You can get a new QSC GX3 for $300. It should go well with your speakers. |
Sumo Polaris, no better value @ $300 |
rotel rb-980bx is amazing for under $300 ($200). |
crown xls1000 at b&h now is $285 new. 215/wpc/8Ohm |
Log with the Crown xls series as mentioned. |
I'd ignore pro sound amps like the QSC since it has fan noise that is far too loud
for home hifi unless you will only be playing things really loud (I own a GX3 for
certain PA needs and the fan is way too loud even for my rehearsal/recording
studio....I use an old reliable and fanless Alesis RA100 for that). I recommended
Adcom in the other post as they are bulletproof and pretty cheap to buy these
days...they sound amazing for the price. |
The Crown is totally different and I have heard it. Nice class D amp. |
They use those Crowns for exercise classes at my Gym along with four high corner mounted high efficiency pro horn loaded speakers (forget the make) at my gym. I hear them for a hour or so almost everyday. Acoustics in those rooms are the pits though, and I doubt those HE horns are a great match, so hard for me to assess apples/apples for home use. COuld be a great bargain with the right speakers at home perhaps. I smaller somewhat high efficiency speakers at home I use with my Class D amps. Not bad, but tube amplification does seem to go a long ways with higher efficiency speakers in particular. |
Wolf_garcia is right about the fan. You can hear it, but I don't think its too noisy. One thing worth mentioning about me is that I can't listen to music in a room that is dead silent. I find that its just not natural. I know that most audiophiles prefer a dead silent room.
Another thing I should mention since someone brought up the Crown, is that the QSC is a traditional design, where the Crown is class d. I bought the QSC just to experiment with. I've never heard a class d amp that I liked, so I thought getting the QSC would make for a better comparison.
The amp does have limitations, but its a $300 amp and that's what the OP was asking for. I think the QSC is definitely worth the money. It has tons of power and appears to be built like a tank. It sounds fairly neutral but the imaging isn't all that great. I got mine from Guitar Center. They have a very good return policy so you are not stuck with it if you don't like it. |
My budget is about 300 dollars, and I'd like something in the 100 WPC range, so I will likely buy second hand vintage. Another possibility to consider, should one appear for sale, would be a Carver M400t "cube amp," which is rated at 200 watts/channel and I believe typically sells for slightly less than your budget. That was a 1980's amp whose "transfer function" (the relation between its output and its input) was intended to emulate that of the highly regarded and very expensive pure class A Mark Levinson ML-2. It didn't quite succeed in that regard, as might be expected, but I owned one for a number of years and its sonics were very respectable for its price class (and higher), at least when used in conjunction with easy to drive speakers. (I couldn't find an impedance curve for your particular speakers, but they are rated as "8 ohm compatible," and I found additional reasons to suspect they are not difficult loads). And it sounded fully as powerful and dynamic as its 200W rating would suggest. DO NOT, however, buy any of the earlier "non-t" versions of the M400, which were quite poor sonically IMO. And I have no experience with "t" versions of other Carver models of that era which were designed to emulate the transfer function of a Conrad Johnson tube amp (which I suspect would not be a good match for your speakers even if the emulation were perfect), rather than the transfer function of the solid state ML-2. The M400t, btw, did not use electrolytic capacitors for energy storage (using the magnetic field of an inductor instead), which eliminates a significant concern about condition that would apply to most other amps which are that old. The amp I owned, btw, is still going strong after 30+ years, in the home of a relative. Regards, -- Al |
Ok, this is the very best amp for $300-$400. Very good sounding amp for sure. Muse model 100 just showed up!
http://app.audiogon.com/listings/solid-state-muse-model-100-stereo-power-amp-silver-2014-09-19-amplifiers-95831-sacramento-ca |
I had a Carver m4.0t 360w/ch into 8ohm for many years. Sold it used for just over $300. Very nice amp with tube amp like transfer function. I think this was the CJ emulator model, don't recall exactly. WOrked quite well with Magnepans I used with it and most easier load speakers that a tube amp would do well with.
The Maggies were quite inefficient though and benefited from all 360 watts. |
crown xls series when used at home application fan hardly ever engage and even if it does than at very low speed. it runs faster if the power needed larger or if it runs on high power long time. |
Czarivey
You are right. Just disconnect the silly thing. The amp is not in a cab or rack and will breath just fine.
That Muse is a fine alternative for sure. |
May try to nego for lower price here on 'gon listed Muse Model 100 or perhaps free shipping .
I liked Muse Model 3 preamp, but never tried amp. |
I recommended the Sumo, still do, but the Muse is a great amp at that price. |
the Sumo Polaris is an very good amp in all areas. if you can get one you would be very happy. The muse is also good. |
I think I could stick a quieter fan in my QSC amp, but I only use it for live stuff (generally driving a pair of monitors) and in that application it's fine...but maybe mine has a louder fan than necessary, or a badly designed fan, or a faulty fan...but it's too loud for recording anything when it's on. I have extensive experience with PA amps as I do pro sound work, and I think QSC GX amps generally sound somewhat better than the inexpensive Crown amps...the higher end Crowns sound fabulous, but for hifi I think there are better sounding amps out there, as long as they're not too old with leaky bits...as bargains go B&Ks always sounded great, I loved my Forte' Model 55 (one of the last of those) and various Adcoms...used a 535 as a studio monitor amp for years, and the second model of those with normal binding posts is a smooth sounding amp. I owned an Acurus A250 that needed work from time to time (warranty so no cost for me) but kicked ass. |
If you can stretch it, the Muse 100 is probably the best thing mentioned in this post. Although I've never heard one, the Sumo Polaris also supposed to be a very nice sounding amp. I think it's a mosfet design. Mosfet is where you will get the warm sound that you are looking for. In that regard, a B&K ST140 (older versions I like better) or a Hafler DH220 would also be very good sounding and definitely worth considering, better sounding than the Adcoms or Carvers, IMO.
If the Paradigms are bright, I don't think you would like a class D or other chip amp with it....just my $.02 and 30+ years in this hobby...let us know what you end up with |
"I liked Muse Model 3 preamp, but never tried amp."
The bass is very good. Its a fairly clean sounding amp but the highs can be a little grainy. But not really harsh or bright. Its kind of like the bit of roughness you can sometimes get with a stranded copper cable. If you can get the Muse for $300, I don't see where you can go wrong. Another one to look for is the old PS Audio SS amps. Not the class d amps, the ones before. They're not much to look at, but they do sound pretty good for the money. Probably in the same league as the Muse. |
Yes, PS Audio too if you can find one. |
