mopar dave Posted January 30, 2003 Share Posted January 30, 2003 i have a yamaha rx v2092 with cornwalls and heresy's. i was thinking of maybe getting into a smaller, simpler receiver with less power. the 2092 has 100w cont. 140w@8ohm peaks. with my speakers i wont need alot of power, maybe 70w cont. the to receivers i'm looking at are denon and yamaha. has anyone ABed these with heritage line? which sounded the best in your opinion, smoothest and well matched. i listen to two channel 80% and HT 20% of the time. any comments would be welcomed. thank you dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Invidiosulus Posted January 31, 2003 Share Posted January 31, 2003 Dave, I currently own a Yamaha HTR-5540 While I have been very happy with this reciever for the price and I think it does great with movies I have come to believe that it is slightly on the grainy side when it comes to two channel listening. Just so you know this was $299 at best buy about a year or so ago. 75wpc DD5.1 DPLII DPLogic DTS External Decoder input all the usual stuff. Unfortunately I have never heard any of the denon stuff. Peace, Josh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallette Posted January 31, 2003 Share Posted January 31, 2003 I would concur about Yamaha, Denon, and other current and past builders of qaulity SS amps. To those of us non-equipment freaks, a top quality SS amp sounds great with the right stuff. I can tell a difference between tube and SS, but not so great as to ruin my day or cause me to turn my nose up at good SS. I run a big Denon 3000 series (I forget the exact model right now) in my HT setup, with Heresies L&R, Frasier Super Midget in the center, and RS LX-5's in the rear. I enjoy listening to music on it, and think the sound is both accurate and musical. At least, I don't here anything wrong coming out of the Heresies that can be attributed to the amp. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dale W Posted January 31, 2003 Share Posted January 31, 2003 Dave : I'm supprised you made it out of craigs house without some tube gear in hand . Then again maybe my dynacos are going to have a yamaha emblem when they get home . lol Talked to craig and today is shipping day . ye ha !!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallette Posted January 31, 2003 Share Posted January 31, 2003 I would concur about Yamaha, Denon, and other current and past builders of qaulity SS amps. To those of us non-equipment freaks, a top quality SS amp sounds great with the right stuff. I can tell a difference between tube and SS, but not so great as to ruin my day or cause me to turn my nose up at good SS. I run a big Denon 3000 series (I forget the exact model right now) in my HT setup, with Heresies L&R, Frasier Super Midget in the center, and RS LX-5's in the rear. I enjoy listening to music on it, and think the sound is both accurate and musical. At least, I don't here anything wrong coming out of the Heresies that can be attributed to the amp. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mopar dave Posted January 31, 2003 Author Share Posted January 31, 2003 yes, one day i will definitly have a tube amp. although, i am not disappointed with the yamaha. not to brag but, the yamaha was'nt to far off your mark III's. both powerful with good dynamics. i think your mark's have a better sound stage and a bit smoother. i'm looking for SS thats closer to your mark's for HT aswell as two channel for now. have fun with those mark's, i'm sure you will be completly satisfied. later dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Robinson Posted January 31, 2003 Share Posted January 31, 2003 Dave, I'm running a Denon 4800 in the family room and I hear no grain at all. It is a very smooth all-purpose amp and does very well with the three Heritage speakers attached to it (Cornwall, Belle, Heresy). If I had to replace this receiver, I'd probably stay with Denon ... I find a lot of value with it. I can't really compare the 5.1 system with my 2-channel, they're so different. For pure musical listening delight, I can't think of a system that can sound better than SET and Klipschorns (in the right room). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallette Posted January 31, 2003 Share Posted January 31, 2003 Mine's an Denon AVR-3000, last top of the line Pro Logic before digital. Just hooked up a Sony P-4300 TT to it with an AT cartridge. Hardly state of the art, but the results with the Heresies are imminently listenable, with no problems tracebable to the amp. I don't do serious listening up there, but I a may do a bit more now that I've heard just how decent it can sound. Think I'll keep it... Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkrop Posted January 31, 2003 Share Posted January 31, 2003 I have been running Yamahas with my KG-4s for ten years and no complaints! My stereo reciever (forgot model, 100 wpc, straight stereo) fried by lightning. Now HT w/ RX-V800 sounds great in stereo and surround processing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOSValves Posted January 31, 2003 Share Posted January 31, 2003 I'd have to agree that the Yamaha really didn't sound all that bad. But if you were to actually spend more than a few hours listening to both I think you would find many differences between the Yamaha and the Mark III's . You mentioned fatigue from the Yamaha at high volume within a few minutes while a couple hours of the Mark III's at ear bleeding volumes left you just wanting more !! Not trying to put your Yamaha down or anything I figure it would be Horrible when you brought it in and was surprised that it sounded pretty good. But still it would be a cold day in hell before I would spend a red cent on SS. Heck I would take $500 and buy a Vintage Integrated first. I would put my Scott up against any solid state amp costing less than $1500 any day of the week. I'd rather have less bass control than listening fatigue any day of the week. Just my 2 cents Craig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J M O N Posted February 1, 2003 Share Posted February 1, 2003 I once owned Cornwalls and had them powered by an HK 870 power amp (100w, SS). They sounded good, but not always great. Then one day I was able to borrow a Classe power amp and learned how much difference an amp can make. The HK was no slouch, but I just got better, more natural sound with the Classe. Then I went tubes, and it got better still. You will be amazed at just how good a Cornwall can sound with the right combination of equipment upstream. See if you can borrow some good, high quality equipment from a local dealer. If that kind of stuff is out of your budget, consider buying used. That's what I've done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted February 1, 2003 Share Posted February 1, 2003 Craig makes valid points, but in the end, it's all about what sounds good to your ears. My McIntosh MC250 is a 50 WPC SS amp, but its Autoformers make this vintage amp sound very close to tubes. My dad had a 1979 Technics SU-8099 integrated amp at 115 WPC with his Cornwalls, and I remember the sound being quite rich and full. Hell, I can remember as a teen a friend of the family owning four Klipschorns; each pair connected to two Carver M-500t power amps and a Carver C-4000 preamp...what a glorious sound they made! Never brittle or harsh. Some SS amps can provide a nice matchup with Heritage horns; maybe not as warm and detailed as a 3.5 WPC SET amp, but pretty damn close if you ask me (and you didn't)! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mopar dave Posted February 1, 2003 Author Share Posted February 1, 2003 yes, i agree craig. tubes are superior to SS but, its just not practical to set up a HT system with tube amp$$$$$$$$. thanks everyone for all your opinions. dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOSValves Posted February 1, 2003 Share Posted February 1, 2003 Dave, My point isn't to use tubes for HT your yamaha should do a fine job at that !! So why buy something else ? Just save your money for you 2 channel for tubes. Unless the Yamaha doesnlt satisfy your HT needs then that would be a different story. Heck for that matter I have a full surround sound system in my Livingroom as you know and very rarely use it in any other mode then 2 channel. Craig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T2K Posted February 1, 2003 Share Posted February 1, 2003 I have and still do get a big laugh out of the 'ear fatigue' and 'SS' phrases thrown around. I wonder if any of you SS bashers ever thought about the speakers you tried with the crappy SS equipment having anything to do with 'ear fatigue' you experienced? Ever considered this phrase, 'frequency response'? hahahaha Keith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beast Posted February 4, 2003 Share Posted February 4, 2003 I have a pair of Cornwalls and pair of Heresy IIs hooked up to my Yamaha RX-777 and it is amazeing!! For a stereo receiver it is somewhat expensive, 500+, but it well worth it. I love it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOSValves Posted February 5, 2003 Share Posted February 5, 2003 Keith. Listening fatigue is a real issue when you spend 8 to 10 hours at moderately high volumes listening to music while you are slinging solder. I have witnessed it first hand many times. I'm not saying that all SS sounds bad and gives listening fatigue. I'm saying that $500 spent on the vintage amp will easily compete with SS in the $1500 and up range in every aspect of Music except maybe the tight controlled bass region. To me its all about value. Craig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallette Posted February 6, 2003 Share Posted February 6, 2003 You know, I am not sure that the entire SS vs VT issue is a matter of fatigue. Certainly when it comes to absolute accuracy from DC to light SS probably whens. OTOH, those laser prints from a few years ago looked awesome at first, then would kind of get on your nerves with their perfect focus and extreme detail. The soft clipping of VT's and that warmth seems to do for recordings what a great hall does for an orchestra. My Denon sounds great with the Heresies for short periods of time...but I find myself heading for the VT70i and 'horns when I get focused and really want to enjoy. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted February 6, 2003 Share Posted February 6, 2003 I have heard only a few common brand name receivers on my old Cornwalls and they all did a good job in the short run. Even a simple boom box can make music with the Cornwalls. But in the long run, as double-blind listening studies bear out, the typical SS stuff wears out your ears. The studies show that the more tube components upstream from the same pair of loudspeakers, the better the audience, who did not know why they were listening, enjoys the sound. I lived with the Carver stuff for two years and totally disagree. While the Carver 1.5 amplifier and pre-amplifier is powerful, the hard, clinical and bright high-end sound on my Cornwall Is, with B2 crossovers, drove me crazy in the long run and ruined my emotional involvement with the hobby. The McIntosh seems to the a big exception to the rule for Klipsch. The mighty Pass X250 is a superb SS amplifier, as well it should be, at $6K. It sounded wonderful on my big old horns, although I have never been able to keep the amplifier long enough to hear if it wore out my ears in the long run. Even a $99 tube amplifier though, like the ASL Wave 8s, can compete with many of the sonic benefits of the best SS amplifiers. $500 is not a lot of money for a tweaking audiophile to spend on a component. In fact, it is the price point about where the retail market ends and the hobbyist takes over. I would rather have a $500 2-channel integrated vintage tube amplifier for my big old horn theater, then any of the $2k multi-channel soulless black boxes with their array of buttons and knobs that I have heard. Tubes have many faults, many of which kill their practical application in the HT, but they do make music and for a hell of a lot less than the typical Yugo class receivers sold today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
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.