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Amplifier suited for RF7ii


Gino

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Just now, Gino said:

New to the forum, just got a used pair of rf7iis and hooked them up to an emotiva A300. Not so impressed, any recommendations that will do them justice? Please keep in mind I’m not rich.

Welcome ro the forum Gino.  I know you will get some great answers to this.

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Volume is decent, bass (considering they are 10" woofers) not so great. I find the highs, not sure how to describe but the s is more like sh if that makes any sense. I also have 4 rf82 towers and it seems they are as loud as the rf7s. The rf82 have more bass and lol the s is more defined. This is why I'm asking about amplification as per the spec rf7 should be much louder and cleaner but I'm not seeing this.

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I have the same problem every time I use any AV equipment. Everyone's hearing and likes are different, so something might sound great to one person and not so great you another. Also, I have seller's remorse from not trying more combinations. Some power supplies sounds better through different speakers than others and then there is speaker placement and rooms they are in. 

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26 minutes ago, Gino said:

I forgot to mention, my receiver is a Marantz SR7008 and the A300 I’m using as pre-amp

 

Don't you mean you are using the Marantz as a preamp, and the A300 as a power amp?

 

The Marantz has Audyssey I think.  If so, choosing Audyssey Reference instead of Audyssey Flat may mellow out the sound a bit, particularly if you are finding the speakers harsh.   Take your time setting up Audyssey see this"Audyssey FAQ Linked Here"

Try moving things around.  There should be a carpet, throw rug, or area rug in front of the speaker at about where the beam from the tweeter would hit the floor and bounce into your ears.

 

Do you have a subwoofer?  If so, turn it up a little.  Also try turning up the bass on the Marantz, unless you are using Dynamic EQ, which defeats the bass control.

 

How loudly do you play your system?   The A 300 should have enough power to handle all but the loudest levels into efficient speakers like yours..

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Garyrc, lol you are right about the amp / pre amp my bad. My next plan is room acoustics, I will soon be on vacation and that's what I'll be working on. My room is approx. 20 x 20 and I literally have nothing on the floor or walls. Do you recommend panels as well? I will look into the audyssey. On the quality side do you think the XPA ( emotiva again )series is better suited for these speakers. I can get an XPA-1 monoblock for a good price, I read on one of the threads that the rf7 are power hungry. This amp can produce 1000w at 4ohms so I would bridge the pair to get the 4ohm load. Do you recommend that?

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8 minutes ago, Gino said:

Garyrc, lol you are right about the amp / pre amp my bad. My next plan is room acoustics, I will soon be on vacation and that's what I'll be working on. My room is approx. 20 x 20 and I literally have nothing on the floor or walls. Do you recommend panels as well? I will look into the audyssey. On the quality side do you think the XPA ( emotiva again )series is better suited for these speakers. I can get an XPA-1 monoblock for a good price, I read on one of the threads that the rf7 are power hungry. This amp can produce 1000w at 4ohms so I would bridge the pair to get the 4ohm load. Do you recommend that?

No, on the 4ohms.  They're 8 ohm speakers.  Maybe an XPA 2?  300 watts per side.  If you bought a pair of the XPA 1's you'd have 500 watts per side.  More than enough to drive the II's.  You may just not be getting the control over the RF-7's as you can with the smaller RF-82's using the A300.  Interested to see what you come up with.  I've been thinking of changing to the RF-7 II's myself.

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I use the a-300 with the emotiva pt-100 pre and it sounds great to me. Ive always been told the pre has more to do with the sound than the power amp. The pt-100 sounds a little bit laid back but detail is there. I like the two together. It has tone controls and I too have a crappy room that would sounds fatiguing after awhile. The tone control would fix the fatigue but seemed to take a lot of the life from the music.  Using a 4 band schitt loki eq using the 2000 hz and turning it down a few db can fix the fatigue but keeps the music lively.  Right now there is a elvis special on pbs and love that the pt-100 has fm also.  The marantz might not play well with the a-300.

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Sorry couldn't reply had to go on an emergency call, my job requires  24hr service periodically. Going to sleep now and will chat tomorrow if you are up to it. Thanks a lot guys your inputs really help. Much appreciated.

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23 hours ago, Gino said:

Garyrc, lol you are right about the amp / pre amp my bad. My next plan is room acoustics, I will soon be on vacation and that's what I'll be working on. My room is approx. 20 x 20 and I literally have nothing on the floor or walls. Do you recommend panels as well? I will look into the audyssey. On the quality side do you think the XPA ( emotiva again )series is better suited for these speakers. I can get an XPA-1 monoblock for a good price, I read on one of the threads that the rf7 are power hungry. This amp can produce 1000w at 4ohms so I would bridge the pair to get the 4ohm load. Do you recommend that?

 

Put in a few absorbent panels, but don't overdo.  A dead room sounds terrible.   Area rugs at the first reflection points on the floor, and panels at first reflection points on the side walls, might be enough. 

 

You can use diffusers in some other places, so the sound can be diffused, but not killed or over deadened.  Bookshelves with art objects or vases, as well as books can help.

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Run Audyssey AFTER you finish with absorbers and diffusers and area rugs.

 

How high is your ceiling?

 

Perfectly square rooms can be a problem.  Perhaps a bass trap tuned to your 20 foot dimension would help, if you notice a problem when you are through with all else.

 

I don't know about the XPA-1.   1,000 watts into 4 Ohms usually means 500 watts into 8 Ohms.  You don't need either.  About 100 watts into your speakers would provide more than the THX/SMPTE/DOLBY reference peak for main speakers (105 dB at the main listening position).  You could use the two subwoofers Dean suggested that you buy, though.  After running Audyssey, turn the subwoofers up by 3 to 6 dB (to compensate for Audyssey's rather conservative bass setting).   Buy two high quality, powerful subs.  Try crossing over at 80 Hz.  It would be one of the best things you could do for your system.  Your Marantz has subwoofer outputs.    By using a pair of active or powered subs you will relieve strain on your amplifier, providing it with even more headroom.  To make this work, set your main speakers for SMALL on the Marantz, even though they are big ("size" in AVR/pre-pro settings for speakers is a terrible misnomer).  Small is the preferred setting anyway, according to virtually all experts.  Don't spend too much on acoustic treatments.  You could build them much less expensively.  Google DIY absorbers and diffusers.

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