Help needed choosing amp

Kirky1980

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Hi all I have been looking at getting some kef ls50's and just wondering if an av reciever which will do 8 ohms power per channel be as good as a normal stereo amp or not as visited a couple of hifi shops and one said would be fine if I got one around the £500 mark and one said I would need to spend around 2 grand can anyone help on this or not if so recommend any amps av receivers etc
 
Hi Kirky1980, your KefLS50's would sound wonderful in a HiFi setup, with something like a Roksan Kandy integrated Stereo amp and maybe matching Kandy CD player.
There are lots of options to choose from and will give stunning results with the right associated equipment.

However, if you expect to get Hi Fi quality from an AV amp, you are likely to be disappointed, especially at £500.
Most AV amps are designed as Multi input control preamplifiers with room equalisation incorporated into the signal path, plus equipment to deal with video processing and upscaling etc.
Then they fit multichannel output amplifier stages and a power supply all in the same box and give great performance in home cinema applications for which they are designed.

But if you want to maximise the potential from your speakers, you need as little signal processing of the source as possible and a power amplifier that has High Current output stages, backed up by a power supply that has energy to spare, with minimal distortion to control the drive units in your speakers.

Most AV amplifiers generally cannot give Hi FI performance.

However, some AV amplifiers have room correction circuitry that can electronically compensate for the poor acoustics in your listening room, which despite having that added circuitry in your signal path, may sound better to you than if you listened to your speakers on a HI FI system without it.

The Power amplification in most AV amps, however, in my experience is generally lacking the grunt required to drive good quality speakers to Hi Fi standards, hence the fact that many people use additional separate power amplifiers from their AV amp Pre-Outs or separate room processors.

The only AV Amps I am aware of that are capable of driving speakers to Hi FI standards are those made by Anthem as they do have proper Power supplies with big transformers and state they Draw more power from the mains than they claim to deliver to you speakers, which is always the case with good HI FI amps. They also have the best room correction software on the market.

If you want to go the AV surround sound route, but still wanted to play stereo music then my first Audition would be with an Anthem AV amp and you are looking at the higher end of your budget.

Also be aware if you are planning to use a Blu Ray player as your Cd player, consider auditioning a dedicated CD player too, via analogue and digital outputs.

Have fun, sorry if I have confused you.
 
Ok ha yeah a lot going on there and just wondering what can I buy on a budget for these and even second hand I just want to be able to plug them in and play really and is it aust to buy a CD player
 
As a general guide you need to spend 4 to 5 times the price of a stereo amp to get similar performance from an AVR. So this will give you an idea of the kind of spend range you would need to get too.
Also in is generally advised to spend 2 to 3 times the price of the AVR on the speakers (for a 5.1 set) to give the best overall sound. So knowing the price of your speakers then this can give you a rough range of cost for the AVR as well.
 
Ok so I'm thinking just running the ls50's on their own what would be good to run these with and like I said maybe looking secondhand as just out an extension on house and re decorating has taken its toll on finances, but if I can just get something for now I may buy new at a latter date :)
 
If only running a pair of speakers and on a tight budget then a stereo amp will give you the best sound quality for the money.
 
Yes this is what I'm going to go for do u know any good cheapish ones and I prob will need a seperate CD player maybe as this seems to be the way everyone goes, obviously I would like them to sound good as want to do them justice :) I'm a newbie to stereo stuff so really don't know what's what
 
One of the cheapest contender would be the Rotel RA10 which you should be able to get for about £350. There's also the Marantz PM6005 or the Yamaha AS500 at the budget end of the scale.

The more notable option range in price from about £650 for a Marantz PM-KI Pearl Lite to over £800 for the Roksan Kandy K2. Other options include the Arcam FMJA19 for about £650 and the Audiolab 8200A for about £750.
 
Ok will have to keep my eyes peeled for something along the lines then and can I hook any kind of CD player up as the ones of the same brands se to be a lot of money for a CD player and can't see why they're so much money, like I said newbie and amps are still pricey really lol where is a good place to look for secondhand stuff apart from eBay and on here
 
You could pick up a used Anthem MRX300 for about £700, this would drive your speakers well, however a good integrated amp should beat it for 2 channel music. The MRX300 would put you in good stead to add a sub if you did want one.
 
Ok will have to keep my eyes peeled for something along the lines then and can I hook any kind of CD player up as the ones of the same brands se to be a lot of money for a CD player and can't see why they're so much money, like I said newbie and amps are still pricey really lol where is a good place to look for secondhand stuff apart from eBay and on here

You will still have to get a fairly reasonable CD player, if you want good sound.
The reason they are pricey is usually because of the D to A converters which take the digital cd information and convert it into High Quality analogue.
The better quality DAC, the more expensive the CD player (usually), then there are things like better power internal supplies and analogue output circuitry.

However, if you are planning to go multichannel AV in the future, take a look at the Panasonic dmp-bdt500 Blu Ray player as it has good DAC's and good analogue sound quality, I have heard one and reckon it sounds good.

You can pick one up new for under £200 and there are a couple in the For Sale section of this forum.
 
Hi there thanks and the anthem stuff does look nice actually and never seen any if those anywhere yet and I have a samsung 3d blu ray player not sure of the model but would this be ok to start with or not I got it with a package for me smart tv it was a ue40es8000 so decent tv not sure if the player would be as decent ha
 
Been looking at budget amps and saw a Cyruss/Mission XPA power Amp would this be any good for a start off for ls50's and what CD player should I look for if this ok also how old are these amps and are they any good :)
 
Been looking at budget amps and saw a Cyruss/Mission XPA power Amp would this be any good for a start off for ls50's and what CD player should I look for if this ok also how old are these amps and are they any good :)

You'd also need a pre amp if wanting to use a power amp.
 
Oh right ok I still don't get all the pre amp stuff lol and will prob leave that then as don't want too many boxes plugged in everywhere even though it's prob better and you are of good help Dante thanks I will get something sorted wish I had enough funds to just go out and buy something new and decent but at the moment I can't unfortunately
 
What's the yamaha as-700 like

Its a beefed up version of the highly acclaimed AS500. I'd suggest you save yourself a few quid and just go with the AS500 as opposed to the AS700. Also look at the Marantxz PM6004 as an alternative to the Yamaha models.
 
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Oh right ok I just want something what I can just rig up to speakers and maybe put a USB device in as do u really need a seperate CD player will it make much difference and does anyone do an all in one system to
 
Oh right ok I just want something what I can just rig up to speakers and maybe put a USB device in as do u really need a seperate CD player will it make much difference and does anyone do an all in one system to

Maybe also look at the Rotel RA11 integrated as well?

Superfi - ROTEL RA11 INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER WITH DAC

This includes its own onboard DAC and has a USB input. The other stereo integrated amps so far mentioned would require an external DAC with USB input to give you access the audio sourced via USB.

A standalone DAC such as Arcam's irDAC would set you back £400 on its own and without an integrated amplifier.
 
Ok well been looking at ls50 packages and a lot of them are coming up with the arcam solo neo do u think this would be a good set up as thinking maybe doing some financing options to :) as this could give me what I'm after instead of skimping out
 
Ok well been looking at ls50 packages and a lot of them are coming up with the arcam solo neo do u think this would be a good set up as thinking maybe doing some financing options to :) as this could give me what I'm after instead of skimping out

It is an option, but you sacrifice a little in terms of SQ in return for the convenience associated with such a lifestyle orientated product.

It beats most mini systems hands down.
 
Ha ok what about with an arcam fmj a19 and sorry loads of questions this deal also coupled it with a arcam cd 17 to
 
Ha ok what about with an arcam fmj a19 and sorry loads of questions this deal also coupled it with a arcam cd 17 to

Yeah, that would be okay, but you'd not then have a USB input. There's no nescessity to buy the same make and brand of player as that of the amp.

Maybe consider the Marantz SA KI Pearl Lite player as an alternative to the Arcam CD17? This would give you the USB input you want as well as SACD playback capabilities. Maybe even consider partnering the SA player with Marantz's PM-KI Pearl Lite amp?
 
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Ok there is a lot to take in when looking at things people are saying also the pioneer a50 is a good match for these so there is a lot to choose from its gonna take a lot more reading and asking questions lol
 
Kirky1980, you seem set on buying some Kef LS50 speakers, but have you heard them ? or are you getting them for a good price ? They are quite expensive, because they are a flagship compact speaker.
To get the best from these speakers, you are going to have to spend quite a bit of money on good quality HI FI kit.
Why not go to an Audio dealer and audition some other speaker,Cd player and Amp packages that may be closer to your overall budget and may fulfil your requirements.
You may also be able to get a nice AV setup, especially as you are considering finance options.
 

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