hi some of you might remember my last post when i was asking about the weakest link in my setup. i decided to change my speaker cable but then i found some quad 12Ls on Ebay for £150, i love the sound and am very happy with them but now i am thinking of upgrading my amp. i have a Rotel RA01, i was wondering about the Nad C326B or the marance 60003. opinions and thoughts welcome please. thanks tapper.
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which amp with quad 12lLs
- Thread starter tapper
- Start date
plastic penguin
Well-known member
- Apr 28, 2008
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Nad or Arcam. I assume you don't have a huge budget, so 326BEE or Arcam A70 or A80 would be ideal. If you can stretch your budget then Quad's own power amp 99 or 909 is the perfect solution.
matthewpiano
Well-known member
- Nov 23, 2007
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I'd have to disagree with PP on this occasion. I've had 11Ls for a long time and have heard them with many different amps. They aren't that different to the 12Ls so here are my thoughts.
Forget Arcam. Its a terrible match. With both an A65+ and an A70 the Quads have sounded dead and vague.
NAD is a better match because the Quads respond well to a high current design, but you can still do better. To me, the C326 and PM6003, whilst both superb, would be more of a sideways step from your existing Rotel which remains a very capable amplifier. In fact, one of the best amps I've had driving the 11Ls was an RA-01, so you may find it hard to improve on it without spending quite a lot more.
My top recommendations if you are determined to change would be a used Pioneer A400, which works brilliantly with the Quads, or (if you can stretch) a new Yamaha A-S700. Both will effortlessly deliver the power the Quads need without any signs of strain, congestion or woolliness.
Don't rush into it though. Your Rotel is a superb piece of kit and if you are enjoying the sound.....
Forget Arcam. Its a terrible match. With both an A65+ and an A70 the Quads have sounded dead and vague.
NAD is a better match because the Quads respond well to a high current design, but you can still do better. To me, the C326 and PM6003, whilst both superb, would be more of a sideways step from your existing Rotel which remains a very capable amplifier. In fact, one of the best amps I've had driving the 11Ls was an RA-01, so you may find it hard to improve on it without spending quite a lot more.
My top recommendations if you are determined to change would be a used Pioneer A400, which works brilliantly with the Quads, or (if you can stretch) a new Yamaha A-S700. Both will effortlessly deliver the power the Quads need without any signs of strain, congestion or woolliness.
Don't rush into it though. Your Rotel is a superb piece of kit and if you are enjoying the sound.....
I agree with Matthew on this one, largely. The 12Ls really benefit from lots of current driving them, helping to keep the bass controlled and well timed. The 909/99 would be superb (only heard them on the 11Ls but it worked very well!), as would the 99 power amps too.
If the Rotel has the option to add a power amp, perhaps adding on one of theirs might be an option too? Lots of RB03s knocking around which is the same generation of kit more or less. The Quads will take it alright, but I have to say I think the similarly priced kit you're currently looking at will be more of a sideways than forward move.
thanks for the advice. dont no what to do now because the marance has such good reviews, and nad say that there amps have lots of power. dont no about a power amp though that just means having more boxes and more cables i might consider it though, if you think that it would make a big diffrance, how do you think it would effect my sound and what kind of intergrated amp could i get second hand for about £200 or £300. thanks again for getting back to me tapper
I would try get a good used amp that can be a 'keeper' in case you eventually upgrade ... I'd try and get something a bit more powerfull (close to 100 watts at 8 ohm) ... had a quick look on ebay and found 3 ... but first get more advice and read up about them on google
Marantz PM 7200 ...ebay item 260493546639 ... standing on £100 ... seller states that it is in 'poor' condition as it has a few scratches, but states that it works proper (may grab yourself a bargain if you dont mind a few surface scratches) ... 95 Watts at 8 Ohm ... plenty of good reviews on google ... pay with paypal, and if the amp does not work proper, and the seller refuses to refund, ebay/paypal will refund you
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KENWOOD KA-8006 ... ebay item 180423011185 ... unfortunately, based in the USA ... works anywhere as it has a voltage selector ... these are quiet rare ... on a buy it now of £195 and expect to pay approx £70 shipping with DHL ... dont know the exact specs but also near the 100 Watt at 8 ohm ... I like this one ... seller says it's in very good condition
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Sony TA-F7B... ebay item 120482420370 ... buy it now at £174.20 ... comes with a 30 day warranty ... I dont know much about these
Marantz PM 7200 ...ebay item 260493546639 ... standing on £100 ... seller states that it is in 'poor' condition as it has a few scratches, but states that it works proper (may grab yourself a bargain if you dont mind a few surface scratches) ... 95 Watts at 8 Ohm ... plenty of good reviews on google ... pay with paypal, and if the amp does not work proper, and the seller refuses to refund, ebay/paypal will refund you
-------------------------------------------------------------------
KENWOOD KA-8006 ... ebay item 180423011185 ... unfortunately, based in the USA ... works anywhere as it has a voltage selector ... these are quiet rare ... on a buy it now of £195 and expect to pay approx £70 shipping with DHL ... dont know the exact specs but also near the 100 Watt at 8 ohm ... I like this one ... seller says it's in very good condition
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Sony TA-F7B... ebay item 120482420370 ... buy it now at £174.20 ... comes with a 30 day warranty ... I dont know much about these
Not a lot about this on the web, but this Onkyo looks VERY interesting...at £25 and no bids, it's almost worth my while nabbing this and driving down to Croydon to pick it up!
here is one more sony:
TA-F3A ... ebay item 120447961921 ... buy it now at £199 ... not sure of the exact specs but close to 80 watt at 8 ohm ... these were supposed to be pretty good in 1997 and got good reviews
TA-F3A ... ebay item 120447961921 ... buy it now at £199 ... not sure of the exact specs but close to 80 watt at 8 ohm ... these were supposed to be pretty good in 1997 and got good reviews
the record spot:Not a lot about this on the web, but this Onkyo looks VERY interesting...at £25 and no bids, it's almost worth my while nabbing this and driving down to Croydon to pick it up!
some really good bargains on the the net with vintage gear ... one can get a really good amp for the price of a few beers ... some people dont know the value of the items, and think because its old its carp ... I buy a lot off gumtree (even better than ebay)
some really good bargains on the the net with vintage gear ... one can get a really good amp for the price of a few beers ... some people dont know the value of the items, and think because its old its carp ... I buy a lot off gumtree (even better than ebay)
the record spot:Not a lot about this on the web, but this Onkyo looks VERY interesting...at £25 and no bids, it's almost worth my while nabbing this and driving down to Croydon to pick it up!
some really good bargains on the the net with vintage gear ... one can get a really good amp for the price of a few beers ... some people dont know the value of the items, and think because its old its carp ... I buy a lot off gumtree (even better than ebay)
some really good bargains on the the net with vintage gear ... one can get a really good amp for the price of a few beers ... some people dont know the value of the items, and think because its old its carp ... I buy a lot off gumtree (even better than ebay)
Yeah, my error folks - that pic is a tad oversized from 400x400...and my html edit syntax just failed!
EDIT - success; now fixed!
EDIT - success; now fixed!
another good range of integrated amps are the old Luxman ... people from Germany and the USA rate them highly, yet here in the UK they sell for cheap on ebay
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