Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Advice from Axiom Owners Emotiva or AudioSource

Rich, i have read your thread, and i am going to agree with JohnK.....


I am a firm believer of separates and fully agree with your analysis of the benefits of having separates, however in your case i do not think you will notice much of a benefit. I am also a firm believer in value purchases. Since you have the M3's the lowest impedance that your amp will see is just below 8ohm's, according to the current impedance graph. If there was a range that the M3's would drop to say 4ohm's or 2 ohm's then i would say to go for it. However with the above data, i can not agree with your desire to buy a separate amp. if you had some M60's or M80's then there would be no question, i would be telling you to buy the best amp your budget can afford. However in this case, JohnK is very correct, you will be paying for head room that you will likely never use.


Good luck with your decision.

I don't have the old Sony to compare, but I would say the difference was probably at all levels, except for the very lowest.

Cat, in your case, I think it's a bit different, you had a cheap Sony receiver with probably a badly designed amp.

Agreed. I'll drop this amp issue from now on.

All input much appreciated. Looks like I'm going to drop a couple of "C" notes on the AudioSource AMP110 and some interconnects. Specs look decent and I'm not separating from my $$$ all that much.

Consideration for purchase: a) I want to eventually enjoy my Sansuis (SP5500X) in a 2nd zone and b) my lowest impedance speaker is the Aperion 5C... sensativity at 86 db with nom 6 ohm load. I'm hoping to let the Denon handle that along with the surrounds.

Next step is a pair of M22's V3 and the Q's (Decemberish)

If that realization of benefits don't quite materialize to its fullest at least I'll know why.

Once you get the amp, let us know your thoughts.

Boy Rich, did you start something here. My Audio Source amp will be connected to my rear M3ti's on Tuesday. Will it make a differece in "headroom?" You bet it will. My tube amp is connected to my mains (M22v3.) Does it make a difference? You bet it does. Now my h/k AVR 645 has only the center and surround channels to power. Do the math here!! Adding a separate amp to relieve the AVR of other duties makes sense.
Tech. measurements not withstanding.

I'm going to order the AudioSource this weekend. Just need some time to review the connections, make sure it will fit in the shelf that's been assigned etc. I'll submit a performance review a bit later. Then we'll know. At least in my environment.

I found that the bass notes were the easiest to notice a difference when I ran the A1400 against my 3808, even when level matched with my trusty RS SPL meter. The mids and highs did have a slightly different airy/expansive sound to them that the 3808 could not offer except when I ran with Audyssey.

Are all these minor differences worth the cost of a separate amp? I say everyone has their own cost of diminishing returns etc. to consider....I still do not own a separate amp.