[bundee1]

RnB maybe you should read the reviews and visit the audio asylum and audiocircles. With the types of speakers and music these guys are listening to maybe there is some magic there. These guys are modifying or buying modded versions of the amp for the price of a couple of good powercords. Since the amp is batterypowered you dont need the powercords anyway. Check this out:

www.redwineaudio.com

I have no affiliation with them but the rave reviews have piqued my interest.

 

[Feanor]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RnB180 no, but then if i wanted a digital amp Id just get the panny sa xr70. $40 is not expensive, but id rather invest $40 in a digital amp worth while.

RnB, if havent heard the t-amp, what exactly qualifies you to pass judgement on people who use it? [anyway, it can be had for 20$

]

http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/sonicimpact/t.html

 

[Necros]

The level of hype was exactly the same as the Outlaw HT pre-amp...hyped up before release as a Lexicon beater...truth far from it

 

[comabereni]

The T-amp is a unique product with limited application, but it certainly *does* produce high quality sound and *is* more than good enough for "critical listening". I believe it has special appeal to budding high efficiency speaker enthusiasts that haven't dropped the cash yet for a single ended triode amplifier (that typically cost from around $600.00 to $(THOUSANDS).00. Some of those high-end amplifiers only deliver 3 clean watts. 6moons.com and many others on the audio forums have raved about circuit in this amp for months now--the enclosure may be cheap and the price certainly is, but the quality sound the circuit itself is capable of is not hype.

That said, I don't use mine to drive a subwoofer--that would be rediculous. I only power my ~89dB Paradigm bookshelf speakers with it and they play loudly and cleanly, to the point where my wife regularly tells me to turn it down. That's in a 10 x 14 home office. I couldn't have a block party with my system, but I could go deaf with it in my room, if that was my goal. I DO have a 12" subwoofer, but it has its own 250-watt amp. The amp/speaker combination sounds really great.

So, as has been said several times now--the T-amp performs very well _within its limits_. If your goal is to lose your hearing half a block away, look elsewhere. If it is to enjoy great sounding music with moderate to high efficiency speakers on a tight budget (recommend 89dB sensitivity and higher), then it's worth a listen. Read the 6moons article. Check out the discussions on the other audio forums. You can always add a separate, powered sub later if needed.

-coma

 

[sumone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JWFokker Dude, you give us 20 year olds a bad name. First off, you shouldn't contaminate a T-Amp with Lil' Jon and the Eastside Boyz. Or any audio equipment for that matter. If you absolutely have to listen to rap, put on something decent like old school Busta Rhymes albums. Rap has not improved since The Coming and When Disaster Strikes. And second, no one ever said the T-Amp was intended for use with a subwoofer. Buy a cheap sub and amp, a sonotube, slap it together, and for $150 you have your thumpin' bass. Of course, you're probably better off buying a good quality amp and a 12" Shiva sub to use with the sonotube, but that's about 2x the cost. T-Amps are for driving satellites, not subs.

Umm...okay. I guess. Contaminating equipment with Lil Jon...lol. You're a funny guy! I didn't ask about what music I should play on some speakers but what speakers I should my music with. C'mon, do you think I really listen to Lil Jon on a daily basis & like his music? It all depends on what mood I'm in. Like I said, when getting ready for a party, I need to get "crunk"...lol! Otherwise...ha...Lil Jon as music=a joke!

If I've already got a 12" sub...similar to the Shiva...maybe a step lower. So buying a separate sub is out of the question unless it has an internal amp. Otherwise I'd just grab an amp for the sub I've got.

 

[sumone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tennisets Have you ever heard of SETs (Single Ended Triodes)? Obviously not. You normally couldn't get any decent soudning amp for under $1000 that "only" produces 5 watts. People pay big bucks for SETs because they sound great. Do you have to have pretty efficient speakers? Sure, but there's nothing quite like a good SET/High Efficiency speaker setup.

Believe me, if I even knew what an SET amp is and how it's better than other amps, I probably wouldn't be asking all this stuff! Like I mentioned in another thread. I'm a wannabe audiophile. 192kbs lame mp3 = indistinguishable from CD...because of this I don't qualify as being an audiophile it seems. And since I'm a wannabe, I won't spend tons of money on "high-end" equipment since my ears'll tell me that I would've heard the same thing on something 1/10 the price.

Quote:

Originally Posted by tennisets You also, apparently, do not know what sensitivity means. A speaker's sensitivity measure its loudness at one meter driven by one watt (dB/W/m).

I thought I was implying that I knew what sensitivity meant when I said "at a distance of 1meter". And 105dB doesn't seem that loud to me.

 

[sumone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Necros As the others have said, you don't need hundreds or thousands of watts to drive speakers- although it certainly doesn't hurt. You're correct that when a SS clips it is disastrous to tweeters. But I've heard 8W tube amp drive big JM Labs Electra speakers and they sound great, and more than loud enough. And you won't get "200db" efficiency, the most I've seen is ~107dB. I've got 2.2KW of power from my amps, but really don't need even half that. Still it's good I have reserves, I don't want to blow £120+ tweeters.

I was exaggerating when I said 200dB...but like I mentioned...what products are on the market w/that rating? Probably only in some research studies or whatever.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Necros As for the Sonic T, but I would certainly consider it for PC speaker system amplifier...

I don't get this statement. My PC is the same as my handheld CD player which is the same as my DAP which is the same as my DVD player/TV combo. They all produce sound no matter what the application.

 

[sumone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by comabereni That said, I don't use mine to drive a subwoofer--that would be rediculous. I only power my ~89dB Paradigm bookshelf speakers with it and they play loudly and cleanly, to the point where my wife regularly tells me to turn it down. That's in a 10 x 14 home office. I couldn't have a block party with my system, but I could go deaf with it in my room, if that was my goal. I DO have a 12" subwoofer, but it has its own 250-watt amp. The amp/speaker combination sounds really great.

What sub? How does it sound together? What type of music do you listen to? Me, I can go from 50 Cent to Norah Jones.

Quote:

Originally Posted by comabereni So, as has been said several times now--the T-amp performs very well _within its limits_. If your goal is to lose your hearing half a block away, look elsewhere. If it is to enjoy great sounding music with moderate to high efficiency speakers on a tight budget (recommend 89dB sensitivity and higher), then it's worth a listen. Read the 6moons article. Check out the discussions on the other audio forums. You can always add a separate, powered sub later if needed.

I only need my loudness sparingly. I guess I'm finally starting to see that 5 watts with efficient speakers has the ability to get loud. But all this is still blind to me cause I've yet to hear ANY decent setup.

There's no way I'm gonna run ONLY regular speakers. I absolutely need a sub!

 

[yorkie]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RnB180 no, but then if i wanted a digital amp Id just get the panny sa xr70. S7V rated it at roughly 70 watts all channels driven @ 8 ohms. also inexpensive for what it offers. I already have a sold state that is capable of driving my speakers to reference decible levels. along with a couple of subs that hit the 115-120 dB mark just from the LFE alone. I have no need to spend $40 for a 5 watt digital amp to drive 2 speakers. dont get me wrong, I dont use anything special either, I use an entry level high current hk measured at about 55-60 (real) watts per channel all channels driven. $40 is not expensive, but id rather invest $40 in a digital amp worth while.

Why do you keep talking about watts? To use a metaphor; I don't care if your car has 300 horsepower, if your wheels are square you're not going to get anywhere. The SI T-Amp can drive a pair of reasonably efficient speakers to ear splitting levels, and I don't think it's fair for you to criticise the sound quality of something you've never heard.

 

[comabereni]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sumone If I've already got a 12" sub...similar to the Shiva...maybe a step lower. So buying a separate sub is out of the question unless it has an internal amp. Otherwise I'd just grab an amp for the sub I've got.

Exactly what I did. Bought a 12" Infinity Kappa Perfect sub and powered it with a 12VDC amplifier designed for mobile audio. I run both the T-amp and sub amp off 13.8VDC linear power supplies (Astron) I bought off Ebay. Okay, I probably couldn't actually go deaf listening to the T-amp with my 89db efficient speakers, but it's too loud to have a conversation in the same room, whatever dB-level that is. And it sounds better than any mid-fi receiver/amplifier system I've ever owned or heard. I believe no "reasonable" person who heard my home office system would find it lacking.

Here's how you can do it:

T-amp: $30
Paradigm Atoms: $140
Sub driver: $80
Sub amp: Get a nice older one off Ebay for $50
Crossover: $30 (Harrison Labs has decent passive lowpass Xovers for cheap)
Linear Power Supply: $70

Total: $400

-coma

 

[RnB180]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Feanor RnB, if havent heard the t-amp, what exactly qualifies you to pass judgement on people who use it? [anyway, it can be had for 20$ ] http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/sonicimpact/t.html

where am I passing judgement on people that use it? BTW ive read the 6 moons review, they hooked it up for fun, however NOT using it as a primary amp for critical listening. unother then for the review.

should I listen to a 5 watt amp before I can evaluate that my 55 watt amp has more power?

 

[Necros]

Quote:

I don't get this statement. My PC is the same as my handheld CD player which is the same as my DAP which is the same as my DVD player/TV combo. They all produce sound no matter what the application.

True all produce sound, but some are better than others. If there wasen't just be cheap amps eh?

Quote:

And 105dB doesn't seem that loud to me.

105dB is blooming loud, certainly in the hearing loss range. I listen to 91dB PEAKS, and that is more than loud enough, over that and I get some hearing fatigue.

105dB sensitivity is how efficient the speaker is. You shouldn't listen to 105 (or even near there)

Quote:

what products are on the market w/that rating? Probably only in some research studies or whatever.

Some horns, JBL that sort of thing.

 

[RnB180]

Quote:

Originally Posted by yorkie Why do you keep talking about watts? To use a metaphor; I don't care if your car has 300 horsepower, if your wheels are square you're not going to get anywhere. The SI T-Amp can drive a pair of reasonably efficient speakers to ear splitting levels, and I don't think it's fair for you to criticise the sound quality of something you've never heard.

Im speaking of wattage because a 5 watt amp is capable of clipping speakers.
remember I dont think this amp was ever intended for anything more then mulitmedia use.

BTW, you refer to efficient home speakers how effiencient are you referring to? On real world terms you say 5 watts drive ear splitting levels, What decible level do you consider ear splitting? and What SPL do you recommend for a speaker to possess to perform in your words "ear splitting levels"

talking about real world numbers here, if you go to your local home theater shop tell me what the effineciency of say.. a B&W or martin logan is.

I would consider above reference level as ear splitting, somewhere above 120 dB imo.

Im not telling people they are wrong for using it as an amp, Im jsut against those that are overly enthusiastic and make this out to be the best thing since sliced bread.

 

[450]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RnB180 BTW, you refer to efficient home speakers how effiencient are you referring to?

Probably somewhere around 92db+

eek...you keep editing!


Just because its NOT B&W or Martin Logan or Magnapan (okay...you didnt mention that one...but I like 'em!) doesn't mean they sound bad...

 

[sumone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by comabereni Here's how you can do it: T-amp: $30 Paradigm Atoms: $140 Sub driver: $80 Sub amp: Get a nice older one off Ebay for $50 Crossover: $30 (Harrison Labs has decent passive lowpass Xovers for cheap) Linear Power Supply: $70 Total: $400

One thing you missed is that that's $200 over my budget! I just remembered I have some amps laying around too...a 750watt class D & 300 watt a/b. So I could use the 300 watt amp to power my sub which already have. This'll be like deja-vu cause that's what I had in my car at one time! Only thing is I'd have to make an enclosure for the sub. Probably port it in the 40s or so. So that takes off $50 + $80 or $130.

There's no better priced 12v power supply? 110V AC -> 12-14VDC? Where can I get this T-amp for $30?? A quick look on eBay gave me results >$50!