RF-63 very loud with 20 watts amp.

[shaunm]

Hi all i haven't posted here in a super long time but i feel like have to post this. So i recently played around with my system and moved RF-63 to a  different room just for 2 channel music. I had it hooked up to my living room before for 5.1 sound being run by harmon kardon avr 3600 and a sub. Sound was ok I never really enjoyed music through it even though i know my speakers can do so much more. I always thought i will needed an old vintage amp or receivers for them to sound good and have bass. They never had bass that i know rf-63's can have. So I thought i would try to buy a used equalizer from the 1970s. I bought an ADC equalizer and hooked that to my LR pre outs and then the LF out to QSC GX5 rated at 500watts per channel at 8ohms and omg BASS comes alive and sound is much much better like night and day difference playing through my macbook spotify using headphone output on macbook. So i was thinking thats it all i needed was an equalizer for my speakers to sound good. I have had it hooked up before same setup with QSC and horrible sound no bass nothing at all so i remove it and went back to 5.1 harmon kardon. But now after this setup im trying to listen to all kinds of music again like a lot. so now im like trying to buy old vintage amps maybe it will sound better even though im already happy with it. Then I read that my macbook heaphone ouput is not really good and i should get a DAC player and download HI resolution music DSP.  So it took me a like a week to search for a DAC finally found one i know its not the best out there but i was just curious how my speakers can sound especially how everyone is saying DAC and DSP music will sound so much better than low quality music and heaphone out. Before that i googled best songs to demo and found "fields of gold by eva cassidy" listened to it with my current setup and wow wow my speakers sounded so good i really wanted to try DAC and DSD. So last night i finally bought Sony UDA-1 getting a good deal original price was $799 got it for $299 after debating if i should get the bigger brother Sony HAP S-1 $999 ( i was going to buy a $80 usb DAC from amazon but decided not to) I did not even think about using the 20 watts from this DAC player to power my RF-63's even though the sales man says my speakers are efficient that it would power them and sound good. They only had the HAP S-1 hooked up to Klipsch RP-160M and playing DSD file was so good and loud also but i thought that no way it can power up my RF-63's. So got home downloaded the software and drivers and downloaded The carpenters DSD album played it and it was so good sounded better than playing through laptop headphone out without DAC.  Even spotify high quality stream sounded so good and of course stupid loud levels from the qsc 500 watt amp. like so loud i feel like i damaged my ears but in the back of my mind i know it can even sound better if i used a better pre amp and amplifier. So finally just now this morning after having coffee i thought hmmm maybe il hook up my RF-63's directly to my Sony UDA-1 20 watts power anddddddddd WOW they sound almost as stupid loud as the QSC 500 watt?? but most importantly so so clear! maybe its because too much connection the way i had it. UDA-1 to harmon kardon to equalier to QSC. Now it sounds way cleaner but i lost bass from the equalizer. So now im a more amazed by these RF-63's. Do you guys think its because i am using regular RCA cables to connect my systems and not those fancy expensive ones? unlike the sony UDA-1 where everything is direct inside.  

[dtel]

I doubt it was the cables, probably more the case of getting less junk out of line. Plus a better quality signal will always win out, some computers, receivers and different things like equalizers don't always make things better that's for sure. 

 

500 wpc or 20 either can be loud, almost anything can be loud, it takes alot more to get a good quality sound than wpc.  As you found out, the right combination and nothing more than needed helps, plus a little luck sometimes.

[shaunm]

Yes i think your right getting less junk out of line. Also just realized the sony 20 watts its for 4ohms so with 8ohms im probably getting 10watts. I still cant believe this low of wattage is this loud. I feel like 100 200 500 watts dont matter anymore.

[isotopesope]

holy word fort, batman!

 

I find when trying to solve a problem, it's best to only change ONE variable at a time.  It seems like you're changing two or three things per troubleshooting step and then comparing apples to oranges. 

 

If adding the EQ to the signal chain "fixed" the sound, it makes me think there is a problem with the crossover points of your GX5 or a problem with the H/K's pre output settings and/or speaker settings... 

 

Was the H/K outputting 2.0 or 5.1 signals?  Was the H/K outputing to "full range" L+R speakers or was it outputting their signal with a crossover point?  Where are your QSC crossover points set? 

 

If using the Sony UDA-1 sounds "way louder" than the H/K pre/QSC power amp combo, it again makes me think there is a problem with your H/K and/or QSC settings. 

[shaunm]

hi, yea i am confused now. H/K was in stereo mode 2.0 and or 2.1. yes it was set as "large" my QSC was set to full range, there was 2 crossovers settings for qsc. 100mhz or full range. 

 

the sony didnt sound way louder than H/K pre/QSC it sounded almost as loud (loud levels that hurt you ears or not comfortable to listen to for long time) but with no bass but cleaner and clear.