Emotiva XPR-5 or Parasound A51 for RF-7 II home cinema system?

[Mongo171]

Hi, I looking for an amplifier for a Klipsch RF-7 II Home cinema system.

I know Parasound Halo A51 is a good match, but how will the RF-7 II sound with Emotiva XPR-5? Can the XPR-5 match the A51 when it comes to sound quality? The price is doubble for the A51, so I can use the extra money for a good sub if it sounds as good as the A51. It's nice to get some feed back from RF-7 II owners who have experience with the Emotiva XPR-5 and Parasound Halo A51.

Thanks for all good answers

Have you considered ATI amps? Mine is deadly quiet with my Chorus II's

[willland]

If you have the room, consider these and run your front soundstage as monoblocks(left 2125>>>>center 2125>>>>right 2125) and surrounds 2125.

http://app.audiogon.com/listings/solid-state-parasound-2125-great-condition-x-4-2013-04-14-amplifiers-75165-waxahachie-tx

I owned a Parasound 2125 and it is a great amp with plenty of real world power.

Bill

[Vital]

The term factory direct has been used in marketing long before the internet.

Absolutely, it's been used by people with a gimmick. Emotiva is not a gimmick, they are the first major brand in the audio world using this business plan and it works. I think it's an awesome business plan giving people the chance to buy at a much lower price.

I get what they are doing and it works but lets not get sucked into the factory direct marketing to much and think we have something we don't.

I guess you can't seem to understand their business plan, you're way too caught up in the price and you're letting your mind get the best of you. First of all you're not comparing apples to oranges when you put Emotiva against other manufacturers. Do some research is all I can tell you. No scam here, they have been a wide open book for all to see since day one. Emotiva used to manufacture for a few different well known much higher priced brands. The same brands that people like you think are WAY better because they cost more which means they MUST sound better. That's called the placebo effect and companies like Bose bank on it to move their little cubes at outrageous prices. I don't know if Emotiva still manufactures for anyone else or not.

I'm no Emotiva fan boy by any means, they have units that have issues just like anyone else but they have some of the best customer service in the business and they take care of their customers. I just recognize a good deal when I see one and after buying a few products I realized they are the real deal just like most people who have bought from them. When people come on this forum "link" who own Krell amps and say their Emotiva sounds good and it's staying in the rack, that's the proof in the pudding. Krell is up there close to the top of the hill when it comes to high end audio. I know Emotiva isn't the best of the best but they are without a doubt one of the best bang for the buck deals when buying new audio gear.

Back to the original post, Parasound makes an awesome amp as does Emotiva. Figure out your budget and you can't go wrong either way IMO.

[Rich_Guy]

I have excellent hearing and I hear static or hiss most people cannot hear. Again all three of my Emotiva amps were dead silent any static heard was in the recording itself if the recording was good my ear had to be in the horn to hear any speaker static, from one foot away 100% dead quiet.

So you got a good xbox360 in terms of my point.

Maybe it's because I have never owned an xbox and have never paid any attention to them at all, but I don't understand this comment.

[Heritage_Head]

The term factory direct has been used in marketing long before the internet.

Absolutely, it's been used by people with a gimmick. Emotiva is not a gimmick, they are the first major brand in the audio world using this business plan and it works. I think it's an awesome business plan giving people the chance to buy at a much lower price.

I get what they are doing and it works but lets not get sucked into the factory direct marketing to much and think we have something we don't.

I guess you can't seem to understand their business plan, you're way too caught up in the price and you're letting your mind get the best of you. First of all you're not comparing apples to oranges when you put Emotiva against other manufacturers. Do some research is all I can tell you. No scam here, they have been a wide open book for all to see since day one. Emotiva used to manufacture for a few different well known much higher priced brands. The same brands that people like you think are WAY better because they cost more which means they MUST sound better. That's called the placebo effect and companies like Bose bank on it to move their little cubes at outrageous prices. I don't know if Emotiva still manufactures for anyone else or not.

I'm no Emotiva fan boy by any means, they have units that have issues just like anyone else but they have some of the best customer service in the business and they take care of their customers. I just recognize a good deal when I see one and after buying a few products I realized they are the real deal just like most people who have bought from them. When people come on this forum "link" who own Krell amps and say their Emotiva sounds good and it's staying in the rack, that's the proof in the pudding. Krell is up there close to the top of the hill when it comes to high end audio. I know Emotiva isn't the best of the best but they are without a doubt one of the best bang for the buck deals when buying new audio gear.

Back to the original post, Parasound makes an awesome amp as does Emotiva. Figure out your budget and you can't go wrong either way IMO.

You make some great points vital and i agree with most of them for sure. I have done my research and have read all things you are saying on audioholics and other forums. I think its funny that gene says they used to be part of this huge top company but cant tell us who. If they are such and open book why cant they tell us who this company is? You do know that gene is on emos pay role right.

[Rich_Guy]

rich guy have you read a lot of posts about emo amps with hiss and static? or is this new news to you? Cause i have read a ton not to mention i have owned two.

I can often find posts with bad things to say about about many products which I have nothing but good experience with, even Klipsch speakers get their fair share of haters in many audio forums. I do see far more more praise than bad for Emotiva amps and have my own experience with 3 personally. I think Emotiva amps are excellent and do compare to the much more expensive amps but without a high markup in price.

Based on my own experience I would not expect any better performance from the A51 than the XPA-5 since the XPA-5 has performed flawlessly and there is very little difference in their specifications or features.

[Heritage_Head]

I have excellent hearing and I hear static or hiss most people cannot hear. Again all three of my Emotiva amps were dead silent any static heard was in the recording itself if the recording was good my ear had to be in the horn to hear any speaker static, from one foot away 100% dead quiet.

So you got a good xbox360 in terms of my point.

Maybe it's because I have never owned an xbox and have never paid any attention to them at all, but I don't understand this comment.

Lol ok my bad i don't know why i assumed you have. The xbox360 had a massive fail rate. Some worked no problems (like mine for years) but it was like 40% or some crazy number. Some would even start on fire it was really crazy. My point rich guy is even though mine worked fine should i say they are perfect working just because mine works?Even though i know peoples are starting on fire and breaking after a few hours of use. Anyone who spends time on these forums has read about these problems and its a tiny bit frustrating when the ones who have had no problems act like the rest of us are crazy lol. At least acknowledge that its an issue but hasn't been for you .

[Fish]

As always, the facts are right in the middle. I had several Emo amps, all dead quiet, totally. I had a Parasound that sounded great, it also had a hum as did many of their amps. The amp'still sounded great and the hum was minimal, but audible. They even put a lift switch on later to help solve the issue. So....no body makes a perfect product, they all have issues. Buy the best you can truly afford and don't sweat the rest.

[Rich_Guy]

I have excellent hearing and I hear static or hiss most people cannot hear. Again all three of my Emotiva amps were dead silent any static heard was in the recording itself if the recording was good my ear had to be in the horn to hear any speaker static, from one foot away 100% dead quiet.

So you got a good xbox360 in terms of my point.

Maybe it's because I have never owned an xbox and have never paid any attention to them at all, but I don't understand this comment.

Lol ok my bad i don't know why i assumed you have. The xbox360 had a massive fail rate. Some worked no problems (like mine for years) but it was like 40% or some crazy number. Some would even start on fire it was really crazy. My point rich guy is even though mine worked fine should i say they are perfect working just because mine works?Even though i know peoples are starting on fire and breaking after a few hours of use. Anyone who spends time on these forums has read about these problems and its a tiny bit frustrating when the ones who have had no problems act like the rest of us are crazy lol. At least acknowledge that its an issue but hasn't been for you .

OK, so now I understand your xbox reference, but I don't see that at all with Emotiva amps. I see something like 99.9 people very happy with their Emotiva amps and 0.01 who have had problems. With Emotiva's 30 day trial and 5 year warranty there is very little reason for very much concern and Emotiva has extremely good customer service and a reputation of quickly taking care of any problems with their amp customers.

Also I am only referring to Emotiva amps, as for Emotiva's other products I personally have no experience and I am personally not as impressed by.

[derrickdj1]

If you have the room, consider these and run your front soundstage as monoblocks(left 2125>>>>center 2125>>>>right 2125) and surrounds 2125.

http://app.audiogon.com/listings/solid-state-parasound-2125-great-condition-x-4-2013-04-14-amplifiers-75165-waxahachie-tx

I owned a Parasound 2125 and it is a great amp with plenty of real world power.

Very solid advice! You will have some extra money for a nice sub!

[Vital]

I think its funny that gene says they used to be part of this huge top company but cant tell us who. If they are such and open book why cant they tell us who this company is?

Here you go, not a lot of details but a quick look at Jade Design link and the brands they own.

[COACH10810]

I know I am late to the party on this, but I wanted to share this with you.

My experiences with Emotiva amps have been very positive ones. Having owned both a XPA-3 and XPA-2, I will say that I didn't notice any static or hiss witth either model. Now I never had these powering my old RF-7II's, just my RF-82II's. I switched to a 7 channel Sunfire when I bought the RF-7II's but only because Emotiva hadn't released the XPR-5 at that time...

Recently I switched over to some JTR T12's. These are very efficient speakers and the Sunfire does a great job with them but I thought about selling it now that Emotiva released the XPR-5 and using the extra money to upgrade my rears...Since I work in Tennessee, I spent a few hours with one of the sales guys this past week. Told him what I was thinking about doing and he did voice his concerns that the XPR-5 or upcoming XPR-7 might not be the best choice for the JTR speakers, citing how efficient they are. My friend was with me, he recently purchased the THX Ultra speakers and is interested in the XPR-5 or 7. The sales guy said that he should be fine but Klipsch is on the line of whether you will have problems or not..... Bascially I took that as you have a 50/50 chance of having issues using an Emotiva amp to power Klipsch speakers..

On a side note, the folks at Emotiva are great people who love what they do. Not at one point did the sales guy try to end any of our demos. He kept asking if we wanted to hear something else....we even heard their new Pro speaker line, which was VERY impressive for the price..

Just wanted to give my two cents..

[willland]

If you have the room, consider these and run your front soundstage as monoblocks(left 2125>>>>center 2125>>>>right 2125) and surrounds 2125.

http://app.audiogon.com/listings/solid-state-parasound-2125-great-condition-x-4-2013-04-14-amplifiers-75165-waxahachie-tx

I owned a Parasound 2125 and it is a great amp with plenty of real world power.

Very solid advice! You will have some extra money for a nice sub!

If I was not so pleased with my Acurus amps as I am, this deal would be a no brainer for me.

Bill

[Heritage_Head]

I know I am late to the party on this, but I wanted to share this with you.

My experiences with Emotiva amps have been very positive ones. Having owned both a XPA-3 and XPA-2, I will say that I didn't notice any static or hiss witth either model. Now I never had these powering my old RF-7II's, just my RF-82II's. I switched to a 7 channel Sunfire when I bought the RF-7II's but only because Emotiva hadn't released the XPR-5 at that time...

Recently I switched over to some JTR T12's. These are very efficient speakers and the Sunfire does a great job with them but I thought about selling it now that Emotiva released the XPR-5 and using the extra money to upgrade my rears...Since I work in Tennessee, I spent a few hours with one of the sales guys this past week. Told him what I was thinking about doing and he did voice his concerns that the XPR-5 or upcoming XPR-7 might not be the best choice for the JTR speakers, citing how efficient they are. My friend was with me, he recently purchased the THX Ultra speakers and is interested in the XPR-5 or 7. The sales guy said that he should be fine but Klipsch is on the line of whether you will have problems or not..... Bascially I took that as you have a 50/50 chance of having issues using an Emotiva amp to power Klipsch speakers..

On a side note, the folks at Emotiva are great people who love what they do. Not at one point did the sales guy try to end any of our demos. He kept asking if we wanted to hear something else....we even heard their new Pro speaker line, which was VERY impressive for the price..

Just wanted to give my two cents..

That sounds just like what they told me when i called them about the problems i was having. They said that amp is NOT a good match for those types of speakers. Some people are more picky than others so i think that can matter also. The OP has the same speakers that even emotiva says does not match well with these amps. Now if his budget is only 500-800 (like mine was) then i would recommend emo xpa-3 or 5. But the two amps he has listed are both 2k and up. Just pointing that out.

[altpensacola]

I have to add to this discussion,

I have the XPA5 running 5 of my Klipsch for over 4 years now. (all but the RF35s).

No hiss, no hum.

& If you want to save even more money, I can't even see the need for the XPR over the XPA.

and I play average 10 - 15 below reference a lot, in a large room.

[K5SS]

My RF-63's love my XPA-5. No hiss at all. I would love to try out the XPR-5 but there is no way that beast would fit into my stand.

[Rich_Guy]

That sounds just like what they told me when i called them about the problems i was having. They said that amp is NOT a good match for those types of speakers. Some people are more picky than others so i think that can matter also. The OP has the same speakers that even emotiva says does not match well with these amps. Now if his budget is only 500-800 (like mine was) then i would recommend emo xpa-3 or 5. But the two amps he has listed are both 2k and up. Just pointing that out.

I think you spoke with an Emotiva employee who was not fully informed, yes some lines of Klipsch speakers do not perform well with a lot of power and both the XPA-5 and the A51 would be a poor choice for those speakers.

However the Reference line and especially the RF-7's love power and perform extremely well when given some power like both the XPA-5 and the A51 have.

Again my amps are dead silent meaning you cannot hear any unwanted noise from them ever. This is not because I cannot hear hiss well I can easily hear a hiss or the smallest of fan noise from across a room if it is present, it is not because I am not picky I am very picky about this and I go to extremes in being sure my system has no unwanted noise and performs at its very best.

If you had a bad experience yourself that is a shame but from what I have seen you are among a very few compared to those who have not. As was mentioned every product has its lemons ocasionally but I think Emotiva amps have very few and you were one of the unlucky ones.

Personally my own experience is that my Emotiva amps could not be any quieter, since I do not listen to my system with my ear inside the horn of my speaker I can never ever hear any hiss or unwanted noise caused by my amps.

My systems noise floor is exceptionally low, much lower than most as I said I am picky about this and I do make an extra effort to make it that way.

[Youthman]

Straight up parasound 100% you will keep iy in your setup a lonnng time.

My Parasound is over 10 years old and still going strong as ever. [] Quality gear.

[tmassey]

I believe the XPR-5 would be overkill for those rf-7 ii's (and you also have to make sure you are wired for 20 amps or you won't even be able to plug it in). I'd look at the Parasound or the XPA-5. It's nice to have some headroom on your amp, but your speakers are just so sensitive, I'm not sure if you will ever notice a difference.

[derrickdj1]

The XPR-5 has a lot of headroom. Excess headroom, well is just unused power, more expensive and no return in improved performance or SQ.