Amplifier suggestion for Wharfedale Diamond 121

[hybridauth_google_104726155025361203246]

Hello all,

I would really appreciate it if someone could help me decide between a few amplifiers for my speakers ( Wharfedale Diamond121's ).

I have 4 options available ( I have added a brief of why they are on my list.) :

1) Onkyo A-9030 ( Most affordable compared to the others, also mentioned as doing well with the Wharfedale in their review here. )

2) Marantz PM 6005 ( A higher rated amp + has digital inputs, but very little info about how it goes with the Wharfedale 121's, my concern with them is that, from what I understand this amp has a warm sound, and my speakers are also warm sounding, so I am concerned if warm + warm may start sounding dull or something. )

3) Yamaha A-S500 ( An older model, but a well highly rated amp, and I heard it goes well with the Wharfedales.)

4) Cambridge Audio Azur 351a ( similar price range, and quiet good opinions by others, but dont know how they do with the 121's)

Looking forward to hearing from you guys , please do share whatever info you have about these four amps and which would be best for my speakers. I would have loved to hear them for myself before buying but unfortunately I do not have any way of doing so where I live.

Thanks in advance!

Sumoh

 

[rainsoothe]

hi.

haven't heard the Onkyo, but did the other 3 (not with wharfedales though) and imo the Marantz is way better. But you should audition yourself anyway if you can.

 

[hybridauth_google_104726155025361203246]

Hi,

Thanks for replying , May I know which speaker you had heard those amplifiers with?

Also here are the rough prices in which i will be able to get them at, please do let me know if the marantz is worth the extra cash.

1) Onkyo A-9030 - 390$

2) Marantz PM6005 - 625$

3) Yamaha A-S500 - 494$

4) Cambridge Audio Azur 351A - 428$

Thanks again!

 

[rainsoothe]

Marantz PM 6005 + Dali Zensor 3, Yamaha A-S500 with MA bronze BX2 and B&W DM 602 S2, and the CA with some Tannoys (DC6T SE i think).

As for the price difference, for me it would be worth it, for you it might not. For me, I would always feel that with the Yamaha, for instance, something would be missing. But do try to audition. Also, you might find a good deal on the Marantz from your dealer, or try a well known website that has the name of a great river in south america (don't remember the forum policy on this stuff, sorry ), the prices there are way lower.

 

[hybridauth_google_104726155025361203246]

Marantz sounds like the way to go then Thanks agian for helping out!

 

[Peter Kudelstaart]

As you can see in my signature I have two sets of Marantz with Wharfedale. I like the combination a lot. I think you won't be disappointed with Marantz and Wharfedale. Do you really need the dac in the PM6005? If not you can save some money by taking a PM6004. Very good amp with a nice balance between low, mid and treble. I don't think it will sound signifficantly different to a PM6005.

 

[matthewpiano]

Out of those you mention I would go for the Marantz, which is a very capable amplifier and will pair well with most budget speakers including the Wharfedales.

However, I would also suggest considering the Rotel RA10 at a similar price (particularly if you are likely to use vinyl at all as it has a better phono stage). If you can stretch further then a Rega Brio-R or Exposure 1010 would be a big step up from any of them.

 

[hybridauth_google_104726155025361203246]

Hi, thanks for the reply I did consider the PM6004, but I will be using my PC as the source so I will require a DAC is guess.

 

[hybridauth_google_104726155025361203246]

Hi, Thanks for replying Considering all the positive replys regarding the marantz, I think it will be the best for me.

As for the other amps, they are not available where I stay and buying from abroad will be expensive for me. I had just listed the options that are available for me.

 

[hybridauth_google_104726155025361203246]

I also have a question in general, would having the DAC from the PM 6005 make a lot of difference to the sound? if it is not a lot, it would be a more economical option for me to go with the PM6004, like @Peter Kudelstaart had suggested.

Right now, I use a PACE 2045 35watts/ch @ 8ohms amp ( It is a local brand which makes decent and very affordable amps ) connected to the analoge out of my PC, and honestly it sounds good to me at the moment, though i am really hoping this upgrade make the sound even better..

 

[matthewpiano]

Does your PC have an optical or coaxial digital output on it?

If not, the DAC in the PM6005 won't be of any use because it doesn't have a USB input. In that case you might as well pick up a PM6004 and look for an affordable USB DAC - I'm sure others can recommend something from the likes of Behringer that could do the job perfectly well for an affordable price.

 

[rainsoothe]

Does your PC have an optical or coaxial digital output on it?

If not, the DAC in the PM6005 won't be of any use because it doesn't have a USB input. In that case you might as well pick up a PM6004 and look for an affordable USB DAC - I'm sure others can recommend something from the likes of Behringer that could do the job perfectly well for an affordable price.

or at least a usb/spdif bridge. But yes, PM6004 + something like Arcam iRdac might be a better alternative if he could find a cheap enough PM6004.

 

[hybridauth_google_104726155025361203246]

I was planning on getting a SPDIF bracket for my motherboard so that I can make use of the DAC on the PM6005.

If I had to get the PM6004, I was going to get a Asus Xonar Essence ST soundcard or a Cambridge Audio DacMagic XS to use as DAC. Do you think these combo wound be better than the PM6005. Again these are the DAC's which are avaible here and in my budget range.

 

[hybridauth_google_104726155025361203246]

The Arcam irDac would cost me more than the Marantz PM6005 alone

A few options that fit my budget are Asus Xonar Essence ST, Cambridge Audio DacMagic XS and Audioengine D1.

Any suggestions regarding these?

Thanks!

 

[Tibor]

I think the Marantz is not worth its asked price, because is not better than another 3, it is expensive because of dac being inside. Look at the Pioneer A 30 also, is a very good amp

 

[rainsoothe]

The Arcam irDac would cost me more than the Marantz PM6005 alone

A few options that fit my budget are Asus Xonar Essence ST, Cambridge Audio DacMagic XS and Audioengine D1.

Any suggestions regarding these?

Thanks!

well... a good USB to S/Pdif converter will cost some money anyway, so I guess auditioning will be the best thing to do (if you can). You are left with 3 options, if you wanna run stuf from your computer (ill use PC even if you're using a laptop 'cause it's shorter ): 1. PC --> USB/SPDIF --> PM6005; 2. PC -->DAC --> PM6004 or 3. PC coax out -->PM6005. What i mean is, if your laptop/PC already has a coax out (so you can leave the optical in on the PM6005 free for the TV optical out), then the 6005 should obviously be the way to go.

If you don't already have a coax out, then I would skip the USB/SPdif bridge hassle (since it costs quite a bit of money anyway) and go for DAC + PM6004, or go for a different amp - like the Micromega Myamp, which has a usb dac and seems to be a Nad d 3020 killer. But it's up to you to choose. If you go for the DAC + PM6004 route, I would suggest looking at the Audioquest Dragonfly v1.2 dac (although it's stereo jack out instead of RCA outs is not ideal for an amp setup) or the Arcam rPac (which might sound a tad smooth in combination with the Marantz though).

Try also taking a look at the Micromega Myamp, maybe you can find a dealer near you or a website that offers a home trial option or something.

 

[Mihai]

If your laptop doesn't have optical or coaxial output use hdmi out to feed the tv and than output from tv to PM6005 via optical output.

 

[rainsoothe]

If your laptop doesn't have optical or coaxial output use hdmi out to feed the tv and than output from tv to PM6005 via optical output.

yes, but that means having your TV on everytime you want to listen to some music, which means a bit of noise pollution, the very thing you're trying to elliminate when building hi-fi

 

[matthewpiano]

The Arcam irDac would cost me more than the Marantz PM6005 alone

A few options that fit my budget are Asus Xonar Essence ST, Cambridge Audio DacMagic XS and Audioengine D1.

Any suggestions regarding these?

Thanks!

Asus Xonar Essence ST seems like a good choice to me, but any of those would do a good job.

 

[hybridauth_google_104726155025361203246]

@Tibor : Thanks for your input but the pioneer A-30 is not available where I stay.

@rainsoothe : Thanks for the detailed reply! I dont have any digital out on my PC at the moment, I was thinking of getting a SPDIF bracket, but I am very doubtful if it will work correctly on my PC (It is kinda old). I think I will go with a PM6004+DAC combo which will be easier on my wallet as well, than a PM6005+DAC. I have already placed an order for the Cambridge audio DacMagic XS The dragonfly v1.2 isnt available here, just the 1.0 and its a lot costlier than the US/UK rates. The other amps you mentioned are also not available for me, yea it kinda sucks in terms of options and places to audition equipments where I live.Anyways, thanks for helping out!

@Mihai : Thanks for sharing your opinion but i have pretty much decided to go for a PM6004+DAC which suits my budget better.

@mattewpiano : Thanks for sharing your opinion but I have already placed an order for the DacMagic XS. The Asus card was indeed my first option, but I read a lot of complaints about its drivers and my PC is a little oldish, so I was worried if I would be able to get it working on my system, As for the Dacmagic, it is pretty easy to setup and the portability would be a bonus.

I'll probably get the Marantz PM6004 next and hopefully it will turn out to be a good combination for my speakers.

Just wondering, I also saw a Marantz PM5004 which is a lot cheaper, would there be a lot of difference between this and the PM6004? other than watts per channel rating?

Thanks a lot guys!

 

[matthewpiano]

The PM6004 has a more powerful, detailed and open sound than the PM5004. Well worth the difference IMO.

 

[hybridauth_google_104726155025361203246]

Okay, I'll stick with PM6004 then Thanks!

 

[rainsoothe]

goodluck, let us know how it all sounds

 

[hybridauth_google_104726155025361203246]

Thanks! will do..