Question Stereo amp to run Dali Rubicon 5 speakers

Honestly the rubicons 2s were ok ontop of the missions when i tested them and were fine. It wasnt until i put my head behind one of them i felt the over the top bass, sitting watching hans zimmer live in prague on them was awesome. I'll sort it one way or another.
 
RS recommended Arcam to pair with them, i love the look of the as3000 in black. Some amp that
 
RS recommended Arcam to pair with them, i love the look of the as3000 in black. Some amp that

Arcam SR250 is a nice stereo receiver, its streaming capabilities are simply evil... just badly implemented. When it comes to sound without Dirac in my room is sounded bright in comparison to my Yamaha AS3000, however when setting up with room correction it did not but the sound it produced was not as musical nor engaging. Don't get me wrong for the money you it is hard to beat as it is better than lower-end Yamahas amps i.e. AS501, but then it costs x4 times more. The only reason I wanted SR250 is for its Dirac capabilities and a backup amp for my kitchen set up when my Denon mini amp finally gives up - it is going strong for 8 years. Richer sound should do SR250 for 999 plus likely free RCA or discount just ask. Guys at my local RS are stars and always get me the lowest prices they can, even lower than some online places. Personally I would not buy ARCAM gear, I simply do not like their sound signature, and despite a hefty weight of 15kg the amp rather looks cheap than premium. I never knew amps had fans inside for cooling until I auditioned SR250.

I think despite having a nice amp such as Yamaha with meters, the room itself might hard to tame. It would be nice if guys at RS could let you take SR250 home as a home demo unit along with Roksan M2 then you will know whatever room correction works in your room as if the room has nulls there is nothing room correction can do about it, and if you would like a higher-end Yamaha amp. Caspian sound 70% as good as Yamaha AS2100 or 3000. I haven't heard new models that replaced old line up so can't comment. Yamaha does have a lot more control in the low end over Caspian while still retaining the musicality of Caspian with a bigger sound stage, better dynamics, and separation.

To me my Yamaha is end game, I've listened to some Luxman amplifier, Hegel, etc., and to my ears, Yamaha sounded the best. To justify an upgrade I would need to spend close to £9,000 on Luxman L-509X. It sounded better but not sure if £6500 better. Speakers and amplifiers up to £5000 each are likely sweet spot when it comes to HIFI as after this you're paying double for incremental upgrades. Whenever they are worth it it depends on the person but to me, I would not spend 5000 pounds just to get 10% more performance. I found a cure for upgradtitis. 1. Do not listen to my system for a week. 2. Listen to the lower quality speaker. Then I appreciate how good my system is- still get goosebumps, which says it all. It is bizarre how quickly we adapt to good things and take them for granted.


All the best
 
I'm gonna aim for the Yamaha AS3000 but it won't be for a good while due to my van developing a very weird issue, possibly got a melted dpf.
 
The Yamaha amps are hard to come by and still expensive. Would an Arcam SA20 be up to the job of running the Rubicon 5s? I cannot find any info on the damping factor only its 150wpc at 4 ohms.
 
The Yamaha amps are hard to come by and still expensive. Would an Arcam SA20 be up to the job of running the Rubicon 5s? I cannot find any info on the damping factor only its 150wpc at 4 ohms.
I would try arcam sr250 if I were you and see what you think. I found arcam not ideal combo with Dali speakers but everyone is different so you may like what arcam offers. If you ask RS they should sell you one for £999 or less if they like you, and most should have a display unit so having a home demo should be easy.

Alternatively Marantz 8006 is within 1k range, very good amplifier for the money but nowhere near Yamaha or even Roksan Caspian level of performance.
 
I was pipped at the post for the Arcam, it sold for £621. The SR250 is too big for the space I have under the TV I think. It needs to be a max of 150mm in height. I should hold out for a Yamaha AS2100, the only ones RS stock are way cheaper than the AS2100 so they must be lower quality. Any ideas?
 
That’s because it is a digital amp, probably some form of class D so is likely to be using a switch mode power supply of some sort which is very different to the traditional class AB and rectified power supply with large transformer and big capacitors. Have a look at hypex Amps like the Nord, similar technology but less integrated design.
 
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The internals don't look like a good amp, where's the power supply?

If you can afford it, I’d snatch up the Lyngdorf quick as you can.

The amp section is nothing like the usual AB class and that is not of any significance. At all.

With the Lyngdorfs RoomPerfect, you’ll hear the Rubicons as good as it possible to hear them.

Amplifiers without seriously good room correction are something of a waste of money after a certain price point (around a grand or so)

Have a quick read of this if you’re faltering.

 
The Lyngdorf sounds good, its out of my price bracket and id always have a doubt of its quality. Maybe one will turn up second hand.
 
Reading up on the lyngdorf it says it turns the psu up to increase the volume, so does this mean a normal amps' psu is at full power all of the time? Running it quietly means its producing lots of heat, the same amount of heat as full volume?

Side question: ive channelled my A/V rig to send its front L/R to my integrated stereo amp and the centre, rear and height to the onkyo txnr636, will the onkyo know the L/R speakers are not there and reduce its power consumption/heat output? Because if it doesnt I'll be using twice the electricity for a small increase in quality.
 
This might be useful -


biggest difference is the efficiency, CIass A c.25%, Class AB c.40-50%, Class D c.90%, the difference is heat, have a look at the case and heat sinks on a Krell class A ksa100s at 100w class A compared to a Nord NC500 Class D at 400w (both into 8 ohms) and both using similar sized power supplied, around 1200-1400w capacity.

also in the links shows efficiency with output graphs, the class D is much more efficient at low outputs as well where amps spend most their time.
 
Ive bought the nad c370 that was recommended, its much more powerful than the TA-FE230 but i can't say it sounds better, it has a sound signature that feels like theres a mist over what its producing, is that normal? it does have the issue of the channels dropping out which is a couple of dry solder joints. Maybe fixing that will clean up the sound. Thoughts?
 
If you are using the preouts from the receiver into the Nad then I’d suggest the 5s deserve considerably better.

And the Nad alone, good budget amp though it is, is not really in the same class as the Rubicons, even when it is repaired.

It has an adequate power supply to drive the Rubicons, but not really the finesse.

And in your room with your positioning it’s very difficult to see how you’d ever get the best from the speakers without Dirac, ARC, RoomPerfect or something else of the same high standard.
 
OK thanks for that Paul, I'll fix it and sell it and make £100 towards whatever I buy. It doesnt feel like a budget amp though its solid but I am new to high end audio.
 
OK thanks for that Paul, I'll fix it and sell it and make £100 towards whatever I buy. It doesnt feel like a budget amp though its solid but I am new to high end audio.

It’s only s budget amp compared to the Rubicons. It would be a great amp for say £800 speakers.
 
It’s only s budget amp compared to the Rubicons. It would be a great amp for say £800 speakers.
I'm still using the Mission 733 as the Dali's haven't turned up. A couple of days wait to go.
 
Ive opened the NAD up to take a look and noticed the big capacitors have leaked onto the main board. If this was an Amiga it would have damaged the traces, is it the same type of damage in an amplifier? It explains why the sound had a mist to it. I once had a Kenwood ud952 and one of my mates poured beer in it at a party and said nothing. I left it to dry out but after a number of years it dissolved the board and made the sound distort. I think I should return it
 

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I would, yes.

It’s hardly fit for the job you bought it for, and as they’ve leaked it’s not likely that those are the only components that need to replaced.
 
My Dalis turned up on thursday and i connected them to my onkyo txnr636 because i gave the stereo amp to my dad and i tell you what they are the best sound ive ever heard. Playing Christopher Cross - Ride Like the Wind through the onkyo is incredible. God knows what a good amp will do. Im listening to songs ive never looked at twice and the hairs on my legs are standing up never mind arms and neck. if anyone is considering new speakers test drive Dali, you wont regret it.
 
Hi guys, last week I brought my Cyrus Three down from my office to see how it faired on the Rubicon 5s and the result wasn't good. The sound was lifeless compared to the txnr636 receiver I'm using ATM. We could hear more detail in the instruments but the vocals were off. The Three is more suited to the Dali Menuets that's its running. So now I have a better idea of what I want I would like your thoughts. I want to upgrade the avr, I'm thinking of upgrading to say a txnr676 OR a marantz sr6015. My main bias is music over movies. I don't want 8k so buying a used one is OK with me. Is a higher end onkyo better than marantz?
 
If I was going for an AVR for music then these are the only ones I’d ever consider.

They are wonderful at making music even without ARC.


Even if it’s a bit over your budget I’d still seriously suggest you stretch to it.

And for films they are superb. ARC is a much superior room correction to the usual culprits found on Japanese receivers.

I know you’ll love it.
 
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If you don’t live near that Nintronics shop, or your budget is smaller then I do go for this one.


Again, effortless music ability and ARC too.

The MRX 300, 500, and 700 are the secret mega bargains for people who want top class home cinema (without DA) and for those who simply want an excellent 2.1 amplifier with proper bass management.
 
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