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General opinion about ADCOM amplifiers

I was just curious to get everyone's take on ADCOM

I want to upgrade from a reciever to an amp/pre-amp for HT.

I have been looking into Nohr's Le Amp and Le amp 2, i see stuff on the web that says these can go toe to toe with $2000+ Bryston amps, however, im a firm believer that you get what you pay for.

So ive also been looking at ADCOM, there are alot of inexpencive ADCOM amplifiers in the classified.
Ive seen 150w per ch for under $1000, which is kinda the area im aiming for. unfortunatly, money is a limitation.

I know alot of people here have had Adcom and i am curious to see what he general opinion of these amplifiers is. Ive seen them at high mid-end / low high-end retailers but never heard them.

My reciever can double as a pre-amp for 5 channels, which is what i will be using untill i get a good pre-amp with 7.1, then i want to run a couple real good solid powerful monoblocks to the fronts and use the 5ch amp for the rest.
Eventually, those front speakers and the monoblocks will get slowly released from the HT and converted to a 2chan setup.

opinions on adcom? Good value for the money? Over rated? reliable? do they break down?

i got some good stuff, but this reciever part is killing me. It sounds GREAT until you apply any heavy volume, then the amplifier in the reciever loses control and things start to distort. Ugh. Yuck
audiophanatik
karls
332 posts
 
I think they are good value for the money and relatively reliable. But I would suggest looking into used Brystons if your budget will allow. They are better, sonically and especially build quality.
timo
610 posts
 
IMO, the Adcom 535 amplifier was the best sounding of the bunch that were designed and built during the era of the 535, 545, 555 series. The 535 was the lowest wattage of the bunch, but sounded most musical. This would have been late 80's early 90's?
dogpile
118 posts
 
I purchased a pair Adcom 565 monoblocks about 14 years ago and it's still kick'n. No problems, no repairs. I paid around $1400.00 US for the pair back then, it was a demo. The resale value seems to be quite good, between $850-$1100 used.

The pair I have are very reliable but the sound is not the best. Although, they can sure kick out a lot of bass... perfect for a home theatre setup. They also run very cool which is a bonus. Comes with dual 5-way speaker wire binding posts, very convenient, making bi-wire hookup a breeze.

happy tunes!
mdomnick
331 posts
 
I had a cold solder joint in my Anthem Amp 2 and had to send it in for repair. A friend let me borrow his Adcom (don't know model but will post it when I get home) and so I can directly compare the two. The Anthem was hands down better; bottom end was much fuller, bass extension was better by far. The mids were close, but the tube input section of my Anthem gave a sweeter sound which I prefer and the highs were very close; too close to really criticize the Adcom over. I also feel the sound stage was wider with the Anthem and gave a more life like feel to the music. I feel the Adcom is a good amp, but if your willing to buy used, you can really get something better than Adcom for a reasonable price. If HT is your thing, I don't believe you would be disappointed with Adcom. Going from a receiver to the Adcom would be a step up, but you take a bigger step up with another manufacturer.

For $1k, I’d personally be looking at Anthem, Rogue (if you don’t mind tubes), Bryston, Marantz MA500 or 700 monoblocks (these amps are discontinued but can be found used and are excellent amps), lower end McCormack Amps, lower end Proceed amps (BPA series), lower end Blue Circle amps. Probably many others but these I am most familiar with.

Just my $0.02

m-
gmood1
1,251 posts
 
Me and a friend did some comparisons with some Adcoms.A modifyied version 5800(200 wpc x2),a 5803(200 wpc x3) and a Denon 2 channel 200 wpc optical class A/B(can't remeber the model number).The Denon was the most musical of the 3 amps.They aren't made anymore but you may luck up on Audiogon and find one for sale around $400.00.The Denon was smoother and more easy going,while still controlling the drivers.The midrange on the Denon was liquid.The Adcoms were slighlty harsh on top..being bright at times.I felt like I was being stabbed by the music,instead of being seduced!

Good Luck!
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