What amp will run Mordaunt Short 906 well?

Steve.dec · 28-02-2009, 8:13 PM

Hi guys

Anybody know what amp i should get to run a set of MS 906 speakers?

Im new to this stuff so any help would be gratefully appreciated

Thanks

Deadringers · 28-02-2009, 8:34 PM

at the price they are, about 150-200?
i would of thought a Pioneer A209R or Sony TAFE370 or Cambridge Audio A1MK3SE would do a good job? each of which are around the 120 mark or probably less if you looked around.

Steve.dec · 28-02-2009, 9:52 PM

Thanks deadringers, ive had a quick look at the amps you said about but im wondering, do they need to be more powerful? the speakers are 150W but the cambridge audio is only 35W.. like i said before i dont really know much about this stuff so i could be sounding completely stupid here..

Thanks

BlueWizard · 01-03-2009, 12:47 AM

Actually, given the Mordaunts good bass and general efficiency, they would work well with any amp large or small.

In general, you want an amp of a least 40 watts per channel, though 35 watts would be passable. The Mordaunts should work comfortably on any up to 100 watt per channels and more.

But, technically, according to Mordaunt, they should work well with amps as low as 20 watts, though in a more practical sense, you don't want to go that low.

So, in short, any amp with a true 40w to 100w per channel will do an excellent job.

The Cambridge Audio A5 Classic from Richer Sounds is a basic stereo integrated amp with a solid 60 watts per channel for a modest £120. Available in Silver or Black.

A little less power, but a little nicer amp, would be the Cambridge Audio 340A with 40 watts for £169, or the newer Cambridge Audio 340SE with 45 watts for £199.

There are certainly other amp in this price range, but the Cambridge Audio seem to be a very sweet compromise between quality and quantity.

It would help if you gave us a working budget. Our having to guess is never a good thing.

Note: I don't think the Cambridge amps have a PHONO input, which means, if you have a turntable that doesn't have its own Phono Pre-amp, then you would need to buy one of these in addition to the amp. The Cambridge 540P Phono Pre-amp is about £60 for Richers.

Just one man's opinion.

Steve/bluewizard

Steve.dec · 01-03-2009, 12:58 AM

Thanks bluewizard thats really helpful.

To be honest i haven't thought of a price range i just want to get the best out of the speakers really, i suppose i would look around the £300 mark if this would mean getting them to sound better, but if i can get something for around the £150 mark that sounds as good then thats cool too, what do you think?

Steve.dec · 01-03-2009, 1:06 AM

I looked at the Cambridge Audio azur 640a which i can get for about £300 but not sure if thats the best amp for that sort of money, what do you think?

redmarkred · 01-03-2009, 8:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve.dec

I looked at the Cambridge Audio azur 640a which i can get for about £300 but not sure if thats the best amp for that sort of money, what do you think?

I have the Azur 540a with Mordaunt Short 914 floorstanders. Sounds fantastic for the money! In general CA and MS seem to be a good combination.

BlueWizard · 01-03-2009, 8:17 AM

Richer Sounds has a sale on Denon DRA700 Receivers, which are 80 watts/ch, AM/FM/DAB, 5 inputs including a phono input for about £249.

But sales like these rarely last more than a very few days. So, if you are interested, you need to act quick. There is no denying the quality of Denon products, though I haven't had any direct contact with this specific amp.

If that deal is unavailable, then the 60 watt Cambridge 640A is available for £279 in black or silver, and the 75 watt Cambridge 540A is available for £329.

I don't know if a turntable is important to you or if you have one, but the Cambridge amps don't have a phono input, that is about £60 extra.

If you are looking for alternatives, Yamaha makes some pretty high powered amps; look at the YAMAHA AX397 (60w) and the YAMAHA AX497 (85w/ch) at SuperFi.co.uk .

You might also consider the NAD C355BEE, which is a generally well regarded amp. It is rated at 80w/ch to 8 ohms, though I think that might be slightly inflated, but still a good amp.

You might also consider the Onkyo TX8255 receiver for about £225 with an alleged 55w/ch to 8 ohms, or the Onkyo TX85555 for £295 with an alleged 75 w/ch to 8 ohms. Though again, I think Onkyo has a tendency to inflate their power slightly. But none the less, Onkyo make decent quality amps.

Overall, I think the best deal might be the Denon, but available stock is limited.

Pretty much any of these amps is going to do a good job for you, it is just a matter of setting your priorities and preferences, and seeking out the best combination for your money.

Steve/bluewizard

Steve.dec · 01-03-2009, 6:59 PM

thanks for all your help guys, ive been out to RS today and bought the Azur 640A, i couldnt get the Denon DRA700 they said it was old stock but im happy with the CA.

To bi-wire the speakers i take it i run the LF terminals to speaker A on the amp and the HF terminals to speaker B ??

redmarkred · 01-03-2009, 8:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve.dec

thanks for all your help guys, ive been out to RS today and bought the Azur 640A, i couldnt get the Denon DRA700 they said it was old stock but im happy with the CA.

To bi-wire the speakers i take it i run the LF terminals to speaker A on the amp and the HF terminals to speaker B ??

Great choice! You won't be disappointed.

Yes that's what you need to do. Bi-wiring really improved the sound for me.

Have you got Banana plugs?

Steve.dec · 01-03-2009, 8:56 PM

no what are they for?

So i've wired the speakers as i said above and when i press the 'Speaker B' button off all you get is the bottom speaker working and all the low noise but its not very loud, does this sound right?

redmarkred · 01-03-2009, 9:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve.dec

no what are they for?

So i've wired the speakers as i said above and when i press the 'Speaker B' button off all you get is the bottom speaker working and all the low noise but its not very loud, does this sound right?

You attach them to each end of your speaker wire. Makes it easier to plug the wire into the back of the speakers and amp. Also should increase transfer quality.

No doesn't sound right. I think I did that when I first wired mine up. How does it sound when you have both A & B on? I have it wired the opposite way so that if you turn off 'Speaker B' all you get is high end treble. If you do this should sound much better when you have Speaker A & B on.

Steve.dec · 01-03-2009, 10:11 PM

Ah ill get some of those then cause it was a nightmare getting the wire in as the connections are quite close together.

Right ill try that with the speakers cause it doesn't sound quite right when you turn off speaker B, i mean i was expecting it to cut out the high end but the low end thats left just doesn't sound right.

The guy in RS said it would tell me which way round to wire the HF and LF in the amp manual but all i can find is how to wire 2 seperate sets of speakers..

Ianfromnotts · 01-03-2009, 10:19 PM

Bi-wiring:

A picture is worth ........... use either speaker set A or speaker set B rather than both and wire like this

How to Bi-Wire Speakers

Steve.dec · 01-03-2009, 10:34 PM

Ah thanks mate ill try that.

Doesn't wiring them how i've done then mean they are getting 75w to the high and 75w to the low the same as wiring them in parallel from the same terminal? so theoretically should be doing the same job?

Sorry if that isn't right but I'm looking at it from an electrician's point of view like in lighting circuits, which may not work the same...

Ianfromnotts · 01-03-2009, 10:51 PM

sounded to me as if the amp can have 2 sets of speakers attached and when you switch to A you will only get the bass or treble to work depending on what is wired to A and when you switch to B the other half will work

Guess in theory switching to A+B should power both bass and treble at the same time and it might be easier to connect up .............but in that case you don't want to run A or B on there own as you will loose either the low notes or the high notes.

From my experience bi/tri wiring seems more about selling extra cable than any real sound improvements but guess in some situations especially with some exotic cables it may change the load the amp sees and make subtle changes to the sound

Steve.dec · 01-03-2009, 11:35 PM

Yeah i think ill wire them the way you showed me in the diagrams as its the proper way by the looks of it, thanks for the advice i really appreciate it.

redmarkred · 02-03-2009, 6:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve.dec

Yeah i think ill wire them the way you showed me in the diagrams as its the proper way by the looks of it, thanks for the advice i really appreciate it.

The best thing to do mate is to get those Bananan plugs for your cables and then you can experiment. There is no proper way to bi-wire. Yes you can just use Speaker A temrminals to bi-wire your speakers or you can use A & B. Everybody you speak to will tell you different.

The latter method definitely sounded best for my set up but you need to experiment. At the end of the day it's what sounds best to your ears!