I love this "little" M-2, it has effortlessly driven both efficient speakers and also does very well with my baby Apogees. However, I recently managed to get a pair of Carver Amazing III's, and when I use the M-2, it is not enough juice. To drive it to medium levels means that "overload" lights come on like an xmas tree. Is the M-2 incapable of driving 4 ohm loads with reasonable current? I think it's time for a new amp, something with some serious current. What do you think of the more modern Yamaha pro amps - p5000 for example? Are there some other amps out there that will deliver the goods and sound great at the same time?
M-2 @ 4 ohms?
- Thread starter mgbendel
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I've used my M-2 to power my JBL L150s and L100Ts at the same time, as well as two pairs of Cerwin-Vega D-9s at the same time. Those would be 4ohm loads. I've never used the M-2 with a single pair of 4ohm speakers though.
I've made the overload light twinkle plenty of times, but never in a situation where I could fault the amp, and never in a situation where it was anything but very loud.
I've made the overload light twinkle plenty of times, but never in a situation where I could fault the amp, and never in a situation where it was anything but very loud.
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KentTeffeteller
Gimpus Stereophilus!
The JBL L series are extremely efficient, a much more benign impedance load, and so are the Cerwin-Vegas. The Carver Amazings need huge amounts of high current, high power amplification and the ability to drive a 2 ohm load. The Yamaha M-2 is not quite up to the job here. I'd recommend something like a big Bryston or McIntosh with autoformers here or maybe a huge Yamaha professional amp.
I have a pair of JBL Century's hooked up to an M-4 right now, which gives it lots of breathing room. Do you find that the M amps run JBLs well?
Kent - I wasn't aware that they went down to 2 ohms! As much as I'd love to get a Mcintosh, it's not in the budget right now...I will look into Bryston, Yamaha, and maybe Carver
Kent - I wasn't aware that they went down to 2 ohms! As much as I'd love to get a Mcintosh, it's not in the budget right now...I will look into Bryston, Yamaha, and maybe Carver
The M-2 is optimized for high power into ~8 ohm loads. The output stage is not robust enough to drive inefficient speakers at 4 ohms or below. I know that a vintage Yamaha pro amp would be a good choice for the Carver Amazings. I think a contemporary pro amp like the P5000S would be a good choice as well.
I researched pro amps and always found myself back at talkbass forum reading players who loved their Crest CA9's but liked the Crown Macro Tech a little better. I got the Crest and the effortless power with one click on the volume knob is great. No way that P5000 touches my amp ever. enjoy and be careful with those Amazings!
No doubt the Crest CA9 is a beast. The Yamaha P5000S is part of Yamaha's budget pro amp line and half the price of the CA9. The P5000S is pretty well regarded on pro audio sites.
