IOTA AVXP1 7-Channel Power Amplifier Review & Comments

Phil Hinton

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I have one of the original Nakamichi versions of these - still going strong after 4 years and never missed a beat. Using to power front, centre and rears with a Denon 4300 powering 4 Atmos speakers. Really improves the soundstage. Then it cost £400 which was the bargain of the century imho! Even at the new price it is still a no brainer if you are after a power amp. Really good to see a review after such a long time!
 
Great review and fully deserving of the score.

I had one of these, but had to sell it on as I wanted an all in one 11 channel solution, but from my experience, offered bucket loads of power and never felt strained.

Ian is a top guy too, will do whatever he can to help you out.
 
Nice to see this unit reviewed. Topology looks similar to the Arcam P7. If mine ever packs in i will probably consider the IOTA AVXP1 at the top of the list.
 
How would this compare to an Emotiva gen 3? I’m thinking of diving into the world of power amps soon...
 
Have 2 of the original ones (still fuming I didn't pick them when they were 200 quid, but even at 400 they were stupidly cheap). Powered off a Marantz processor and very very good. I'll change the processor but can't see myself ever changing the poweramps unless they die. They power the Atmos 11 channels in the sitting room and garden stereo speakers.
 
How would this compare to an Emotiva gen 3? I’m thinking of diving into the world of power amps soon...
I haven't heard that one so cannot give you any direct comparison. Sorry.
 
wow, sounds like an excellent product at an excellent price!
Actually was just talking to my (local) MK dealer some time ago about potentially beefing up my system in the future and at the time he recommended the Earthquake Cinenova 7.

I know the Earthquake is almost double in price (and double the power), but any idea how they would compare matched with some good MK speakers? And if I would even need the extra power?
Currently running a set of 750's from my AVR, but want to upgrade to the new 150's at some point :)
 
Nope there are a number of changes from the original AVP1.
 
I have one of the original Nakamichi versions of these - still going strong after 4 years and never missed a beat. Using to power front, centre and rears with a Denon 4300 powering 4 Atmos speakers. Really improves the soundstage. Then it cost £400 which was the bargain of the century imho!

So 4 years ago these were just 400 quid?? Shame Phil didn't review them then...
 
I have the Nakamichi variant, it's been spot on since I bought it.
 
As a pound versus performance product, we can’t think of any other product in the price range offering the same power and flexibility as the IOTA
I've been doing a shortlist for a possible power amp addition which, so far, has the Iota and the similarly priced Emotiva Basx A-5175 plus the more expensive Marantz MM8077.

While the Emotiva is only 5 channels vs the 7 on offer from the Iota it claims a 175W 2 channel, 125w 5 channel @ 8 ohms vs the 150W 2 channel, 110W 7 channel @ 8 ohms.
Q: Would the extra 25W/15W of the Emotiva make much of a real difference in overall volume?

What does appeal re the Iota is the massive heatsinking on display in the photos with each channel having it own large heatsink. From the photos it also appears that there is no fan(s) involved which something like the approx 50% more expensive Marantz MM8077 relies on to make up for the somewhat sparse heatsink provision it has. While both Iota and the Marantz show similar power output it's hard to see how the Marantz can do its claimed 7*150W (1050W in total) with a mere 880W power supply vs the 1300W in the Iota. I'm guessing therefore that the Marantz is actually only showing 2 channel power in it's specs and 7 channel is probably less than the Iota.

Of the three amps mentioned the Iota seems to offer the best bang for the buck but one reason for doing so (the massive heatsink provision) leads to it's one drawback as far as I can see: that 30kg weight. A lot of Hifi racks I've looked at either don't have the vertical space to install it anywhere but on top of them and/or don't have the weight carrying capacity to cater for it's 30kg.
leave plenty of gap above if rack mounting items above it
Q: What would be an ideal/optimum height above it for cooling purposes if it is mounted on a shelf low down in a rack?

Q: What's the warranty length on the Iota? I can't see it mentioned on their website so presume just 12 months. Emotiva has 60 months while Marantz has 36 months which is something in their favour.

Q: Out of the three amps I've mentioned what would be the best to go for?

My main problem with the Iota is how long the company will be around. The mentions in this thread to the bargain firesale Nakamichi AVP1 prices of £200 and £400 in 2015 puts me off the £1K price just in case the same thing happens again.
 
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The price does seem pretty good for 7 channels. I think Rotel for 5 channels run at about £1500 at the minute (though the Rotel does have better spec for the 5 channels).

My questions.

1) British brand. Is it actually British or just a badge on a unit from a China sourced/designed unit?
For me if you could call this a true brand they would need to have fully designed the unit and chose the electronics that go in it. Where it's manufactured doesn't matter so much.

2) What quality of electronics are used?
You can buy relatively cheap electronics which do more or less the same as more expensive. Here's the but though........... higher quality items have better life expectancy and better quality control. A very simple example are the large caps.
If you buy a power-amp you want it to last. They don't go out of date like other av kit.
 
So 4 years ago these were just 400 quid?? Shame Phil didn't review them then...

The very first units in the UK went for .........£200. I was too late for that party, but some on here got bargains
 
How would this compare to an Emotiva gen 3? I’m thinking of diving into the world of power amps soon...

The IOTA is very very good, but I personally think the emotiva has the edge.
 
The very first units in the UK went for .........£200. I was too late for that party, but some on here got bargains
I have two.

Solid as a rock, 14 channels, bargain of the decade.
 
Hi there. I have the Arcam AVR550 and was wondering if this amp would be an upgrade to the 7ch amps in the Arcam. Please help I want a more powerful system. Or if you could recommend a more powerful 7ch amp that would suit the Arcam.
 
Hi there. I have the Arcam AVR550 and was wondering if this amp would be an upgrade to the 7ch amps in the Arcam. Please help I want a more powerful system. Or if you could recommend a more powerful 7ch amp that would suit the Arcam.

Yes, it would certainly add a lot of power to the existing Arcam.

Personally, not using a power amp really throttles your speakers regardless of the reciever you are using.
 
Hi there. I have the Arcam AVR550 and was wondering if this amp would be an upgrade to the 7ch amps in the Arcam. Please help I want a more powerful system. Or if you could recommend a more powerful 7ch amp that would suit the Arcam.
I have the same AVR. Be aware that the pre-out voltages of the Arcam are rated at 1 volts, so matching to a power amp is a bit tricky. I have been looking around myself for a power amp for a while, and the only ones that have the lower input sensitivity to match are the Arcam ones, which are expensive.
 
I have the same AVR. Be aware that the pre-out voltages of the Arcam are rated at 1 volts, so matching to a power amp is a bit tricky. I have been looking around myself for a power amp for a while, and the only ones that have the lower input sensitivity to match are the Arcam ones, which are expensive.
Thanks Rambles!
That's a bit cheeky of Arcam.
I will definitely keep an eye out on input sensitivity when browsing for multi ch amps! The rated power of the IotaVX seems to be similar to AVR550 but Arcam never publish 4ohm loads. So I suspect IOTAVX is slightly louder but with a much better handle on insensitive speakers and ones which also drop in impedance more than most. Using it with KEF LS50 L+R and I think I need more power.
 
This looks really good. Planning an arcam amp and power combo later in the year. This is deffo a contender!
 
Thanks Rambles!
That's a bit cheeky of Arcam.
I will definitely keep an eye out on input sensitivity when browsing for multi ch amps! The rated power of the IotaVX seems to be similar to AVR550 but Arcam never publish 4ohm loads. So I suspect IOTAVX is slightly louder but with a much better handle on insensitive speakers and ones which also drop in impedance more than most. Using it with KEF LS50 L+R and I think I need more power.

It makes no difference. I keep telling @Rambles but she keeps going on about it.
 
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I was the lucky sod that won the IOTA :-D

I run the IOTA with the Arcam 390 and don’t experience any issues. My ATC speakers aren’t exactly efficient at 84db and the IOTA definitely provides them with much needed power.
 

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