Klipsch RP-640D - Which Amps

[clsanchez77]

I am planning a family room home theater/music/multi-use room system upgrade.  Current system is Yamaha RX-667 with Klipsch HD Theater 500 5.1, but combined two to make is a 7.2 system.  System is paired with a 55" Samsung 1080P.  Whole setup is circa 2010.

 

I had an opportunity from Hurricane Ida to do some home renovations and one of the benefits is I have a larger AV cabinet now, complete with air circulation.

 

New system is shaping out now to include Yamaha RX-A6A with Klipsch RP-640Ds for LCR and R-240Ds for sides and rear surrounds.  New system will also include 4-channel Atmos in ceiling, but this will be planned/added later.  One of the issues is I am a lifelong fan of Yamaha receivers, but the one I am going with only has 9 amps and does not support 4-ohm on the center or surround channels.  Upgrading to the RX-A8A solves the amp shortage issue with 11 amps, but does not have the 4-ohm allowance on center/surrounds.  So A6A with separate LCR amp it is.

 

So the question is which amp?  Class A/B or Class D?  Does this make a difference on the RP-640Ds or is this debate more applicable to tower/fuller range speakers?

 

System usage is First, family movies, typically action along the genre's of Star Wars and Marvel movies and associated shows.  Secondary tv usage is streaming services, local sports and local news.  When not watching tv, system runs for background music, whether home or not.  Finally, I love listening to my music collection, but I have been 10 years without tower speakers and is something I would like to bring back, but not right now.  Towers will be in the future, but I am not certain if I bring them into this system, or keep them on a dedicated system.  Our Tv is mounted high (yes above a fireplace, no I don't have another option but we have lived like this for 12 years now and our necks are fine).  So even if I get tower speakers, I would still use the 640's for TV and the towers for just stereo.

 

So back to the amps.  A few people have suggested the Emotiva Bas-X A3 (Class A/B), which provides three 200-W channels at 4-ohm.  What are the thoughts here on the forum?  Another option would be the Niles SI-2100 (Class D apparent), but I would need two of them.

 

My original thinking was to use a Class A/B amp for the fronts as I like to listen to music when I am home alone and use a Class D on the center, which I don't use when listening to CDs or radio.  So my question here will the difference between a solid Class A/B amp vs a Class D amp be noticeable in the RP-640D's?  Is the difference between a High-Fidelity amp going to be noticeable on smaller speakers like the RP-640?  Perhaps this difference is academic only and I should reserve a separate Class A/B amp for when I bring tower speakers into this system, or for a dedicated separate system.

 

The surrounds and ceiling speakers will be powered by the receiver.  Yamaha's power combined with Klipsch efficiency, I dont believe I need separate amps for the rest of the system.

 

Thoughts?

 

Thank you

[winglet]

What makes you think you need a 4 ohm capable amp for all channels?  
 

The speakers you’ve mentioned are all 8ohm nominal speakers.  Either yamaha will drive them perfectly fine.  I personally wouldn’t bother with a separate amp for that setup.  
 

 

[billybob]

Welcome @clsanchez77...sorry you were overlooked.

Agree with above reply...

[clsanchez77]

Thanks.  After seeing that response, I looked again and saw this is an 8-ohm speaker.  The online store I was looking at has it listed as a 4-ohm speaker, so solves that issue on the center channel.  I still need the separate amp for the stereo channels anyway, but that is a different issue.