All right I am admitting upfront this might come across as a very stupid question but here goes.

I am looking for a decent 2 channel amp for my M80s. Not because I need it but I want it...(Is there a 12 step program for audioholics?)

Something like an Adcom GFA 6002 would be nice. But I am so mesmerized by the analog display of the Denon POA-A1HDCI which is well out of my budget.

So do any of you knowledgable folks out there know of a good amp which has an analog display. I just think those are super cool.

Thanks

Sam

Hi Sam,

Not a stupid question at all! I love the big, lighted analog power output meters on some power amplifiers. Have you considered looking into the used market? There was a really stunningly beautiful power amplifier built by Onkyo at least until 1996, called the M510 Grand Integra, which was expensive back then. You might find one on the used market. And this was back when Onkyo built really robust amplifiers. There was an Onkyo M504 that I think also had big lighted analog meters.

McIntosh Labs also had several large power amps with big analog power output meters.

Regards,

I wish my Rotel had the analog meters. I would even be willing to pay more if it were an option.

Too bad the A1400 is digital!
Seriously, I have to admit there is something nice about those meters. On the other hand, I like my equipment to be as invisible as possible. Meters behind a sliding panel? With a remote control?

Hi Rick,

Yes, I totally understand. I forgot to mention to Sam that he should check out http://www.audiogon.com as well as ebay for vintage power amplifiers. I just checked out audiogon and indeed there is an Onkyo Grand Integra M510 for sale, asking $5000, so it appears to have held its value very well.

Others from that era with big meters include Accuphase and McIntosh monoblocs. Carver had several stereo power amps with little round VU meters, rather quaint. I still liked them.

Regards,

Eric,

During the development of Axiom's A1400-8, I recall suggesting at a meeting--and I was only half-joking--that we should include some big fat power output meters on the front.

Regards,

I had a big old Kenwood Basic M2A that had a set of meters on it but not the type the OP is looking for. I too looked at the price of the Onk units and was amazed they held there value as well as they did.

I think Emotiva is getting ready to launch the next generation of their 2-channel amp. The old one had meters.

Hey, here's a pre-production pic of the new one...

[img]http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=80105&stc=1&d=1203724489[/img]

Get 2 of these





My personal favorite

Love the Technics amps.

Used to have a SU-V2 that was kind of that champagne metallic silver hue with the glowing green "class A" label on it. Sweet!

Nothing stupid about it. It is fun to watch those needles move. I have an old Carver m400 cube amp that has LED lights for left and right channels and I used to love to watch them bounce up and down. I have thought many times of getting some M80's to hook up to it just for the view and of course the sound. It is actually stable to 2 ohms according to the manual. 250 watt per channel into 4 ohms. Although it is from 1983, it still works like the day I got it. Perhaps M80's are in my near future.

I love watching the meters and have an old Sansui reciever hooked up in the basement that feeds my need.

Totally forgot about the Technics! Nice design. I still have a big old Yamaha stereo power amp with vertical peak-reading LCD meters. They were fun to watch as well but never had quite the appeal of the analog meters.

Regards,

Should be easy to build as a external box? It's essentially a series of current meters. Could just package 7-8 of them in a silver casing and call it the "Nostalgia Mk. II".

If you have an Onkyo receiver, it could also be built using a thermometer.

Hi,

Those with very long memories may recall that back in the late '60s or early '70s, Radio Shack actually sold an accessory box with a pair of analog meters that you inserted between the speaker outputs of the stereo receiver or amp and the speakers. Fun to watch, but not lighted.

Loved your comment on using a thermometer for those new Onkyos!

Regards,

You could also do it on our old H/Ks, Alan...

I have a stack of 3 Yamaha M80s with their pulsing red vertical digital display power meters and a M504 with big VU meters and swinging needles on top.

But, wouldnt a stack of 4 of these look just great?



A stack of 4 Technics with huge VU meters would be like Forbidden planet's Krell power meters going crazy when Dr. Morbius dreamed his monster dreams.

Thank you all for making me feel normal.

Alan, I saw the onkyo amp you mentioned, its way out of my budget. Could you guys please make a 2 channel amp version of the A1400 and have analog meters on the front...

Here is a more precise question; given I am using Denon 3808 to run the 2 M80s, how much power rating should a 2 channel amp have to add to the power already existing in the denon.

I saw an amp on ebay with the analog display but it was rated at only 40 watts per channel, which is way less than the denon.
Toshiba amp on Ebay

I will see if anything is available from Technics

Sam

I think how it would work is that you would use the Denon as a preamp, and the two channel amp as amplification for ... well, 2 channels. You cannot use both the inboard and outboard amps together on the same channels. Bad things would happen.

As to the normal thing, well, you're feeling normal while in the company of audiophiles. This probably would not pass as normal in the context of the larger community.

As far as I'm concerned, huge power meters are WAY cool.

A nice Onkyo Integra M504 might be in your budget range. Huge VU meters, though not as drop dead beautiful as the Technics.

Sam,

I use the 3808 as pre/pro. Well, five channels anyway. I am using a Power5 amp for all but the surround backs. The 3808 drives the SB’s. The Power5 is a discontinued 200X5 amp that NHT was making. They also made a 2X200 amp. The P-5 is sold out, but you can still get the P-2 for a very reasonable price. Sorry, no meters, but I have been pleased with the amp itself.

Do you need it with the 3808 though….. Well no, not really. When I fired up the P-5 for the first time I just couldn’t tell a difference is SQ across the board. Where the amp did demonstrate an audible difference is some of the dynamic peaks like gun fights. It will play louder, but the 3808 already drives the M80’s too friggin loud, so that’s a mute point.

But if you heart’s set on external amplification for the mains, I would give the P-2 serous consideration. The NHT amps use BW ice power modules. I bought mine from Listen Up. It looks like they still have some P2’s on clearance.

http://www.listenup.com/lu/merchant.mvc?...02&Store_Code=l

Well you are getting ~225W into 4 ohms with the Denon so I would think an Amp rated at 200W into 8ohms would be the starting point.

That helps Jason. Thank you.

I found a Carver M500 on ebay but the seller wants twice of what it has sold in the past, so I will wait till a good deal comes by.

I have enough tweaking to do for now.

Thank you all for your help

You can't add to the power of your Denon as the others have mentioned. You would be using the Denon as a Preamp, your external amp would be supplying the power. Why do you think you need an external amp, your 3808 is more than capable.

So is your Denon, why do you have an external amp Let the fellow get the amp he wants without being pestered.

If budget is your concern, check out these Behringer A500 amps.

This is a 2 channel amp that can be bridged into 1x500 watts into 8 ohms. Take that down to 4 ohms and you might be able to achieve liftoff with the M80s.

For $400, you can have a pair of them and experiment with more power than you ever could reasonably need (or maybe even want!). A notable shortcoming is that these do not have a power trigger to come on with your receiver, so it either stays on all the time or you get an external power sensor (~$30) to fire up the amp when the receiver turns on.

The price on these undoubtedly seems too good to be true, however, I've done a fair amount of reading on them and the reviews really are good on the average. Also, if you buy from the place I linked to, there is a 30-day money back return policy so you can test the difference with/without them yourself and send them back if it doesn't pay the dividends you're expecting.

If you end up trying the amp out, I know we'd all be interested to hear your impressions.

Jason

Hi,

I should have been more clear and written " how much power rating should a 2 channel amp have to replace the power already existing in the denon."

As for the Behringer, they look quite cool and within my budget. I think I will hold out for some time for an older amp but if I get impatient then the Behringers will definitely be one option.

Thanks for the suggestion

Sam

I'm still using my Luxman M-02

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4g0ur5W_B4s/RifTMGMO4YI/AAAAAAAAAsk/CfLeLaixuJk/IMG_1067.jpg

looks pretty. I have my eye on an onkyo integra m504, lets seee if I get it.