Dragged into the 21st Century - help

[dynamiccoins]

Hi, 1993 I went into Sevenoaks hi fi and got myself an Arcam Alpha 9 amp, 2 acoustic energy 309 speakers and a couple of Technics 1210s. The technics are still going strong and so are the speakers and the amp aside from the well known selector switch issue...but they are not really been used because i dont have a cd player atm. Now I've purchased a 47LB730V and an xbox and I want to hook these up to an amp and also be able to stream tunes via bluetooth. What I can't decide is whether I :1. Buy a dac and a bluetooth streamer and use the existing amp and speakers2.Buy a new amp. I went into Sevenoaks and they recommended a Rotel RS-12, and looking around I found the Marantz PM6005 but I would still need a bluetooth streamer if I went with that - I'm also not sure if these would go with my 309's3. Do something else I would be connecting the tv and the xbox as a cd player, and to primarily stream music from my laptop as well as connect my technics (although not too often as the better half isnt too keen on my oldskool tunes ).If I am connecting the tv is it a waste if is only 2.1 not 5.1 for example.I have to say I am a bit stuck so any pointers would be great .....but either way I dont want to spend more than £500 ish.Sorry for the long post!Thanks

 

[ID.]

Your current amp is superior to those budget offerings.

 

[Frank Harvey]

To keep the quality of the Arcam, and to not stray too far from its tonal balance, you'd have to be looking at something like the Quad Vena, which at £600 has Bluetooth and a usable DAC built in. If you don't want to spend that much, look at the Bluetooth DAC option. Either option will be a better sounding one than replacing your Alpha 9 with, what will be at this price, a mediocre AV receiver as far as music quality is concerned.

 

[Vladimir]

The Alpha 9 came out in 1998, not 1993.

You spent back then around £500, which means you need to spend more today to get the same thing, due to inflation. If you are buying new for £500 today, at least in theory that is a downgrade, considering solid state amps in Class AB haven't evolved since 1998.

Your amp is 70Wpc and the Quad Vena is 45Wpc. That would be a downgrade power wise.

Technics (SL-) 1210 are turntables, not speakers. Or did you mean SB-1510? Those are of the vintage kind.

 

[Frank Harvey]

Hi-Fi World reviewed it in 1996...

 

[Vladimir]

Hi-Fi World reviewed it in 1996...

Hifiengine got it wrong aparently. The manual states Issue 7/97.

 

[chebby]

Your amp is 70Wpc and the Quad Vena is 45Wpc. That would be a downgrade power wise.

His AE 309 speakers are 90.5 dB for 1 Watt @ 1 metre and 8 Ohms so it might not be an issue if it's not playing in a clubhouse and pain is not a requirement.

Sustained exposure to sound greater than 85dB in the workplace necessitates ear defenders so unless the guy is a headbanger I don't foresee a problem.

(Although two SL1210s might suggest a bit of headbanging.)

To get 85dB with my speakers (from 2.5 metre distance) and with 6dB 'headroom' I need 8 Watts.

 

[MajorFubar]

Sustained exposure to sound greater than 85dB in the workplace necessitates ear defenders so unless the guy is a headbanger I don't foresee a problem.[]..To get 85dB with my speakers (from 2.5 metre distance) and with 6dB 'headroom' I need 8 Watts.

I've argued this for years yet the powerhouses some people are recommended to buy, in order to achieve acceptable volume levels in an average-sized 15'x12' living room, beggars belief. It's not HiFi by any means but there's mono DAB radio at one end of my 14'x8' kitchen with a 3" speaker and a 3W amp that's capable of going so loud I have to shout over it. The requirement for huge power in domestic environments is nothing but a myth dreamed up by salesmen. Current is where it's at.

 

[ID.]

Sustained exposure to sound greater than 85dB in the workplace necessitates ear defenders so unless the guy is a headbanger I don't foresee a problem.[]..To get 85dB with my speakers (from 2.5 metre distance) and with 6dB 'headroom' I need 8 Watts.

I've argued this for years yet the powerhouses some people are recommended to buy, in order to achieve acceptable volume levels in an average-sized 15'x12' living room, beggars belief. It's not HiFi by any means but there's mono DAB radio at one end of my 14'x8' kitchen with a 3" speaker and a 3W amp that's capable of going so loud I have to shout over it. The requirement for huge power in domestic environments is nothing but a myth dreamed up by salesmen. Current is where it's at.

with how much distortion? Also, a single small driver means that the amp doesn't have to deal with power hungry lower frequencies or crossovers. Whether watts or current work best probably depends on the specific speaker. Having said that, I agree that those speakers are very efficient and shouldn't require a particularly powerful amp.

I'd still keep the Alpha 9 and just look to add something like the rblink, but that might be partially due to having owned an Alpha 9 in the past.

 

[Vladimir]

I misread OP's post about the speakers, being late last night. With 90dB speakers he should be fine downgrading the amplification to the Quad Vena receiver.

 

[Reijer]

Hi.

Arcam has some great DAC's with bluetooth, or other options. Also a possibillity?

 

[MajorFubar]

with how much distortion? Also, a single small driver means that the amp doesn't have to deal with power hungry lower frequencies or crossovers.

Probably quite a lot, I did qualify it by saying it wasn't hifi, but the point still stands.

There are 10W valve/tube amps that are capable of going loud enough (cleanly) to make your ears ring when paired with the the right speakers, but the way power-requirements are sometimes discussed here without sufficient reasoning and qualification, you'd think 50W was barely enough to drown out a flea fart.

One of the first decent amps I ever heard was a Cyrus One, first edition with a red push button. I borrowed it from a college mate in 1988 who was moving house. It made mincemeat of my JVC AX440 I was buying for ten bob a week from my mum's mail order catalogue on the never never, not just in terms of sonic quality but in terms of perceived loudness and grunt, despite the JVC being an alleged 75W and the Cyrus being a third of that. My second-generation Wharefdale Diamonds didn't exactly give it the easiest of rides either, being tiny bookshelf speakers with 86dB sensitivity, but that little Cyrus could make them dance like it was firing bullets at their feet. Never before had I heard them sound so dynamic, so controlled, so expressive, and so, well, loud!

It was round about then I realised that unless we're talking about filling the Albert Hall or unless you have really inefficient speakers (say 85dB or less), Watts are largely irrelevant in a home environment beyond a surprisingly modest minimum. Instead it's all about making sure the amp has been designed in such a way that there is sufficient current on tap to deliver musical peaks cleanly to a range of loads.

 

[Vladimir]

One of the first decent amps I ever heard was a Cyrus One, first edition with a red push button. I borrowed it from a college mate in 1988 who was moving house. It made mincemeat of my JVC AX440 I was buying for ten bob a week from my mum's mail order catalogue on the never never, not just in terms of sonic quality but in terms of perceived loudness and grunt, despite the JVC being an alleged 75W and the Cyrus being a third of that.

Interesting.

What did you use as a source?

 

[dynamiccoins]

Wow thanks for all the replies.

OK I stand corrected now I think about it, it was more likely 96/97. Believe it or not at the time I was earning about 10 grand so it was a big spend for me then, and living in a shared house I had the setup in my bedroom...so the rest of the house got a good listen to my mixing I admit I went a bit mad with the purchase but hey its all served me well so all in all a good investment.

Now I have a family so I wont be blasting it out like the good old days but I like the idea of keeping the Arcam and connecting a device for bluetooth but I would also want to connect the tv/xbox as well - is there a single device I could do that or would I be looking at one device for bluetooth and one for connecting the tv/xbox.

Also would I need to connect both the tv and xbox separetly - as I said I will use the xbox to play cd's as I dont have too many cd's left so dont want to buy a new cd player.

Thanks alot for all the help.

 

[Al ears]

Sustained exposure to sound greater than 85dB in the workplace necessitates ear defenders so unless the guy is a headbanger I don't foresee a problem.[]..To get 85dB with my speakers (from 2.5 metre distance) and with 6dB 'headroom' I need 8 Watts.

I've argued this for years yet the powerhouses some people are recommended to buy, in order to achieve acceptable volume levels in an average-sized 15'x12' living room, beggars belief. It's not HiFi by any means but there's mono DAB radio at one end of my 14'x8' kitchen with a 3" speaker and a 3W amp that's capable of going so loud I have to shout over it. The requirement for huge power in domestic environments is nothing but a myth dreamed up by salesmen. Current is where it's at.

With you there. Been in conversation with another Forumee thats looking for a 200wpc amp combo to power his 95dB efficient Cerwin Vega speakers (because they suggested an amp in this power range). Had to ask him if he is planning an outdoor rock-concert....

 

[MajorFubar]

Interesting.

What did you use as a source?

The trusty Thorens that's still with me, though back then it would have been sporting its original Neat Vertex V70, not the current Ortofon MC-3. I'd just bought into CD as well, having acquired a Pioneer PD-X88 from Comet. It was a midi-sized thing intended to match their midi systems of the day. I was a college student at the time and buying new hifi was normally out the question, but I'd put aside all the money I received from relatives for my 18th birthday and bought the PD-X88 with it, as opposed to pee'ing it down the urinal in the local nightclub like most teenagers from my era.

 

[MajorFubar]

With you there. Been in conversation with another Forumee thats looking for a 200wpc amp combo to power his 95dB efficient Cerwin Vega speakers (because they suggested an amp in this power range). Had to ask him if he is planning an outdoor rock-concert....

LOL! :-D

 

[MajorFubar]

I would also want to connect the tv/xbox as well - is there a single device I could do that or would I be looking at one device for bluetooth and one for connecting the tv/xbox.

Also would I need to connect both the tv and xbox separetly - as I said I will use the xbox to play cd's as I dont have too many cd's left so dont want to buy a new cd player.

Thanks alot for all the help.

Does your telly have analogue audio outputs or optical? If it's analogue, there's no reason why you can't plug the telly straight into a line-input in the Arcam, but of course the quality of CD playback from the xbox will be determined by how good the DAC is in your telly. I don't think the xbox has an optical out (?), so I don't think there'd be any mileage in you buying eg an outboard DAC to slot between your xbox and your Arcam. As for bluetooth, if you fancy keeping brand-loyal, Arcam do their own bluetooth DAC.

 

[dynamiccoins]

Does your telly have analogue audio outputs or optical? If it's analogue, there's no reason why you can't plug the telly straight into a line-input in the Arcam, but of course the quality of CD playback from the xbox will be determined by how good the DAC is in your telly. I don't think the xbox has an optical out (?), so I don't think there'd be any mileage in you buying eg an outboard DAC to slot between your xbox and your Arcam. As for bluetooth, if you fancy keeping brand-loyal, Arcam do their own bluetooth DAC.

Hi, The tv has hdmi and Digital Audio Out (Coaxial/ Optical) and the xbox has hdmi and S/PDIF: Optical audio output. So is there one unit I can do all that with or should I go with a separate bluetooth DAC and another DAC for the xbox/tv. I'm not sure if I can route the xbox through the tv...ot the otherway round or not at all and connect both separately. You will be noting I am a noob at all this!Thanks