Al ears
Well-known member
You mentioned three dealers who said the amp would work well with your speakers.
Is that the reason you bought them?
Did you buy the amp from either of these three?
Dealer 1 sells amp & speakers. I demoed the amp with some Elac Vela fs 407 (one model lower than the ones I bought, same ohms etc) and no a mention of struggles with heat over time.
Dealers 2&3 more or less dismissed my problem off-hand as the rega can drive 4ohm speakers. (To paraphrase badly)
As these things do, the testing idea escalated a bit yesterday. I saw that Douk did this smaller a/b speaker switcher. With a 10% discount code it was pretty cheap. Itās bi-directional so something I can keep tucked away in case I want to test pairs of amps or pairs of speakers.
I also remembered part 2 of the experiment, so picked up a passive rca switch to use for something similar.
I also remembered part 2 of the experiment, so picked up a passive rca switch to use for something similar.
DougK1
Well-known member
That Douk switcher is a very handy piece of kit for not a huge amount of cash 
Got some nice gear on that site.
Got some nice gear on that site.
Al ears
Well-known member
I demoed the 407 speakers at a dealer who also sell Rega using the same amp. Thatās why I bought the speakers - I loved the sound & got an open box offer on the 408s so went for them sight unseen.
Al ears
Well-known member
And was this one of the dealers that said the speakers would work well with your amp?
Just set up the improved testing station & realised Iād bought a 3.5mm switcher not rca. Still having fun with one side of the WiiM output plugged into the left channel each amp. The douk speaker switcher is really cool & the vu meter makes volume matching easy.
Rapid A/B switching confirms the Rega clinches it by a small margin across bass, mids & treble. Had the Audiolab connected all week & at no point did I dislike it, although the bass is a little overbearing for my taste at times (he says with 4ft floorstanders š).
Missed UPS on Friday which contained the next phase of testing. Been nice not rushing this though.
Rapid A/B switching confirms the Rega clinches it by a small margin across bass, mids & treble. Had the Audiolab connected all week & at no point did I dislike it, although the bass is a little overbearing for my taste at times (he says with 4ft floorstanders š).
Missed UPS on Friday which contained the next phase of testing. Been nice not rushing this though.
davidf
Well-known member
But which one stays cool driving your speakers, without anything loaded on top of it?
davidf
Well-known member
Sound quality will be secondary to the amplifier dealing with a certain impedance loading. If the amp is going to overheat driving a certain load, it's going to lessen the life of the components inside it, which have to deal with that extra heat.
The whole exercise is about finding a short-term replacement for the Rega. The comparisons are just because I can, and it interests me. Elicit mk5 is up for sale.
gasolin
Well-known member
Budget ?
You can say a big power full amp can play louder than most amp before braking a sweat
Get one with ventilation holes
Mabye try a Rotel RA-1572 MKII, Musical Fidelity M6si
You can say a big power full amp can play louder than most amp before braking a sweat
Get one with ventilation holes
Mabye try a Rotel RA-1572 MKII, Musical Fidelity M6si
The current game is: ācan I get the same quality sound, with no overheating, for as cheap as possible?ā
Appreciate your suggestions, although both of those offer loads of features Iāll never use. Anything over Ā£1k is probably out as I decided against doing a like-for-like swap, instead save my money for the long-term plan: my final amp. Thatās likely to cost upwards of Ā£4k, so Iām in no rush to visit that right now.
As per the previous page, I spent Ā£180 on the Audiolab. That is rated to 2ohms.
I also spent Ā£180 on a power amp, which should be arriving Monday. For reasons unknown (because old equipment looks cool), I was also persuaded to buy the matching integrated amp.
Iāll sell whichever of the 2 old integrated amps I like the least, so letās call my total investment: Ā£400
Open to any interesting ideas. Iām even toying with the idea of picking up an old valve preamp thatās going for a great price. Although that really is an extravagance beyond sensibility- itās likely to give me the valve experience. But I really donāt need to be buying more niche hifi products that will be difficult to sell when I live in a one bedroom flat, and already discovered that the audiolab does a fine job at a fraction of the cost of the Rega.
gasolin
Well-known member
power amp for your rega ?
If you bought something power full you will also know if 100/160 watt in8/4 ohm is enough, if your speakers need that kind of current,power,control a much bigger amp has at normal spl levels
I think my Mission 778X is good if you have speakers that don't need much power to play loud
The old + 40 year old nad 3020a or b should easily handle any speakers down to 2 ohm (biggest pros besides the low price and good sound) if the amp is in mint condition for max 200 pounds,euros
If you bought something power full you will also know if 100/160 watt in8/4 ohm is enough, if your speakers need that kind of current,power,control a much bigger amp has at normal spl levels
I think my Mission 778X is good if you have speakers that don't need much power to play loud
The old + 40 year old nad 3020a or b should easily handle any speakers down to 2 ohm (biggest pros besides the low price and good sound) if the amp is in mint condition for max 200 pounds,euros
DougK1
Well-known member
Shame the Rega has to go, but no one can accuse you of not persevering
I donāt really fancy buying a power amp to keep the Rega going.
I think the Mission might be out but Iāll take a look at it. And as per my post on the previous page - did consider the NAD, but shot for the Audiolab instead.
speedthing
Well-known member
Which really makes me wonder what's going on with the Rega and the Audiolab is half the weight of the 5. I had been looking at changing over to the Rega Elicit R when my Arcam A32 stated to act up I notice that the side heat sinks have ventilation slots in the top of them and wondered why they went away from that on the 5 the vented type surly was a better design?. I did some digging about on the net only to find out this is a bit of a thing with cutting out and getting hot with these Amps that put me off getting one in the end. On a side note a good friend of mine has a nearly 40 year old Rega Mira (the old clamshell type) that s running Dynaudio speakers which are quite demanding he drives that Amp daily like he stole it and he's never had trouble with it. In the end I got a really good deal on a new Arcam Radia A15 its a really good Amp but its not quite the same EQ as my old Alpha9 I kind of miss that Amp like has been said the older stuff is better than the new well I think so anyway.
Gray
Well-known member
I bought one of those new for about Ā£79 back then.
It needed to sound louder than its 20 watt spec suggested (and had a soft clipping switch to aid the more reckless user).
Never any problems with overheating or reliability but in terms of its sound, I can't imagine it equalling the Audiolab or Rega here.
Jasonovich
Well-known member
Hey Rev
I'm going to depart from the main stream, why all the fluff?
You just want an amp that can power your Elacs sufficiently. I'm going to suggest selling both your amps, with the funds get something better.
The Atoll IN80 would be a great choice. I have the bigger brother IN100, so the sound signature would be similar to it's smaller sibling.
Two versions - with DAC D/A or without this feature (Black or Silver).
Downside, it doesn't have MM/MC input but it does have Pre-amp out and remote control optional extra (aaah the French so bl**dy awkward!).
If you are looking for smooth realistic timbers, and mids from another planet, then this is the amp for you. Warm and full bodied like a French wine; the closest you can get to tube with a solid state. Bass is tight and natural.
I have seen a few on eBay selling second hand for approx. Ā£400ish, caution as always when you shop for used equipment.
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@Jasonovich thanks for the suggestion - I've come across Atoll before, but they haven't featured in my recent search. No dac or phono is perfect for me. I only need line inputs on my amp these days so it definitely sounds like a useful Ā£400 option.
Will put it on the maybe list with the Mission gasolin mentioned if the pre/power combo isn't doing it for me.
In other news, the Rega has sold š± it's for the best, but I can't help but feel sad. I do love the sound it produces.
Will put it on the maybe list with the Mission gasolin mentioned if the pre/power combo isn't doing it for me.
In other news, the Rega has sold š± it's for the best, but I can't help but feel sad. I do love the sound it produces.
Experiment 2:
Add a MOSFET power amp
The fun continues with a bit of a random find: Adcom GFA5300.Published stats are 80 watts per channel into 8ā¦. What interested me was the amount of comments saying itās a bit of beast & likely to be rated v conservatively.
According to tāinternet itās a Nelson Pass design that runs class A up to 10 watts. Although Adcom is an American brand, this range was built in China. So it was pretty affordable. Given the spec, the design & the lack of brand recognition vs Naim/Rotel/Quad/Linn etc I decided to take a chance on it.
(I did buy a matching pre-amp. Sadly that arrived with a smashed volume control & it was wedged in so I didnāt want to try and move it. Thatās going back & makes everything a bit easier.)
So, I plugged it in (via a 1000w transformer!) & all I can say is: wow š¤©. It makes the Rega & Audiolab sing.
Comments also said it gets really hot. Nowhere near as hot as the Rega during testing š
Saying goodbye to the Elicit tomorrow, so was nice to try this last comparison before it went.
Very long story short (over 6 pages on here), the Audiolab 8000LX & Adcom GFA5300 combo is going to make a fine non-overheating replacement. Thereās room to improve the pre-amp based on the comparisons, which I might think about rather than an integrated amp at some point in the future.
Once again, a massive thanks to everyoneās input, help & suggestions. Really appreciate it & Iāve learnt a tonne about stereos in this thread š
SohoAudiophile
Well-known member
Ah so you've tried the Rega and Audiolab as pre-amps instead of trhe damaged Adcom one?Experiment 2:
Add a MOSFET power amp
The fun continues with a bit of a random find: Adcom GFA5300.
Published stats are 80 watts per channel into 8ā¦. What interested me was the amount of comments saying itās a bit of beast & likely to be rated v conservatively.
According to tāinternet itās a Nelson Pass design that runs class A up to 10 watts. Although Adcom is an American brand, this range was built in China. So it was pretty affordable. Given the spec, the design & the lack of brand recognition vs Naim/Rotel/Quad/Linn etc I decided to take a chance on it.
(I did buy a matching pre-amp. Sadly that arrived with a smashed volume control & it was wedged in so I didnāt want to try and move it. Thatās going back & makes everything a bit easier.)
So, I plugged it in (via a 1000w transformer!) & all I can say is: wow š¤©. It makes the Rega & Audiolab sing.
Comments also said it gets really hot. Nowhere near as hot as the Rega during testing š
Saying goodbye to the Elicit tomorrow, so was nice to try this last comparison before it went.
Very long story short (over 6 pages on here), the Audiolab 8000LX & Adcom GFA5300 combo is going to make a fine non-overheating replacement. Thereās room to improve the pre-amp based on the comparisons, which I might think about rather than an integrated amp at some point in the future.
Once again, a massive thanks to everyoneās input, help & suggestions. Really appreciate it & Iāve learnt a tonne about stereos in this thread š
It does look like you've had a lot of fun! What is the 1,000 watt transformer? An external power supply?
Glad you're enjoying it all!
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