RS IIb or RS 4.5

cb5300

cb5300

Active Member
I'm looking at buying either a pair of RSIIb or RS 4.5, the question I have is will my Pioneer SX 1980 drive either of these speakers. I've been told that I would have to get something bigger in a separate config. My question is do any of you use just a receiver to drive either of these speakers or am I just going to have to see about getting the separate pre-amp/amp setup? Or should I just look at going in a different speaker direction altogether? :tears:
 
I have had both and you will get sound out of both of those speakers with your receiver. However, to get the most out of these speakers, which will be substantially more, you should provide better power. And use good cables. The external crossover is critical as well.

As to what direction to go - quite a bit to consider. Size, placement, power, room size, complexity, acceptance factor but most important is that sound. Those bigger classic Infinitys do so much right and have very little listener fatigue. That however is your opinion/taste - don't let anyone talk you out of it.
 
My RS-II's are simply fantastic speakers IMO, but they need gobs of clean power to really shine.

I am getting very good results with my current Emotiva SA-250 (clean 400 wpc at 4 Ohm). I initially used Onkyo A9070 integrated (clean 140 wpc at 4 Ohm) to drive them, but the amp went to protection at a bit louder volumes. Moreover, even at low volume levels the bass is much better when using the Emotiva.
 
Of the two I would rather have the RS 4.5 which I think is a step up the ladder from the RSIIb's. Really none of the larger Infinity's were really designed with Receivers in mind.
 
I agree with Ken, if I had the choice it would be the 4.5's without hesitation.

When you start to hear either set, your going to smell that receiver.
 
OK, I'm beginning to see that the big Pioneer won't cut it with these speakers :tears: Sooooo, I'm open to suggestions, what power amp should I be looking for (I only want to do this once so I want to get it right the first time.) What power range should I be looking for? I will assume that the SX1980 can be used as a pre-amp? This unit has 270 watts/channel and I hate to just not use it since I just got it...:sigh:.

I'm leaning toward the 4.5's since the "Boss" has said she doesn't care what I get..she's really good about things like that. :yes:

Any any all suggestions are welcome.......
 
the drawback of the sx-1980 is not so much it's power output (270 watts @ 8 ohm), but its ability to handle a low impedance load which the big infinitys typically present. the vintage pioneer receivers (and amps) will go into protection if presented a load of less than 4 ohms. if you like the features of your pioneer, you can still use the sx-1980 as a preamp and run a more load-stable amp as the power amp. look for a high current amp that is rated down to 2 ohms.






.
 
a Parasound HCA-2200 or HCA-3500 would be a good match, and those are fairly common amps. a 150+Wpc Classe amp would be great too. if you want to more closely match the SX-1980, a Pioneer Spec-2 (or two) would be good as well, particularly if it's been refurbished.
 
the pioneer spec 2 will have the same impedance limitations as the sx. it can't handle a low impedance load.




.
 
loquatious said:
the pioneer spec 2 will have the same impedance limitations as the sx. it can't handle a low impedance load.
Click to expand...

psssh. the longtime mod for the Infinity forum, Army, runs a pair of Echowars-refurbished Spec 2's for his RS4.5's. he also plays them loud, and they don't have great ventilation. they are plenty durable for these speakers. if they weren't, Echowars wouldn't let him do that :thmbsp:

i'm not sure about the SX-1980, but the Spec-2's have impedance switches on the back. this drops the rail voltage and limits the speakers to the same output as at 8 Ohms, and less heat is produced too.
 
Well, since I just bought the SX1980 I'd like to use it if possible. I guess I need to dig in here and learn what works and what doesn't. This is the first stereo equipment I've bought since my Air Force days back in 1979, At that time I bought a Sansui G-9000DB (still got her) and Cerwin Vega 316-R's.

I just got a "bug" in my head and decided to build another system for the downstairs den. So I went out and bought an Akai GX-747dbx, Pioneer CT-1250, a new pair of Klipsch RF-7IIb, and of course the Pioneer SX1980. Now I wanted to get a pair of Infinities. I started out looking at the RSIIb and then saw the RS 4.5, and now my wonderful better-half has given me her blessing on a pair of RS-1b's (I wonder what she's up to?? :scratch2:) I really think the room isn't big enough for the RS-1b's, but that would be a nice set up,
and it might be stretching it some for the 4.5's...but it might be worth a try.

Now back to the question, how much power??? I'm of the school that you can never have to many watts :nutz:. Would I be nuts to look for something in the 2K watt region? Or would I be better off going smaller (or larger).

As always any help is greatly appreciated..
 
I think what you're looking for isn't "how much power" but is the amp you're looking at able to deal with low impedance. You need to look at the actual specs of the amp and see if it even has a rating at 4 ohms never mind the ability to dip below that. FWIW I tried to use my refurbed Spec2 on just the bass towers of my RS-1s. No go it was not happy. I wouldn't even dream of using it on the mid/hi towers.
I recommend checking out the What Amp do you use Infinity thread. Good reading. Personally I use VTL 300 Deluxes and a Threshold S/300. As others have mentioned to get the most out of big Infinities you need a "real" amp. Hi current and hi power.
 
If you want to go new and on a budget, check out Emotiva. For example, XDA-2 will give you clean 500 wpc at 4 Ohm for less than a grand. SA-250, that has better internal components and nearly double the caps, is rated 400 wpc at 4 Ohm and does not break a sweat driving my RS-II's that are nominally ~3 Ohm speakers, with relatively flat ~2 Ohm region above ~6 Khz.
 
Receivers and flagship Infinities do not mix. Period. Even the big ass Nimitz class receivers aren't able to pull out the performance potential these speakers have. If you're hell bent on keeping that -1980 you should be looking at different speakers. Even as a preamp it'll likely fall short. These are brutally revealing speakers you're considering....the upstream electronics really do need to be hi-end mid-fi or better, IMO.

Look to Soundcraftsmen for inexpensive, big power, low impedance stable amps that have a warm, musical tonal character. My QLS-1's put an Emotiva XPA-2 into protect mode several times where a Soundcraftsmen MA5002 showed no strain. But ultimately it was Aragon and Threshold amplifiers with a tube preamp that really brought the best out of the old Infinites.
 
B&K and Parasound are a couple names to look at also...

I've always thought you need to pick your speakers first then build from there...
 
Bkphoto said:
B&K and Parasound are a couple names to look at also...

I've always thought you need to pick your speakers first then build from there...
Click to expand...

You're right.... I just got ass backwards on this project :tears: No foul..I'm sure that I won't have any problem selling the Pioneer. Unit is pristine, and has been serviced. I may just give it to my son or daughter.

I'll start looking at the above amps and pre-amps and see if I can find something. I'd like to stay somewhere under 3K if possible for the pre-amp and amp. To be clear, I'm not really looking at watts, but for something that will be stable with clean power down to 2 omhs..:scratch2:
 
Last edited:
Ok in the Soundcraftman line up what would be the best all around amp to get, I see some of you metion the MA5002. What about a pre-amp would the SP 4002 be good, or would you look for something different?

ALL suggestions are WELCOME!!!! Anybody live near Roanoke, VA that would like to try and teach an "old dog" a new trick?
 
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