whtboy Posted February 9, 2006 Share Posted February 9, 2006 Are Carver amps considered good? I haven't heard much about them in the last 10 years. I found a used TFM-15 locally for $180. 4x50 or 2x100 watts into 8 ohms. Thanks! -jacob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robster Posted February 9, 2006 Share Posted February 9, 2006 The knobs made of plastic when they break,forget about getting replacements. When they do pop up on Ebay,they are high priced. I had a Carver 2000 series Haligraphic reciever for 15 years zero problems,but it hummed and when I broke a knob. I paid $25 for one off Ebay. Cheers, Robert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whtboy Posted February 9, 2006 Author Share Posted February 9, 2006 I'm not so concerned about the cosmetics. Was the hum constant or something that cropped up over time or only when other gear was part of the picture. Did it sound good when it was playing properly? Thanks! -jacob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuckears Posted February 9, 2006 Share Posted February 9, 2006 I owned a Carver M200t power amp and C1 preamp with my Fortes for years; it was a perfectly decent amp, fairly quiet, and I the only problems I had was when the volume knob on the preamp began to go out. I upgraded to a McCormack amp, and it was like I had never heard the Fortes at all; much more bass and realism than with the Carver. I would characterize the Carver amp as neutral to laid-back, and an improvement over a basic receiver, but Klipsch speakers really shine with a higher-end amplifier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wardsweb Posted February 9, 2006 Share Posted February 9, 2006 Are Carver amps considered good? I haven't heard much about them in the last 10 years. I found a used TFM-15 locally for $180. 4x50 or 2x100 watts into 8 ohms. Thanks! -jacob I find the Carver amps to be a very good bang for your buck. I've owned m1.5t pushing JBL L-40, TFM-15 pushing Infinity WTLC, TFM-35 pushing Polk SDA-1, A-500x pushing twin 18" McCauley in Bassmaxx B1 bass horns, and I'm still running a A-760x pushing my Martin Logan CLS electrostats. Any of these amps will handle 4 ohms all day long. The A-500x can do 2 ohms and the A-760x is current limited at 1 ohm. I like Carver a lot and will be picking up some Carver Silver 7t mono blocks next week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pauln Posted February 9, 2006 Share Posted February 9, 2006 Carver stuff is pretty good as sand amps go. Good sound and lots of headroom. I had a Carver M500t for years - 250W/ch with the fancy magnetic whatsit-doodle power supply. Best feature was the two big 3x4 inch Watt meters on the front face. My old Heresys were LOUD at 3 watts (straight up verticle on the meters that read all the way to 300 Watts per channel at 8 ohms). Most playing was at .03 Watt! They had a nice firm bottom, pretty smooth mid and top end. Carvers are still very desirable, especially now adays when collected to play individual channels in HT. Some folks have four or five of them bridged mono to do HT channels... I gave mine to my neice who drives it with an Ipod... Pauln Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted February 10, 2006 Share Posted February 10, 2006 Bought my first Carver M-400t "cube" 201 WPC Magnetic Field power amp back in '83 that drove my JBL L112 Century II monitors quite effectively. In '92 I bought the TFM-35x and powered a pair of inefficient Magnepan MGLR1 planars (at 350 WPC into 4 ohms) without even breaking a sweat! Both amps also had the opportunity to drive my dad's '79 Cornwalls, and they were barely idling along at over 110dB levels! Both power amps never gave me any troubles whatsoever, they remained cool to the touch, and sounded great no matter what type of loudspeakers I threw at 'em. Granted, they weren't the end-all be-all in SS design, and when I aquired my first McIntosh (model MC7200), I soon realized they weren't the most dynamic power amps ever made either (the Macs really sound that good IMO). But to the Carver's defense, I also didn't own their TOTL Magnetic Field power amps either, and I'm sure Carver's Silver Seven monoblocks would give any Mac a run for its money (check out Sunfire to see how far Bob Carver's vision has grown).[] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piranha Posted February 10, 2006 Share Posted February 10, 2006 I ran a TFM-35X and C-5 preamp for a while. The combo sounded OK on my Corns, but was a bit fatiguing at higher SPL's. Not nearly as forgiving and no where near the detail and imaging at high or lower SPL's as what I currently run. I have to admit, the combo sounded pretty damn good on my 4320's. I have always wondered what the 4320's would have sounded like on my current gear? I guess I'll never know since I f'd up and sold them. WHAT THE HELL WAS I THINKING? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rplace Posted February 10, 2006 Share Posted February 10, 2006 I use 4 Carver TFM-25 amps to power my 7.1 HT. If I am not listening to vinyl and want some CD action I use the single Carver TFM-25 that I have had since new in 1992. I really like the TFM line. I acquired the other 3 amps via ebay for around $300 each. If you can get a TFM-15 for 180 I think that is fair. There are two types of the TFM-15 one is able to be bridged into a mono amp with roughly 2X the power. The other does not have the internal switch to make it a mono block. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted February 10, 2006 Share Posted February 10, 2006 I use that very amp in my bedroom with a pair of RF-5's. They work great together. I rarely turn the volume over 1/2. To me, it's a very mellow amp. I bought it new roughly 20 years ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whtboy Posted February 10, 2006 Author Share Posted February 10, 2006 I haven't found any specs online yet. Does it actually have four discrete inputs for running in 4x50W mode? This might be a great amp to run the mids & tweeters in a tri-amp setup. Thanks! -jacob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrestonTom Posted February 10, 2006 Share Posted February 10, 2006 Jacob, I currently run my K-Horns with a TFM 15. The combination is good (not necessarily great). If there is a "C" in the name, then the unit is bridgable (the early ones were not). I am surprised that they have 4 ch ones, that might be a misprint. There will be plenty of head room and they can drive loads that need current (have a low impedance). Although this should not be a problem for most Klipsch speakers. They are also a quiet amp. Frequently the VU meters are dead. At $180 this would be an average price, they sometimes sell for about 125-150. Good Luck, -Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BiggerIsBetter Posted February 10, 2006 Share Posted February 10, 2006 From memory, no I think it only has 2 inputs. The price is fair, but a bit high. it should have more than enough power. I really liked the A400X, which is a LOT more powerful and sounded better also. You should be able to get a A400X for not much more. I really didn't like the TFMs as much, less Carver sounding (Bob was on the way out). I think the "smoother" older carvers will sound better with the corns than the newer ones (i.e. TFMs) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rplace Posted February 10, 2006 Share Posted February 10, 2006 Don't hold me to it but I believe the TFM-15CB is the one that can be stereo or mono the standard TFM-15 cannot. I believe they both have 2 channels not 4. 100 watts RMS/channel into 8 ohms both channels driven 20-20kHz with no more than 0.1%THD. 140 watts RMS/channel into 4 ohms or can be bridged mono and puts out 200 watts dynamic power into 2 ohms. It has dual voltage (120/220), dimensions are 3 5/8 x 19 x 13 and weighs 17.2 lbs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted February 10, 2006 Share Posted February 10, 2006 "Carver stuff is pretty good as sand amps go." old Carver 1.5 amp help me rediscover tubes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyKlipschFan Posted February 10, 2006 Share Posted February 10, 2006 I have the (Carver) Sunfire pre amp Theater Grand IV and the Sunfire signature series 200 x 7 amp too. I have NO complaints... At all. Period. With a La Scala's, it has been a match made in heaven! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whtboy Posted February 10, 2006 Author Share Posted February 10, 2006 The seller removed the ad from craigslist and put it on ebay =) http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5865094922&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEBI%3AIT&rd=1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpm Posted February 10, 2006 Share Posted February 10, 2006 I had a Carver Pro ZR1600 for awhile. It had boocoo power but it also had some annoyances which caused me to sell it. For one thing, it was noisy as hell even with the volume off. There was a terrible hiss coming through the tweets. The fan was super noisy and when unhooked the unit would overheat and lock up. I could run with the cover off, but that ain't my style, and I have a dusty house. It was a hard unit to jive with a dvd player, and I ended up running with a $2 cheater plug on the end of the power cord to stop the humming from some weird ground problem. It was also way more power than I needed for my new LaScallas. I went back to my ALL Rega system and am very satisfied. Rega is almost tube-like in sound. Well, that's my story and I'm stickin' to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TFM-75 Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 I have love Carver Amps Since the early 80's . I have from the original m400 Amplifiers serial # 0022, two 1.5t's, one m500t, TFM-75 and now a 300x 2 Sunfire And each has there own sound. For what it worth if you buy a carver Amp and the" best for that amp speakers" than you have a great set-up. I have never owned a TFM-15cb but had a friend that ran his big Polk SDA's with them. and loved them with this this combo. Just make sure I you do buy a used Carver Amplifier that its as mint as you can get condition , as the magnetic coil is no longer made and hard to find. If you realy love music you owe it to your self to give a Carver a listen . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BS Button Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 I had a Carver Pro ZR1600 for awhile. It had boocoo power but it also had some annoyances which caused me to sell it. For one thing, it was noisy as hell even with the volume off. There was a terrible hiss coming through the tweets. The fan was super noisy and when unhooked the unit would overheat and lock up. I could run with the cover off, but that ain't my style, and I have a dusty house. It was a hard unit to jive with a dvd player, and I ended up running with a $2 cheater plug on the end of the power cord to stop the humming from some weird ground problem. It was also way more power than I needed for my new LaScallas. I went back to my ALL Rega system and am very satisfied. Rega is almost tube-like in sound. Well, that's my story and I'm stickin' to it. Did you just sell this on Audiogon? I was trying to buy it....as I was hearing good things about this amplifier. It's basically a tri-path, is it not? If you are the dude, I sent you an e-mail. BS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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