[Saucerful]

Hi everyone,

I just recently picked up a used Technics SA-DX1050 amplifier. A bit older, I know, made around 2000 I think, but I got it for what I think is a reasonable price for an amp.

Anyway, the reason I bought it was to replace an old Sony stereo system I've been using. I don't intended on buying a really high end rig until I move which may be a few years, so after my Sony started going south, I decided it would be best to get an amplifier that may not have all the bells and whistles but at least sounds good.

Well, I might have made a mistake. I bought the Technics SA-DX1050, thinking that A) Technics should be good and B) that it's a dedicated amp so sound output should be good. The verdict is: although I'm enjoying the clarity (highs are nicely defined and silence is actually silent versus a slight hiss) I find the bass kind of weak. The amp is rated as having a frequency response of 20 Hz to 20 kHz, and it says it's able to handle a max load of like 500W and can handle speakers between 4-8Ω impedence. I currently only have two 100W 6Ω speakers connected and I've tried using both the analog and digital coax connections from my DVD player. The amp is set to treat the speakers as LARGE and the bass EQ setting is set to +10 dB so I don't know why the bass is so weak. Am I doing something wrong?

I would have thought surely a Technics amp could put out stronger bass than an all-in-one entry level Sony jobber but I guess not? Any suggestions? Should I return this and go with something different? If so, what is recommended for producing some decent stereo sound from a Pioneer Elite DVD player and a Stanton turntable?

 

[Uncle Erik]

It could be any number of things. One is how the speakers are positioned in your room. Speaker placement is surprisingly involved in bass response. I'd recommend moving the speakers around to see if a different placement changes the bass.

Second, the fault might lie with your speakers. If they don't do bass well, then no amp is going to change that.

Third, you might want to try a sub with your speakers. There are many out there and you can probably find one that mates well with your system.

I doubt that your amp is at fault, though. If an amp can't handle bass, that usually shows up in clipping. If you don't hear clipping, then it's far more likely that your speakers or room placement are at fault.

 

[Saucerful]

Ok, good to know. There's definitely no clipping in the bass. What I don't understand though, is that if I isolate all variables i.e.: I use the same DVD player, same speakers, some speaker placement, and run it through my old stereo instead of this amp, the bass is significantly more strong.

 

[nick_charles]

A number of things it might be.

Have you checked that the speakers are connected correctly ? If one set of wires is crossed they will be out of phase and this will make the bass notably anaemic, both speakers have to be connected red to red and black to black for correct phase.

The minisystem is massively incorrect in its bass response , which is very possible and you are used to this bloated bass and think it normal.

Related to the above your expectations for bass reponse may be unrealistic.

The amp is defective, if I put my Sansui AU217 bass control to +10 the bass is overpowering.

There is some setting not set properly, if the amp thinks a sub is connected it may not send the low frequencies to the main speakers ?. The sub control may be independent of the speaker size control ?

 

[Saucerful]

Speakers are in phase, that was the first thing I checked.

The minisystem being incorrect in its bass response is something I considered. I think Sony stuff in particular likes to ride the bass hard. I had a pair of Sony headphones once then switched to Sennheiser and at first was put off by the apparent lack of bass response. It didn't take me long to adjust and realize the bass on the Sennheiser pair was clearer, more defined, and just better to my ears since it wasn't as overpowering and sludgy sounding. That said, I don't think the highest possible setting on this rig should be lower than the lowest setting on my old one.

The amp could very well be defective, I bought it used. Although, I would have no way of knowing unless I returned it and got another.

All speakers are disabled except front L and front R which are set to Large, and subwoofer is set to off. This can be verified by the fact that the OSD does not react whatsoever to the "Subwoofer Level" control when before I set it all up, I could choose the SW volume setting.

So if I do end up returning this thing, which is looking more and more likely by the minute, what is a receiver/amp I should look out for that would meet my needs sonically but not necessarily a 7.1 HDMI unit?