Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Technical Questions onkyo m282 and m80

Axe Music carries the Crown XTI 1000 for a very reasonable price. This is why I am thinking very hard about going this route.

Yup, the XLR to RCA adapters.

I was thinking about using a Behringer as well, just a little bit less money. You did notice that the one you linked to is only 230W into 4 ohms. It's bridged to get 500W and in bridged mode it won't run M80s.

230W is quite possibly in the range you are able to get out of the Pioneer give or take a few watts, at least that is what I can get out of my 3808, so I am looking for double that, 500W, for an outboard amp.

You could look for a cheap mono amp to drive the center or even use that one you linked to in bridged mode.

110 into 8ohms equates out to about 170W into 4ohms providing that spec isn't peak. The difference from 170 to 230 would be about 1-2 db, barely noticeable at all. This is why I look at a doubling of the 8ohm spec to really gain any improvement. So you would need an amp with 220W into 8 ohms this would give you ~300W into the M80s, a noticeable SPL increase and lots of headroom for them at lower volumes.

The Crown, as far as I can tell has good reviews.

I read your posts with the voice of Skipper.

Are the fans audible on those types of amps?

Luc, there's nothing in either your present thread or in previous ones that contains any good reason for not simply trying your 1018 with M80s before looking for an amplifier with more maximum power; your search is premature at best. Your comment on the 1018's 110 watt rating indicates that you haven't read previous discussions here which explain that all amplifiers sold in the U.S.(which effectively applies to those sold in Canada as well)have to comply with the amplifier power rating regulations of the FTC(Federal Trade Commission). In summary, the rated power has to be sustained for at least five continuous minutes of operation; no "peak power" or similar rating is legally permissible for the basic rating. Audio magazine lab tests confirm that the advertised rating is in fact met, and manufacturers would be foolish to publish a power rating which was in violation of the regs. This is the only area of audio which has legal regulations and where we should be confident that claims will in fact be met.

If you want an amplifier with a higher maximum power rating, at least 500 watts would be required to make a significant difference in maximum sound level even possible.

If an amplifier has only balanced inputs, using an adaptor to allow use of an unbalanced output from the receiver or separate preamplifier shouldn't cause any noise problem. If running unbalanced all the way with a typical shielded coaxial cable doesn't result in a noise problem in typical home environments(and it doesn't), running unbalanced with an adaptor won't either.

Going with my present experience with the A1400 vs my Denon 3808, the difference was quite noticeable and I feel the speakers really opened up with A1400. Will these lower priced amps have the same sound as the A1400 I can't answer as i have not heard one. I have yet to try the A1400 with my M22s to see if they also open up more, but I also no longer have my Denon to compare it to.
I can say that the Denon still sounded very good on it's own, but the A1400 was just that much better at bringing everything to life.

OK, I wanted to reference a post on the ep2500 specs so I started searching. I'm not sure where I got the idea about distortion, but it is incorrect.

Here are the distortion measurements for a 2Ohm load.

Here are the 8Ohm measurements.

I did listen to the M22s hooked up to the A1400 and other than the bass not really improving, although it was more prominent on songs that are truly bass heavy, the overall soundstage was much wider and more detailed from what I can remember of the way they sound vs. the 3808. I was at the back of the room and amazed at just how good they sounded at ~20' away.