power amp upgrade?

I have an AV amp (Yamaha 640SE) running 5.1 speakers, which I am keeping for processing. I am looking to upgrade by adding seperate power amps. I was originally thinking of adding a 2nd hand 5 channel power amp, but am now thinking of going that one step further and adding 3x 2 channel power amps... is this possible? i.e:

1x 2 channel power amp for fronts
1x bridged into 1 for the centre
1x for the rears

Would this work ok? I have seen some very good deals on 2 channel power amps, which is another reason I am thinking of seperate amps. It would also enable me to upgrade gradually. Would I be able to use just one power amp to start with for stereo use???

Thanks

 

I used to use Rotel 971s for this purpose and then went for the Rotel 1095 to reduce the number of boxes and increase the perfromance. The rotels can be had quite cheaply second hand and can be bridged thus allowing for use on centre channel.

I'd jump straight to the 5 channel amp if I were you as it will be easier in the long run, (less buying and selling involved).

 

Hi Philip thanks for that.

Yeah, I was looking at the Rotels. I was originally going to buy an RB985, but I missed out. But since then I have looked at various makes/models. I have looked at the 971 mkII's, which are appealing at the price. For some reason I just assumed seperate amps would be better for sound quality.

Another one I am interested in is the Exposure 2010 power amp - these seem very cheap. And they are switchable. Could I start with just one for stereo use then build up later with the centre and rear channels?

 

something quality like rotel and exposure will always sell second hand, so buy at a good price and it cost nothing or very little if you want to move on. to be honest you will get a much better product in the 1095 as the power supplies are huge and make all the diffrerence, they are the same as the ones powering the monster 2 channel 500w jobie.

older is exposure cheap and makes a nice sound, i had the super 17/18 pre/power combo at one point, some of their older kit did not have any/much circuit protection in so can click a bit when the fridge kicks in.

 

ok, thanks, how much was the 1095 new? What would you expect to pay 2nd hand?

Or... what about 5 seperate 971s?...

 

err, hang on, lets forget the 1095. Just did a search and found the price! Nice piece of kit though!

I'll be going for something older and 2nd hand I think...

The Exposure 2010 is looking tempting. Maybe just the one for now and spice up the main speakers...

 

i'm not really sure, check ebay and hifi for sale, maybe a grand for a 1095 or 150 a pop for 971s, thats soemthing you wanna look into before dipping into your pocket too deeply ;-)

 

yeah I know what your saying, I think i'll aim for 3 2 channel power amps. Would it be ok to use one for stereo use for now (though my AV amp)?

 

yeah if your av unit has pre outs then just connect the front l&r speakers to the power amp and run ic's from the pre outs into the power amp, leaving the centre and rears and is.

 

ok Philip, thanks for your help. This is what I did with my intergated stereo amp. Im glad I can do the same with a power amp.

This may sound like a stupid question, but why do people (including myself) tend to upgrade the stereo side of their system by adding an 'integrated' stereo amp, when they can simply add a power amp??? Surely a power amp will give better performance than an integrated???

 

A lot depends on the performance of any given AV amp in stereo mode,and often it leaves a lot to be desired,as a £500 AV amp is expected to have 5 channels or more,plus offer all of the AV processing modes under the sun,and any other functions that may seem fashionable.
It thus has quite a task competing with a £500 stereo integrated amp,and usually comes up a bit short,and the same holds true even with rather expensive receivers,which is why you,and most others with a serious interest in stereo as well as AV would add some form of dedicated solution for stereo use.

 

thanks, but I think you may have miss-read my question. I was just asking why people would go for an integrated stereo amp rather than a power amp.

 

That's easy to answer.
If you use only a power amp, you'll be reliant on the pre-amp section within the AV amp.
AV amp pre-amps are typically cheap and frankly a bit rubbish in the majority of cases (certainly any I've dem'd).
Whilst it's fashionable on site like the AV forums to encourage plenty of expensive power amps, it completely ignores the importance of a really good pre-amp. Whilst it may appear to be a very simple set of circuits from a logical perspective, it's very easy to bugger up.

 

I can see what you're getting at,but it does in a sense come back to what I was saying,in that if you add a power amp,you are still relying on the existing preamp of your receiver,with all of the limitations expressed earlier,and reiterated by Mr_Sukebe.

The preamp section of any AV receiver is going to be limited by the cost constraints etc imposed on it by having 5 or more amp channels and so on,included in the receiver with it.

I'd also completely agree with Mr_Sukebe,who rightly says that the preamp sections of most Av amps are pretty poor overall,and you will also find some of the more enlightened members of the AV community advocating separate stereo systems where possible.

 

oh definately, my long term goal is to have a seperate processor.

 

Would echo the reasons here why many go the integrated route to run the front left/right channels. My NAD amp (£220) wipes the floor with the £300 Yamaha AV receiver it's replaced.

 

yeah, I'm also thinking of buying a a power amp (nad c270) once I sell my MF...I'm happy with the nad sound

 

I thought you said you werent happy with the NAD/KEF pairing?..

 

well, the MF combo wasn't any better really...in some tracks is was, but on others it wasn't...plus the main factor was using the 2 remotes to control the volume whilst watching dvds...

 

I didnt need to use two remotes. I just set the X80 to 10 o'clock and controlled the volume with the Yamaha AV amp. Simple as that.