[jay628]

Hey guys
Have anyone heard both of these and give their opinions/comparisons?
I have narrowed my list down to these 2 as my desktop speakers mainly for music and movies. 
The airmotiv 5s seems to get really good reviews here and they do have a larger sub and more power 50watts if I remember correctly vs the f5s 25. On paper it seems the airmotiv 5s are better but I am not sure about their teqchnologies (x-art). Can anyone help? 
I am also curious why does emotiva produce speakers so much cheaper than other brands like the Adams? Is it just a branding thing?
 
Thanks in advance

 

[buson160man]

 I am not familiar with the adam line but I have owned several emotiva active speakers the last few years. I still  have a pair of the original airmotiv 5 which are my desktop monitors. The original 5 had a volume control on the front panel .which the new airmotiv  5s no longer has. I found the front panel volume adjustment to be very handy because my desk top teac ud-501 dac has no preamp capability. The emotivas offer a lot of bang for the buck. The reason they are so reasonably priced is because they are direct marketed by the manufacturer with no middle man. You will not find them in stores .
   The original airmotiv with the addition of the emotiva iec power cords and a fuse upgrade make pretty decent desk top monitors . Mine are not going anywhere soon.

 

[RonaldDumsfeld]

It depends where you live.
 
Adam is a German company with registered offices in Berlin. So their products attract an import duty to the USA (& some other territories). It's all bollocks really as all the stuff is made in China but that's how the system works. There are ongoing trade talks at the moment to resolve this issue but don't hold your breath.
 
Emotiva seems to have carved out a niche for them selves by observing what products are popular on the world market and then manufacturing similar products for sale duty free in the US. Some of the final assembly is also done in the US I believe. They don't have a dealer network. It's mail order only. So they can afford to pass on some of the savings to the customer.
 
So if you don't live in the US or somewhere with a similar tax and duty regime then the original Adams would be the obvious choice. If you live in the US the equivalent Emotiva models will be significantly less expensive. That might make them a better bargain. Depends on how good a copy they really are and if they are built as well.
 
I cannot help on that one as it simply doesn't make sense for anyone in Europe to pay the extra to import Emotiva. Adam will work out better value.
 
Disclaimer: I love Adam (and Eve) speakers. I now have 2 pairs of their active monitors and 3 subwoofers.

 

[cel4145]

It depends where you live.

Adam is a German company with registered offices in Berlin. So their products attract an import duty to the USA (& some other territories). It's all bollocks really as all the stuff is made in China but that's how the system works. There are ongoing trade talks at the moment to resolve this issue but don't hold your breath.

Emotiva seems to have carved out a niche for them selves by observing what products are popular on the world market and then manufacturing similar products for sale duty free in the US. Some of the final assembly is also done in the US I believe. They don't have a dealer network. It's mail order only. So they can afford to pass on some of the savings to the customer.

So if you don't live in the US or somewhere with a similar tax and duty regime then the original Adams would be the obvious choice. If you live in the US the equivalent Emotiva models will be significantly less expensive. That might make them a better bargain. Depends on how good a copy they really are and if they are built as well.

I cannot help on that one as it simply doesn't make sense for anyone in Europe to pay the extra to import Emotiva. Adam will work out better value.

Disclaimer: I love Adam (and Eve) speakers. I now have 2 pairs of their active monitors and 3 subwoofers.

This is a terrible idea to call the Emotiva speakers "copies." Just because Emotiva uses a ribbon tweeter, that does not make them a "copy" of the Adam F5 speakers, any more than every studio monitor that uses a soft dome tweeter is a "copy" of an earlier soft dome tweeter speaker. Ribbon tweeters have been around for fifty years or so.

 

[jay628]

Thanks for explaining guys. Too bad I'm neither in the US or Europe....I saw the Adams F5 are around 320 Euro for a pair on some website but it's selling close to 220 Euro a unit here in Hong Kong , almost double the price!!!I'm not sure if I can even get emotivas Herr besides paying insane shipping. I'm guessing the price for both of them will be close, so it's up to their performance. Can u give me some opinions on these two? I will be using schitt modified and asgard 2. Mainly for movies and music, not producing anything though. 
 
Thanks in advance.

 

[Benny-x]

  Thanks for explaining guys. Too bad I'm neither in the US or Europe....I saw the Adams F5 are around 320 Euro for a pair on some website but it's selling close to 220 Euro a unit here in Hong Kong , almost double the price!!!I'm not sure if I can even get emotivas Herr besides paying insane shipping. I'm guessing the price for both of them will be close, so it's up to their performance. Can u give me some opinions on these two? I will be using schitt modified and asgard 2. Mainly for movies and music, not producing anything though. 
 
Thanks in advance.

I feel your pain. I'm in Zhejiang province and crying in my beer over the at least double cost for these... Try having a look at the SVS SB-13 Ultra sub if you want to see scary mark up. They're another ID(Internet Direct) company in the US and the SB-13 Ultra is one of their top of the line subs. It's a steal at the $1500 you can get it for in the US. Here on taobao(Chinese Amazon/eBay), it's $4000-6000... Kills me every time I see it.  And it weighs ~100lbs, so no taking that on the plane with you :'-(
 
I don't know what the info will do for you, but Emotiva bought their AirMotiv design from a Chinese company called QMS Audio. QMS has been around for a long time and still manufactures their own AirMotiv speakers here in China, just as they did before the Emotiva deal. They're available on taobao for normal prices. They're not the updated "S" model, they're the originals like Busan160man said he has, but they're still good none the less. They also have their version of the EmotivaPro Stealth. It doesn't look as nice as the Emotiva units, but it's also been said to sound good.
 
So, maybe that's a more reasonable avenue for you. Me, I'm waiting for a business trip to the US and ordering a set of Emotivas before I arrive. 

 

[JML]

You also have to think about where they'll be set up.  The Emotiva are rear-ported, while the ports on the Adams are on the front.  Big difference if you're near a wall.

 

[sunk318]

Bringing the thread from the dead...
 
I am also considering to buy Adam F5 with a DAC combo (probably AE D1).
 
Like the OP, I am hooking this up to my desktop for music and movies. 
 
Since F5 is a monitor, I am concerned that the sound will be too flat for my purposes.
 
Currently I have Definitive Audio Incline, and I am happy with the mid-bass but unpleased with the highs.
 
I have also listened to B&W MM-1s, and they sound really good highs, but mid-bass is lacking.
 
So what do you guys think -- would Adam F5 with a DAC will solve the problem?
 
Thanks!

 

[sunk318]

Anyone?

 

[Bert]

I have the Adam F5 on my desktop and absolutely love them!  Clear, tight, fluid, one of the best purchases I have made.  To give a little context, I have Magnepan MMGs + a good sub in the living room and love planar/ribbon sound. 
 
Once setup in your room, if the midbass is insufficient, you can adjust it either thought eq on your PC or crank up the Low Shelf EQ < 300 Hz    ±6 dB. You may want to consider the F7 also.
 
For a DAC, I bought a used Audio-gd NFB-15, great headphone amp and preamp for the Adams. If you really want movie bass slam from a desktop set, you will need to add a sub, would suggest a used 8 inch box from a reputable manufacturer. The Adams have a switch on the back to cutoff at 80Hz.  
 
A bit more info: http://www.adam-audio.com/en/pro-audio/products/f5/description

 

[jay628]

Since its brought from the dead...
I still haven't made up my mind yet lol, I was gonna get the fostex pm0.5 because of its smaller size but I still think the adams or emotivas are better options..
Anyone tried buying emotivas from Asia? I requested a quote from them but still no reply, I seen someone paid around $400 to ship to Hong Kong a few years back, I hope it wont cost this much now..

 

[Shahram]

Reviving this thread from the dead! My Audioengine A5s crapped out (Think the amp is fried since right speaker no longer works).
 
I've read tons of reviews and I'm still unsure which to get. It seems like they will both sound great, but I see clear advantages for both.
 
Adam F5 - Front ported so it should perform better near a wall. My setup is about 6-7 inches from a wall and window.
 
Airmotiv 5s - 5 year warranty and about $60 cheaper. Also like the look of these better
 
Does anyone else have anything to add about these two powered monitors?

 

[brent75]

Currently reading this thread while listening to music through my Adam F5s (via my Micca OriGen).
 
The sound is heavenly. People will come in my office and ask to hear music, just so they can sit in the "triangle" and close their eyes. We have a high success rate of goosebumps, and they always comment that it feels like they're right there in the studio with the band.

 

 

[Shahram]

Thanks for the feedback! I see you're using a dragonfly for the DAC so that should be helping out quite a bit. Are you playing lossless files or just MP3s? I imagine they probably both sound great.
 
I went ahead and purchased the Emotivas since they have a 30 day no questions asked return policy. If I'm not fully satisfied with the sound I will probably return them and get the F5s.

 

[brent75]

  Thanks for the feedback! I see you're using a dragonfly for the DAC so that should be helping out quite a bit. Are you playing lossless files or just MP3s? I imagine they probably both sound great.
 
I went ahead and purchased the Emotivas since they have a 30 day no questions asked return policy. If I'm not fully satisfied with the sound I will probably return them and get the F5s.

I'm just using my Micca OriGen at work (where this shot is) -- I use my Dragonfly at home w/ home laptop/headphones/etc.
 
At work isn't really really "critical" listening as I just like to keep it playing at low volumes throughout the day. So just streaming/MP3 (and yes, even that sounds spectacular).
 
I love headphones, but I think once you set up the triangle w/ some nice desktop speakers, the sound experience runs circles around headphones.