Jump to content

Biamping crossover suggestion not diy


WVPaul

Recommended Posts

What is your budget for a processor? If you think that this active stuff is going to be "for you", then I would consider a digital unit such as the ones I mention (there are other really good ones as well), and one that has plenty of I/O (channels). if you think you are only going to do the center channel, an analog 2 or 3 Ch. unit just might do it for you. You would get the benefits of the bi or tri amping, but no time alignment. I'm not so sure how important time alignment is for the application of just your center channel. But the message is that a nice digital processor goes a long way if you are considering expanding.........or if you have a really nice sounding system already. You would be happy you made the investment.

I'm thinking that you probably already have a really nice sounding system, and so the primary goal is to not degrade it. That might sound weird at first, but it doesn't automatically sound better just because you bi-amp. You'll be introducing a few new components so you'll want to choose carefully. Trust me on the processor info.

Right now I'm going to use an Ashly XR1001, which is the analog crossover. I looked at (through the internet not in person) the EV dx-38, and the Ashly Protea, and that may be something in the future for me. The problem I see is my lack of knowledge on setting these up. I would be more concerned on screwing the signal way up and not liking my setup. If I did want to try one, at first, I would probably stay cheap and go with the Behringer DCX 2496. Then my concern would be did I go too cheap, and thats why my sound doesn't sound right. I've read a lot of reviews where they set up their analog crossovers by hearing.

Are they hard to setup and can you really screw up the sound quality? Also, I might be missing something here because of my lack of knowledge, but why would you go with a unit of a sampling rate of 24 / 48 khz?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 107
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Top Posters In This Topic

Posted Images

I had suggested time alignment may not be a major factor for your center channel because you have none now. It won't be any worse in that respect and if you aren't going to be extending your use of the bi-amping it just may not make sense to spend on the bigger processors.

The Ashly you have sounds right for now. I would not be concerned at all about setting things up. You do it once and tweak a little later on. Then you leave it alone. You will be able to figure out the processor no matter what you buy. Some may take a little more effort but no worry. There's also a lot of help around here.

I saw the comment on the dreaded Behringer 2496dcx. If you are looking for audiophile sound this unit is not for you. I have one, and it's on my shelf. I've actually owned two. It's for a band or DJ amateurs. It has a ton of features for the money but I will bet your passives and Emotiva sound better.

An active setup that sounds better than what you probably have now is not going to be the cheapest thing you bought this month.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks, I will stay with what I have, (still waiting for all the parts and pieces to show up), and see how it goes and if I decide to tri amp I will probably revisit the processor upgrade.

I would like to ask this question again. Why would you go with a unit of a sampling rate of 24 / 48 khz? If I recall correctly both the EV and the Ashly are only 24/48, are there very few 24 /96's or is it not important?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

An active setup that sounds better than what you probably have now is not going to be the cheapest thing you bought this month.

Mark, I agree. One reads a lot about the benefit of an active crossover but the main question is whether one can hear the difference between the active and the passive crossover. To do that you need a better-than-average crossover. That was the reason for suggesting the Marchand XM9 as a middle-of-the-road crossover. I'm not sure that I would even try to bi-amp the center channel but if I were to, I would try a Rane AC22S ,or to tri-amp, an AC23. They allow separate gain control for LF/mids/highs and they can be easily bought and returned if one isn't satisfied with the sound. I used an AC-22 years ago with LWE speakers and thought it did a decent job with the equipment I had at the time (Kenwood 200wpc receiver on the woofer and Dyna ST-70 on the mid/highs). I still have it but don't want to ever alter the sound of the McIntosh 225 that I had rebuilt.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

No. This type of trollish baiting is not welcome and does not add to the discussion. Give it a rest.

Then why make statements like this:

The fact that Emo is even in the discussion is testament to their value.

When the obvious answer is this:

Why are they being discussed, again? Because the OP already has them, that's why. That is not a testament to their value, at all.

I'm not trolling. I'm holding your feet to the fire. If you don't like it...

If you'd like to contribute to the discussion, you could contact Emotiva,
and find out why the XPA-2 Audio Precision Spec Test Data is so
jacked. The 1kHz power output is just sad - 265wpc @ 8ohms is ballpark
212-238wpc 20Hz-20kHz. That's from an advertised 300wpc amp. Also, why
don't they advertise IM distortion, damping factor, and input
sensitivity? And what's up with the warranty page on the website?

Thanks.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The 1kHz power output is just sad - 265wpc @ 8ohms is ballpark
212-238wpc 20Hz-20kHz. That's from an advertised 300wpc amp.

You must read everything! Emotiva rated the output to 0.1% THD, but the test data is lower at 0.02% (plus or minus a little per channel), so the output power it lower on the test.

Bruce

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The 1kHz power output is just sad - 265wpc @ 8ohms is ballpark
212-238wpc 20Hz-20kHz. That's from an advertised 300wpc amp.

You must read everything! Emotiva rated the output to 0.1% THD, but the test data is lower at 0.02% (plus or minus a little per channel), so the output power it lower on the test.

Bruce

The question is, why did they stop at 266.8/264.1 watts? Did Ch 1 oscillate at 267? Did Ch 2 clip at 265? Did it burst into flames prior to test completion? Again, this was at 1kHz, the power output should have been higher than the advertised 300wpc 20Hz-20kHz rating.

Read it: Signal Path 1: Level and Gain at rated power output

post-53023-13819692612938_thumb.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Moderators

Dtel, Can you reply about when turning on and off does it pop or thump, this is one reason I passed on Parasound, but I never found any comments about it on the Crown. Till now.

Sorry I didn't see this, yes they do thump a little, one almost always and the other on occasion and only in the bass bins and it's not loud at all, not enough for me to worry at all.

Anyway I usually leave them on, at less than 15 watts idle it's not a big deal especially when they are working 6-8 hours a day.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The question is, why did they stop at 266.8/264.1 watts? Did Ch 1 oscillate at 267? Did Ch 2 clip at 265? Did it burst into flames prior to test completion? Again, this was at 1kHz, the power output should have been higher than the advertised 300wpc 20Hz-20kHz rating.

Call them and ask them. This is from the manual:

Rated at 250 watts into 8 ohms, 500 watts into 4 ohms (minimum rating – it will peak higher). The XPA-2 is also bridgeable (for 8 ohm loads), transforming it into a potent monoblock.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please provide a link to the manual.

http://shop.emotiva.com/collections/amplifiers/products/xpa2

A few years ago, you’d have to pay thousands for power and finesse like this. Consider the massive toroidal power supply, 24 high-current output devices, and an elegant and sophisticated power amp design that delivers 300W into 8 ohms, and 500W into 4 ohms with both channels driven. The XPA-2 provides serious headroom, the kind that really wakes up your speakers. Enjoy the tight, controlled bass and effortlessly detailed highs.

Specifications

* Number of channels: 2
* Topology: fully discrete, dual differential, high current, short signal path Class A/B
* Power output (all channels driven):
500 watts RMS @ 4 ohm (0.1% THD)
300 watts RMS @ 8 ohm (0.1% THD)
* Rated power bandwidth: 20 Hz to 20 kHz with less than .05 dB deviation at rated power
* Output devices: 12 per channel
* Broadband frequency response: (-3 dB): 5Hz to 150kHz

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I understand the contradiction, and this is all silly to me since I use SET amps and even 200 watts is overkill for me.

Just scroll down the page you list from. The manual link is right above the links for the Audio Precision test data links.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

WVPaul,

I haven't read any manuals recently but when I was shopping for processors I read a ton. Most all of them use off the shelf A/D and D/A converter chips with high oversampling and then well known off the shelf DSP chips (such as Motorola) for all the fancy digital features. For A/D and D/A 24 bit 48Khz was par for the course. Totally adequate. There are higher resolution A/Ds. Not sure if you can hear it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dtel, Can you reply about when turning on and off does it pop or thump, this is one reason I passed on Parasound, but I never found any comments about it on the Crown. Till now.

Sorry I didn't see this, yes they do thump a little, one almost always and the other on occasion and only in the bass bins and it's not loud at all, not enough for me to worry at all.

Anyway I usually leave them on, at less than 15 watts idle it's not a big deal especially when they are working 6-8 hours a day.

Thanks about the thumping, I will see how bad mine is after I get it, some comments stated its noticeable, some stated no thump, but I guess you can remedy it with a cap or a time delay switch without too much effort.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

WVPaul,

I haven't read any manuals recently but when I was shopping for processors I read a ton. Most all of them use off the shelf A/D and D/A converter chips with high oversampling and then well known off the shelf DSP chips (such as Motorola) for all the fancy digital features. For A/D and D/A 24 bit 48Khz was par for the course. Totally adequate. There are higher resolution A/Ds. Not sure if you can hear it.

I was just curious, specially since I would be passing Bluray audio. What I gathered is the cost is extremely high for the signal processor. Its hard too believe Behringer is able to do it so cheap. The ones I looked at on the internet started around $4000. Anyways, thanks, I will revisit processors when I'm ready to upgrade.

I appreciate everyones input.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

In the $1200.00 range there are several really good ones. That is what I would recommend to anyone as a starting point. Honestly, I personnally would not consider anything less than that for my own use unless it was a used unit of respectable quality. It's just not a cheap endeavour to build a good active system. But you don't need a $4K processor.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

so if it is 260 watts at 1khz, wonder how many watts that is at 20khz?

There is no way to know without proper testing.

If you're wondering about 1kHz vs 20Hz-20kHz power ratings, EIA 1kHz ratings are usually 10-20% higher than FTC 20Hz-20kHz ratings.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.


×
×
  • Create New...