard to distinguish from my higher-end-wallet-emptying amp. It has a good phono stage too.
 
Any of the great vintage receivers in the 40 to 50 watt range, Marantz 2238/b,2240,2245,2250. Harman Kardon 730, 930, Kenwood 4070. Don't know the rest of the model numbers pioneer, yamaha.
 
Folks, we really have to be careful with our suggestions.
BP-10b are 90 db efficient (which is ok), But the room is big (1000 sq ft) and since I had a few Definitive Technology speakers myself I can tell they sound much better with more power.
So while all those 40-50 WPC receivers are fine and sound great they will run out of steam pretty fast (BP-10 can handle up to 300 watts) and may go into clipping which is not good.
So I would suggest something in 100WPC range at least to do those speakers justice and provide enough power to fill the room.
 
I'm a fan of the current NAD integrated stuff, a nice sound, spearit sound sells their demo and display models for good discounts. The C356 or C375 would be a good option depending on budget. I'd be cautious on some of their used stuff though, though you might find some good used deals with old Adcom or Parasound gear.
 
I have the Yamaha A-S500 (85 watts per channel) which has been replaced by the A-S501 (same amp section, preamp can accept digital inputs). It is a solidly built and an excellently sounding unit.
 
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Agree with gladiator335,the more power you can feed a speaker like that,the better.

I have a friend with a Sunfire (signature) 300 amp (300 wpc),I'd probably use something like that with a nice pre-amp (he uses a Yamaha C4).
Minimum I'd use would be a 100 - 150 wpc myself,something like my NAD 2600 Monitor Series amp or such w/the matching NAD 1300 preamp.

Choice would depend on the budget,the Sunfire typically runs @ least 2x-3x more than what the NAD normally costs on the used gear market.

If the budget is there and you wanna buy new,then the sky's the limit....

JM2¢

Bret P. ~ ØD
 
how much you willing to spend? if by not much and have big area i assume somthing that is reasonable in quility and power. im not sure what you have already as well. maybe all you'll need is seperate power amp if you already have a preamp or integrated amp/reciever that can possibly be used as a dedicated preamp.

i dont know what you are looking for. all you are asking is for is more power.
 
You are going to be really confused now . Also you are going to get really good advice on the forum and have about a thousand choices for an amp. Craigslist and eBay are your best bet if you want a lot of choices. $150 - $300 could get you something nice. Better to buy as big as you can afford because you will want to upgrade the speakers and the turntable later . This is a sickness , chasing the audio dragon and a cure if there is one is sometimes way down the road . .
 
Since some newbies use amp to refer interchangeably to receivers, integrated amps, or power amps your responses will be all over the map with many of them not really helpful. Which do you really want?
 
I'm firmly in the Yamaha camp here as well. The new version of the A-S500 is the A-S501. These are a nice clean 85wpc and are priced very well. The 500 can be had for less because they've been out longer than the 501. A difficult amp to beat for the money, power, and sound quality.
 
If you're just looking for a power amp, Crowns can be found in every power level for nearly any price level. If what you mean is "integrated" amp, then I can't help.
 
If you're on a budget I would look at Emotiva. People love to crap on them but in my experience the build quality rivals equipment costing 2-3x more. If you want solid new gear for <$1000 I can think of few rivals.

If you're willing to break into to $1k+ range I would start looking at amps running the ICEPower class D modules. Wyred 4 Sound and Bel Canto are two companies that come to mind that use those modules. You won't be able to achieve rock concert volume but you won't be listening at a whisper either.
 
Can you still get an Emotiva pre amp and amp for under $1000? It looks like they've retired their entry level UP line, and the high end XPR line too.
 
Indeed, I had forgotten how expensive their preamp is. Still, an XSP-1 preamp and XPA-200 power amp totals $1200 which is still a damned good deal for new equipment in my book.
 
I am listening to my A-S500 integrated amplifier driving my low cost Dayton Air speakers with those beautiful AMT tweeters. Absolutely beautiful!
 
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