I’m glad you addressed the power and loudness point at the end of the video, I added an A3 to my front stage when the volume dropped off a little I had buyers remorse. So thanks for clearing that up!
How did u like it? Did u see any difference. I am running klipsch rp 8000 f ¡¡ and a klipsch center rp 404c ¡¡ and a svs subwoofer. Thinking if adding an emotiva amp would help in any way. Thanks
Thanks to this video and the explanation given I decided to buy the a7. I just finished installing following the clear instructions. I turned it on and I thought I had purchased a new set of speakers. What a difference the a7 makes. I can hear more detail. Even the subwoofer sound coming from the two front speakers came alive and I had to turn the subwoofer down. I was so unhappy with the way my system sounded that I had purchased an equalizer. I will return it as I no longer need iit. Great video and great product.
Great video and explanation on how to connect an external power amp to an AVR. I followed your instructions to the letter and connected my Marantz C50 to my new basX A3 external amplifier. Wow what a difference to my LCR front stage. I've left my 2 heights FLR and my Surr LR connected to the Marantz C50. Now my 4 ohm Piega speakers are really singing! 😊 The whole system has really come alive with this added injection of power.
This is exactly what I've done with an Emotiva a5. It's a magic unit that always stays cold to the touch when my AV amp even set in preamp mode gets very hot. It also means the AV can sit happily on the Emotiva forming a perfect stack. On my old AV (I haven't tested this on the new one) at very low levels the sound distorted I think because too little power was being sent, but the Emotiva totally solved that issue.
I'm using a line level 1.2 for the main speakers Emotiva amp, and it is working good. Maybe Emotiva should make line level converters for their amp and older AVR's. Mine is from 1993 and it's a JVC, BUT THE eMOTIVA MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE.
Awesome video.. if I plan on running a 7.2.6 setup.. would it be more ideal to run a 3 channel amp for my fronts.. a 4 channel amp for my surrounds and a 6 channel amp for atmos channels? Or should I consolidate the 3&4 channels amps into one 7 channel amp? What would be the pros and cons of the first setup vs consolidating? Thanks so much
I did use the line level to RCA converters, kicker brand, grounded them correctly and used external amps. The positive.. vastly increased power to get the volume gains that you want. The Negative.. added distortion, not a terrible amount but it is noticeable and a light static noise when nothing is playing, mind you not enough to stop the auto-off functions of the amps from working, but it was there. My concern was more about volume than it was clarity at the time. But if I were to do it again, I would get an amp with pre-outs or just a processor with outs.
Basic and in words even I can understand. What about treatment of the Subwoofer? Should that be moved over too or can that stick to the AV receiver? Thank you
Man what do you mean those adapters don't work very well . My Denon X2700H didn't have preouts for me to hook up my Outlaw 5000x so I bought 3 RUSSOUND Line level adapters and now I drive my speakers. The RUSSOUND adapters work very well as pre outs .
👍🏻 + 👍🏻 Incorporated an A3 with my old RX-A2060. Zero hiss or hum. Prior to installing my avr was borderline hot,even at lower listening levels. Now the Yamaha runs lukewarm as does the A3. And without going into great detail, Acoustically it improved key areas in my 9.2 system. And no thump or bump on start.
@@purplerider2362 It’s really not uncommon when you’re pushing a dozen 8” drivers in 4 towers and a full complement of surround & backs and atmos. Not to mention the high volume level. I’m trying out a Denon x4800h and it gets pretty warm too powering the whole shebang. Eliminating the load from LFC channels makes a difference. The yammy is on bedroom duty for the remainder of its life. I appreciate the offer but I’m on the Washington coast.
@@jatoav8or I got ya. That makes sense. Pushing a ton of speakers would definitely get it hot. I miss understood what you were saying. Maybe add more amps. To take some of the load off the main receiver? I’m no pro. I happened to get a sansui 9090 for ten bucks at a yard sale. Thing would get very hot. It still does get hot. I don’t use it tho. The system I have contains a xpa-dr2 power amp. With a cheap preamp from emotiva as well. And a basx a300 the first one is 550 watts a channel and the other is 160 a channel. Both running from the preamp with a rca y splitter. Only four speakers connected and it shakes my house. I can only imagine how awesome yours sounds!! It probably shakes the neighborhood! 😂
I am running an A3 and A2 for my front and rear channels. Leaves good headroom for my surrounds, I do get a buzz from the Emotivas when the lights are dimmed. I only notice it when the room is silent, but the dynamic peeks are great and I watch movies with lights off anyway.
That could be more from them being on the same circuit as a dimmer. Dimmers are notorious for adding noise into systems. I would move them to a different circuit or put them on a signal buffer like with our CMX-2.
Im in the opposite situation....My old amplifier has plenty power, but needs newer processing. It claims to support DTS, but since I use Optical(its best connection) DTS doesnt allow to work through Optical/ToSlink. I am only using 5.1. although I DO have 2 mono amps that this main amp is designed to take on and power a 7.1 (Continuos 140w per ch / model: Marantz SR-14ex) I was thinking one day to add a 2nd sub (not supported via amp, but sub does support a link to another I think), but not interested much more in speakers, as I don't see the Dolby Atmos11-13ch thing being important at all. Also, my space is not that large, though I enjoy loud movies and music. Another thing I was hoping to do was having a way to do room correction, like I have done in my car with mic and Rew, and time delay, EQ, etc. I think one way is having Dirac live built in, or something. I have the 2 additional Marantz 140w mono Amps to add 2 ch and make it a 7.1, but for now, I was hoping to just get DTS decoding, and maybe newer ones. My LG TV is new, my LG BluRay player is new also. I never was a believer in merging audio with video, so I never jumped on the HDMI to amplifier idea. Just was not logical to me. Maybe there is a simple way to get the newer decoding. I did see a few happy people using some $150-200 decoder device from Amazon, but some people had issues. I am thinking of giving it a shot. Or try something more known and tested to work well. I thought of Emotiva might be the answer. And there were some more logical processor models some years back, I think in the 500-800$ range. But those are gone, and now it seems out of reach. Anyone know what my options would be? I am not willing to give up the amplifier. I really enjoy it, and the remote it has is the Proton...old, but very capable. I wonder if anyone is even monitoring the comments section? :-)
Nice discussion on adding an amplifier to a home theater receiver. Do you have a discussion on a AV 2 channel receiver doing the same connection thanks.
look at the most high-end audiophile systems and check what they are using.(spoiler; RCA) IMO, xlr is for long noisy runs like in a music venue from the stage to the front-of-house mixer. unbalanced can pick up noise. in pristine conditions, they will sound the same. edit: also, xlr is so much more physically dependable than the 1/4" jacks ubiquitous to music gear. they dont fall out or get worn and noisy, so XLR has physical advantages too. like i feel way better knowing i have xlr from mixer to PA amp. it can't fvck up BUT completely unnecessary for the home. big bulky and expansive.
I have a Marantz Cinema 50.Can i leave the loudspeaker cable there and connect chinch to external amp? The external also has loudspeaker cable Inputs tough..
I am using a BasX 7 channel off of my Denon AVR-X3300 on Emotiva T2+, C2+ because they are 4 ohm. I think the Denon is thw weak link because it just doeant seem to put out enough preamp voltage to make the amp really push the power its capable of in my opinion. I can max the volume and it just doesn't get very loud.
Thank you for the time you devote to helping us along, I’ve been enjoying your content! I’m new’ish to the more advanced side of home theater setups and in particular, to Atmos…but I’m in the process of buying new hardware and I have some questions which I hope are not too long or cumbersome! 1. *2 CHEAP (old) AVRs vs 1 EXPENSIVE ONE?* For the budget-minded, rather than buying one of the newer AVRs that offer all the channel outputs needed to have tons of speakers, could someone use 2 (older and cheaper) machines to power the same number of speakers…and still get proper Atmos configurations? 2. *DO OLDER AVRs HAVE PROPER ATMOS OUTPUTS?* There are used Denons selling online, like the AVR-3312Ci for around $100. While on the back it has 1 set of “Height” outputs, it doesn’t say Dolby Atmos on the machine. Are all “Height” outputs on older AVRs sending data properly to overhead speakers? The AVR-3312Ci does say Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD amongst other things, but not Atmos. Does a receiver *have to be* Atmos specific in order to pass the data/sound properly to the speakers that would be setup as ceiling/upwards-facing speakers (not to mention the ground-level speakers that Atmos communicates with)? 3. *2 AVR’s? -or 1 AVR + 1 AMPLIFIER?* If the answer to question 1 is that yes, (you can buy a cheaper AVR to receive all the HDMI (and other) inputs from your sources…and if said AVR doesn’t have enough channel outputs to power 5-7 ground-level speakers AND 2-6 ceiling/upwards-facing speakers) …would one be able to use the pre outs to power an additional amplifier? -or would it need to be another AVR, to get the proper Atmos configured output to the speakers? 4. *REGARDING THE SPEAKERS.* If I put together the right AVR system (whether a single unit, or a combination of 2 or more) to power (up to) 7 ground-level speakers, plus 1 (2, or 3) sub-woofers, plus (up to) 6 ceiling (or upward-facing) speakers, can I mismatch different speakers and brands? For instance, I recently bought a set of Klipsch Reference Theater pack (before I knew about the Reference Cinema pack). If I keep the Theater pack and buy 2 more ground-level speakers…AS WELL as some overhead speakers (whether ceiling-mounted, or other) …could I shop around to add to this array, even if I end up getting cheap ceiling speakers? The ceiling speakers (round ones that install into the ceiling) seem pricey compared to the set 5.1 set I just bought. If I shop around and buy other brand speakers (whether the round ones made specifically for ceiling use or not), would that yield workable results? 5. *KLIPSCH UPWARD-FACING vs CEILING SPEAKERS.* Which are better? Would the Reference Cinema pack be a better option for having Atmos “ceiling sound” rather than using the Reference Theater pack and adding cheaper ceiling speakers (mounted on the ceilings and pointing down)? Thanks in advance!
Simply put, 1 av receiver. It don't have to be expensive but it has to be Atmos enabled and it has to be at least a 5.1.2.. If it doesn't say that it can drive a 5.1.2 or more, then it Atmos. The.2 is Atmos. Hope that helps.
Thank you for the presentation. I want to but the 2ch one. I am a bit confused about the volume output in the preout-amp setup. If the volume "sounds" the same, can you get louder volume? Is it connected with the preamp? How does it work?
What will happen if you have different impedance example LR are 4ohms and center is 6ohms and surround is 8ohms. Will the this amp automatically detect what ohms my speakers are and adjust as per channel?
Our amplifiers will drive anything from 4 to 8 ohm loads with no issues. Even though your system has different impedance levels, our amps will drive them automatically.
Question: Any thoughts on the benefits or advantages of bi-wiring off the A3? I am driving three 120 Watt B&W speakers with dual binding posts and wonder if it'beneficial given that the A3 generates 140 watts per channel. Thanks for the wonderfull video.
Hi Emotiva Team, I do have a 7.2 receiver, can I use the unused speaker inputs in the the receiver e.g. front height and rear height inputs to make it a 5.2.4 setup? Right now I have a 5.2.2 setup. Thanks.
Amazing info! Question. When you add an AMP into a Receiver, i'll get the whatts sum between this both or only i'll get the whatts amp? thanks for your answer.
Did the same with a vintage Marantz and a used A-100 i found on line. Are you better off using a decent RCA cable vs using the cheap ones you get free with your DVD player?
I wish my current AVR had "pre-outs" for at least the LCR channels. However, I often wonder if an external amp is worth the expense. My LCR are 4 ohm Emotiva T-Zero towers and a C1+ center. So, Brent, in your honest opinion, does an external amp make a $500+ improvement in audio quality? Thanks.
I think this is a great question, but one that is difficult to answer definitively. Will a BasX A3 or A5 outperform the internal power amplifiers in most common AVRs? I think the answer is almost always yes, the performance will be better using a dedicated amplifier. But there are many variables, like your listening habits, room size, etc. as to whether you will reap all of the benefits of an external amplifier. Even if you aren't pushing the amplifier that hard, the quality should still be an improvement over the AVR amplifiers in most cases. It can be difficult to put a dollar amount on personal enjoyment of your audio system regarding upgrades, but based on personal experience with the amplifiers and talking with countless customers who make the upgrade to external amplifiers, it can make a big difference in your setup!
@@Roof_Pizza same basic process applies to the higher powered amps like the XPA Gen3 that can also be added to AVR setups for even more power! Adding external amplification to some or all channels with an existing AVR is a great way to incrementally work up to a separate processor and amps for all channels.
@@brentberkompas4740 Sir, your answer ids surely correct. I've been wanting a processor - amp system for a long time but the $ are never in my favor. Maybe someday a MC-1 and amps will be powering my system, but that someday seems so far away. I've even been considering cutting the amplifier section out of one of my old AVR units and installing RCA jacks to connect an amp to. Thank you and all the very best to you and yours, Kevin
Is it okay to only use receiver as a preamp? Meaning no speakers attached only preOut to amp. Doesn’t the receiver require some sort of speaker load since there is no speaker connection ?
I'm new to this concept, once you get everything setup, how do you control the volume, through the receiver or the amp, or do you have to adjust volume on both amp and receiver?
Have watched many videos about the BasX line-up, I'm considering the BasX-5 amplifier. Could you tell me what the best option is to purchase the unit in the EU / The Netherlands? When adding the shipping costs and possible import duties the price adds up fast
Great video. Thank you. I learned a few things, thank you. Now I need to research what Amp to use. If anyone has any suggestions I just upgraded my front main speakers to the b&w 702,s. My av reciever is a Yamaha A2080. It sounds awesome. I've been hearing my particular speakers would excel with more power than my reciever will put out. The A2080 is 140 x 2. I'm thinking of a 200 to 250 x 2.
Hi just want to know...is there always signal in the preout on the avr even if u not using them...if for example I want to put a graphic analyser will there be signal.in the preoits
Great video. One question... When I plug the pre out from the receiver to the amp, does to signal automatically get sent to the amp, or do I have to go into the receiver menu to change the settings for ot to go to the amp?
Depends on the receiver model. Some automatically recognize the pre-outs are being used and others you have to go into the menu to tell it that channel is using external amplification.
No, but that goes into a deeper understanding on speakers and power. You are more likely to underpower your speakers and cause them to clip which will damage them versus overpowering them. Speakers will only pull the amount of power they need depending on the circumstance. You can drive them too hard with massive amount of power but will most likely blow out your hearing before that point due to the decibel level they would be playing to get there.
Instead of running the full room corrections again, wouldn’t you just want to use an SPL meter to adjust the volume to reference? It takes about 35 min to re run room correction with 11 speakers.
Way i have it is from my sony avr to pioneeer avr. My sony has 2 hdmi outs. One goes to tv...then hdmi out 2 to the pioneer. I am doing this to power 4 atmos speakers as the sony one only has 2. I noticed the pioneer one has pre outs. I preffer the sound of the sony it seems its class A/B but the pioneer is class D. Initially had all connected to pioneer but didnt think it sounded so up front and clear. In all honesty i know nothing about pre amp. Never used it. But do i need to ise a specific type of receiver to receive the pre amps? Like could i just connect the pre amps from my pioneer to my sony?
My Onkyo-8050 Receiver has a R (Red) and L (White) preout. I want to use it as a pre-amp and Tuner. It says in the manual to connect the L and R to the Line in on the amp. If I purchased the BasX A4, would that mean connecting the RCA cables to Channel 1 and Channel 2?
So, if my Klipsch floor standing speakers have 4 speaker wire inputs, do I need to grab the bottom speaker cables (since the top are in banana plugs plugged into my Marantz) and hook up the bottom Klipsch speaker wire inputs to the Emotiva A5 along with the banana plugs plugged in too?
@@EmotivaAudioCorp That's the way that I did it with my equipment back in the 80s. I had a Sumo Andromeda amp and the Sumo Athena preamp. The pre had the CD/Tape/aux/etc inputs and the volume knob. The XPA -3 or 5 has no volume controls, ergo a preamp or processor.
He makes it look so easy. In our worlds it’s a tangled mess of electric spaghetti that you’ll get tangled up in trying to squeeze behind your cabinet to connect it all. Then come to find out you actually connected yourself inside a spiderweb of wires and now you’re stuck there. So it’s either disconnect everything so you can get out, or call the fire department to bring a ladder in order to climb over. Or maybe it’s just me? Either way, Emotiva is in my future this summer and I look forward to it. Thank you for this video! Cheers!
Is it possible to use the same 1 rca input signal for 2 amp channels? Want to have 2 pair of surround speakers (2 SL & 2 SR) from 1 pair of rca input. Is there any setting on the amplifier which can do that. Or can it be done with Y splitter without any impact on sound output
I just want a single pre out on an AV reciever to connect to a power amp. The power amp is a proper power amp i.e. it has no volume control. This is to power some very powerful speakers. I dont want to go through zone two line out as I want all speakers to play at the same time. Is this possible??
Ok, so now I know how to wire it, but I still need a video on the benefits of going through all this. Why wouldn’t I just buy an AVR like the Yamaha Aventage A6A and be on my way?
Thank you. Please explain about the ems required for Klipsch rp8000f tower 8ohms continuous power of 150 watts rms. Emotiva 5channel gives 95 watts at 8 ohms. Will it be enough?
I have the Klipsch RP 8000f and I have a marantz sr 6015(110wpc) and I also have the emotiva basX 3 (140wpc). The 8000f spec's say 150 rms 600 peak. From my understanding everything is based on volume of reference level which is 85db and peak volume which is 105db. When watching movies at reference, which I myself never do, you have scenes like with talking that don't take a lot of watts to produce sound and you scenes like explosions which takes more watts. Unless you listen very loud continuously you should be fine. Also, the RP 8000 has a high sensitivity which means it doesn't take a lot of power to drive them. Hope that helps but if you want more info power handling and receiver wattage you should look audioholics u-tube reviews.
Hi, ive got a onkyo tx609 av receiver and im going to connect a arcam9 power amplifier. (Its got no volume control) could i just add more speakers to my amplifier instead of using the speakers from my av receiver. Then ADD a cd player to the amplifier aswell. Would that work?? 😂😂
@@EmotivaAudioCorp That is what i did, not sure if i can do the same with the headphone output, I've read that the A 100 is an excellent headphone amp as well.
Your subwoofer usually connects directly to your receiver or processor if it is a powered subwoofer. If it is a passive subwoofer, the same concept applies with this video, the amplifier you have to power your sub will connect back to the subwoofer output on your receiver or processor.
![Best Stereo Amplifiers 2024 [don’t buy one before watching this]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/lgaqiCl-fco/mqdefault.jpg)
This video is a good example of what UA-cam is all about. Thanks!
Or what it was meant to be... Now it's a glory farm of lies and stupidity... Still a lot of great content on here, but nothing like it used to be..
@@duke1281 agreed
I’m glad you addressed the power and loudness point at the end of the video, I added an A3 to my front stage when the volume dropped off a little I had buyers remorse. So thanks for clearing that up!
Good stuff!
I wish lower priced AVRs had more preouts. You can find some for the fronts/subs but for more channels it really raises the price.
You can use a line output converter
Multichannel processor are best
@@ekimandersom4478 how would this be wired? My receiver only has sub preouts, but I have a line output converter.
My Onkyo NR686 doesn’t have pre-outs, quite frustrating. I’m looking at getting the Anthem MRX540/740.
I use y splitter cables. Works good.
Called in recently and spoke with Grant, I think it was Grant. Nice guy and helpful.
I just now purchased a BasAx a3 to power my front 2 klipsch RP 8000Fs and RP502 C. Connecting the amp to my RZ50. I’m excited!
How did u like it? Did u see any difference. I am running klipsch rp 8000 f ¡¡ and a klipsch center rp 404c ¡¡ and a svs subwoofer. Thinking if adding an emotiva amp would help in any way. Thanks
I also have the rz50, wanted to know how much difference it makes?thank you,how many channels do you recommend?
Thanks to this video and the explanation given I decided to buy the a7. I just finished installing following the clear instructions. I turned it on and I thought I had purchased a new set of speakers. What a difference the a7 makes. I can hear more detail. Even the subwoofer sound coming from the two front speakers came alive and I had to turn the subwoofer down. I was so unhappy with the way my system sounded that I had purchased an equalizer. I will return it as I no longer need iit. Great video and great product.
Great video and explanation on how to connect an external power amp to an AVR. I followed your instructions to the letter and connected my Marantz C50 to my new basX A3 external amplifier. Wow what a difference to my LCR front stage. I've left my 2 heights FLR and my Surr LR connected to the Marantz C50. Now my 4 ohm Piega speakers are really singing! 😊 The whole system has really come alive with this added injection of power.
Glad it helped! Thank you for your comment.
great video. I was under the impression that the additional amplifier would increase the sound but what you explain makes sense. Thanks.
Glad it was helpful!
This is exactly what I've done with an Emotiva a5. It's a magic unit that always stays cold to the touch when my AV amp even set in preamp mode gets very hot. It also means the AV can sit happily on the Emotiva forming a perfect stack.
On my old AV (I haven't tested this on the new one) at very low levels the sound distorted I think because too little power was being sent, but the Emotiva totally solved that issue.
I'm using a line level 1.2 for the main speakers Emotiva amp, and it is working good. Maybe Emotiva should make line level converters for their amp and older AVR's. Mine is from 1993 and it's a JVC, BUT THE eMOTIVA MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE.
Awesome info, exactly what I was looking for. Clear and detailed demonstration. Keep up the great work!
Nice looking cables and great job on the lesson.
Hi Brent! Thanks for helping out with my A2 warranty service a couple weeks ago. It is back and working great!
Thank you very much for this clear and thorough explanation. I will be honest. I had thought the volume would get louder, too.
Awesome video.. if I plan on running a 7.2.6 setup.. would it be more ideal to run a 3 channel amp for my fronts.. a 4 channel amp for my surrounds and a 6 channel amp for atmos channels? Or should I consolidate the 3&4 channels amps into one 7 channel amp? What would be the pros and cons of the first setup vs consolidating?
Thanks so much
I did use the line level to RCA converters, kicker brand, grounded them correctly and used external amps. The positive.. vastly increased power to get the volume gains that you want. The Negative.. added distortion, not a terrible amount but it is noticeable and a light static noise when nothing is playing, mind you not enough to stop the auto-off functions of the amps from working, but it was there. My concern was more about volume than it was clarity at the time. But if I were to do it again, I would get an amp with pre-outs or just a processor with outs.
Basic and in words even I can understand. What about treatment of the Subwoofer? Should that be moved over too or can that stick to the AV receiver? Thank you
Perfect, simple video, clear, concise and informative
Thank you!
Man what do you mean those adapters don't work very well . My Denon X2700H didn't have preouts for me to hook up my Outlaw 5000x so I bought 3 RUSSOUND Line level adapters and now I drive my speakers. The RUSSOUND adapters work very well as pre outs .
Really well described. Good teaching.
Terrific video - very easy to follow - thanks! 👍🏼
Clear and concise!! Bravo! Bravo!
👍🏻 + 👍🏻
Incorporated an A3 with my old RX-A2060. Zero hiss or hum. Prior to installing my avr was borderline hot,even at lower listening levels. Now the Yamaha runs lukewarm as does the A3. And without going into great detail, Acoustically it improved key areas in my 9.2 system. And no thump or bump on start.
You should replace that receiver man. That’s a real
bad sign. I have a marantz one for sale to. If your in Albuquerque I can give u dibs on it.
@@purplerider2362 It’s really not uncommon when you’re pushing a dozen 8” drivers in 4 towers and a full complement of surround & backs and atmos. Not to mention the high volume level.
I’m trying out a Denon x4800h and it gets pretty warm too powering the whole shebang.
Eliminating the load from LFC channels makes a difference. The yammy is on bedroom duty for the remainder of its life.
I appreciate the offer but I’m on the Washington coast.
@@jatoav8or I got ya. That makes sense. Pushing a ton of speakers would definitely get it hot. I miss understood what you were saying. Maybe add more amps. To take some of the load off the main receiver? I’m no pro. I happened to get a sansui 9090 for ten bucks at a yard sale. Thing would get very hot. It still does get hot. I don’t use it tho. The system I have contains a xpa-dr2 power amp.
With a cheap preamp from emotiva as well. And a basx a300 the first one is 550 watts a channel and the other is 160 a channel. Both running from the preamp with a rca y splitter. Only four speakers connected and it shakes my house. I can only imagine how awesome yours sounds!! It probably shakes the neighborhood! 😂
Awesome explanation. Very clear and easy to understand.
Glad it was helpful!
I am running an A3 and A2 for my front and rear channels. Leaves good headroom for my surrounds, I do get a buzz from the Emotivas when the lights are dimmed. I only notice it when the room is silent, but the dynamic peeks are great and I watch movies with lights off anyway.
That could be more from them being on the same circuit as a dimmer. Dimmers are notorious for adding noise into systems. I would move them to a different circuit or put them on a signal buffer like with our CMX-2.
One day I'll have separates... Great products...😉👍🏼
Does using the pre out signal from the AVR weaken the signal to the AVR's speaker outputs?
I noticed that you had a Marantz. This may be a stupid question, but here goes. Will the particula/unique r sound of the receiver be lost?
Line level adapters absolutely do work, saying they dont is 100% wrong
Im in the opposite situation....My old amplifier has plenty power, but needs newer processing. It claims to support DTS, but since I use Optical(its best connection) DTS doesnt allow to work through Optical/ToSlink. I am only using 5.1. although I DO have 2 mono amps that this main amp is designed to take on and power a 7.1 (Continuos 140w per ch / model: Marantz SR-14ex) I was thinking one day to add a 2nd sub (not supported via amp, but sub does support a link to another I think), but not interested much more in speakers, as I don't see the Dolby Atmos11-13ch thing being important at all. Also, my space is not that large, though I enjoy loud movies and music.
Another thing I was hoping to do was having a way to do room correction, like I have done in my car with mic and Rew, and time delay, EQ, etc. I think one way is having Dirac live built in, or something.
I have the 2 additional Marantz 140w mono Amps to add 2 ch and make it a 7.1, but for now, I was hoping to just get DTS decoding, and maybe newer ones. My LG TV is new, my LG BluRay player is new also. I never was a believer in merging audio with video, so I never jumped on the HDMI to amplifier idea. Just was not logical to me.
Maybe there is a simple way to get the newer decoding. I did see a few happy people using some $150-200 decoder device from Amazon, but some people had issues. I am thinking of giving it a shot. Or try something more known and tested to work well.
I thought of Emotiva might be the answer. And there were some more logical processor models some years back, I think in the 500-800$ range. But those are gone, and now it seems out of reach.
Anyone know what my options would be? I am not willing to give up the amplifier. I really enjoy it, and the remote it has is the Proton...old, but very capable.
I wonder if anyone is even monitoring the comments section? :-)
I would reach out to sales@emotiva.com so we can work through all your options :)
Nice discussion on adding an amplifier to a home theater receiver. Do you have a discussion on a AV 2 channel receiver doing the same connection thanks.
I have the BasX a2 on my mains from my Yamaha RXA2 excellent value, maximum headroom for my 25 year old Klipch klf20s
This is exactly the A/V receiver I have, and I was very underwhelmed by the power. So you like this setup?
Thank you. Very professional, and concise.
Glad it was helpful!
Great tutorial, wonder about how a DAC converter will be wired as in/out pre processor
Great. I live my XPA-5. I use my AVR to power my surround back and height. Perfect.
Great instructive video. Thanks. Can you tell me how much sound quality difference there is between an XLR connection vs RCA?
Also what is better 14g lamp cord or 12g silver cable...
look at the most high-end audiophile systems and check what they are using.(spoiler; RCA) IMO, xlr is for long noisy runs like in a music venue from the stage to the front-of-house mixer. unbalanced can pick up noise. in pristine conditions, they will sound the same.
edit: also, xlr is so much more physically dependable than the 1/4" jacks ubiquitous to music gear. they dont fall out or get worn and noisy, so XLR has physical advantages too. like i feel way better knowing i have xlr from mixer to PA amp. it can't fvck up BUT completely unnecessary for the home. big bulky and expansive.
Thanks for the video! I just ordered my BasX A3 ! I hope it makes a difference in my front stage. I have the Onkyo RZ50 receiver.
Hope you enjoy it!
Very very very useful information what I need to know right now. Man thank you so much, god may bless you and your family👊🏽
Glad to help!
Wow thank you for sharing
That was very straight forward and easy to understand..
Thank you for your comment! You are welcome!
I have a Marantz Cinema 50.Can i leave the loudspeaker cable there and connect chinch to external amp? The external also has loudspeaker cable Inputs tough..
Did you all stop making the RS13 subwoofer? I want to get a pair of them
Great. Very Thorough Explanation.👍.
Glad it was helpful!
Great video. Can I then leave my sub woofer connected to my reciever and can I add more speakers to my reciever as well?
Yes you can!
Fantastic teaching. Thank you 🙏
Glad it was helpful!
Thank you. This was very informative. You answered many questions I had about this.
I am using a BasX 7 channel off of my Denon AVR-X3300 on Emotiva T2+, C2+ because they are 4 ohm. I think the Denon is thw weak link because it just doeant seem to put out enough preamp voltage to make the amp really push the power its capable of in my opinion. I can max the volume and it just doesn't get very loud.
We believe you are onto the issue. The Denon is the culprit.
@@EmotivaAudioCorp looks like I see an Emotiva processor in my future 😆
Very well done video, but can you still use your speaker outputs on the AVR for biamp speakers? Or like you said they can't used at all??
Same ? Like how do you double or triple amp
Thank you for the time you devote to helping us along, I’ve been enjoying your content! I’m new’ish to the more advanced side of home theater setups and in particular, to Atmos…but I’m in the process of buying new hardware and I have some questions which I hope are not too long or cumbersome!
1. *2 CHEAP (old) AVRs vs 1 EXPENSIVE ONE?* For the budget-minded, rather than buying one of the newer AVRs that offer all the channel outputs needed to have tons of speakers, could someone use 2 (older and cheaper) machines to power the same number of speakers…and still get proper Atmos configurations?
2. *DO OLDER AVRs HAVE PROPER ATMOS OUTPUTS?* There are used Denons selling online, like the AVR-3312Ci for around $100. While on the back it has 1 set of “Height” outputs, it doesn’t say Dolby Atmos on the machine. Are all “Height” outputs on older AVRs sending data properly to overhead speakers? The AVR-3312Ci does say Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD amongst other things, but not Atmos. Does a receiver *have to be* Atmos specific in order to pass the data/sound properly to the speakers that would be setup as ceiling/upwards-facing speakers (not to mention the ground-level speakers that Atmos communicates with)?
3. *2 AVR’s? -or 1 AVR + 1 AMPLIFIER?* If the answer to question 1 is that yes, (you can buy a cheaper AVR to receive all the HDMI (and other) inputs from your sources…and if said AVR doesn’t have enough channel outputs to power 5-7 ground-level speakers AND 2-6 ceiling/upwards-facing speakers) …would one be able to use the pre outs to power an additional amplifier? -or would it need to be another AVR, to get the proper Atmos configured output to the speakers?
4. *REGARDING THE SPEAKERS.* If I put together the right AVR system (whether a single unit, or a combination of 2 or more) to power (up to) 7 ground-level speakers, plus 1 (2, or 3) sub-woofers, plus (up to) 6 ceiling (or upward-facing) speakers, can I mismatch different speakers and brands? For instance, I recently bought a set of Klipsch Reference Theater pack (before I knew about the Reference Cinema pack). If I keep the Theater pack and buy 2 more ground-level speakers…AS WELL as some overhead speakers (whether ceiling-mounted, or other) …could I shop around to add to this array, even if I end up getting cheap ceiling speakers? The ceiling speakers (round ones that install into the ceiling) seem pricey compared to the set 5.1 set I just bought. If I shop around and buy other brand speakers (whether the round ones made specifically for ceiling use or not), would that yield workable results?
5. *KLIPSCH UPWARD-FACING vs CEILING SPEAKERS.* Which are better? Would the Reference Cinema pack be a better option for having Atmos “ceiling sound” rather than using the Reference Theater pack and adding cheaper ceiling speakers (mounted on the ceilings and pointing down)?
Thanks in advance!
Simply put, 1 av receiver. It don't have to be expensive but it has to be Atmos enabled and it has to be at least a 5.1.2.. If it doesn't say that it can drive a 5.1.2 or more, then it Atmos. The.2 is Atmos. Hope that helps.
Can this be done with older speakers that connect with speaker wire, not cables?
Thank you for the presentation. I want to but the 2ch one.
I am a bit confused about the volume output in the preout-amp setup. If the volume "sounds" the same, can you get louder volume? Is it connected with the preamp? How does it work?
This video is excellent! What about subwoofer?
The subwoofer has its own amp
Well explained, exactly what I needed. Great job!
What will happen if you have different impedance example LR are 4ohms and center is 6ohms and surround is 8ohms. Will the this amp automatically detect what ohms my speakers are and adjust as per channel?
Our amplifiers will drive anything from 4 to 8 ohm loads with no issues. Even though your system has different impedance levels, our amps will drive them automatically.
Question: Any thoughts on the benefits or advantages of bi-wiring off the A3? I am driving three 120 Watt B&W speakers with dual binding posts and wonder if it'beneficial given that the A3 generates 140 watts per channel. Thanks for the wonderfull video.
Hi Emotiva Team, I do have a 7.2 receiver, can I use the unused speaker inputs in the the receiver e.g. front height and rear height inputs to make it a 5.2.4 setup? Right now I have a 5.2.2 setup. Thanks.
Amazing, thank you for such detailed explanation and illustrative video 🙏✌️
Glad it was helpful!
Great video, is the concept the same if you are using another (pre amp) i.e. say another Yamaha amp?
Yes, it is
Amazing info! Question. When you add an AMP into a Receiver, i'll get the whatts sum between this both or only i'll get the whatts amp? thanks for your answer.
You will only get the watts from the output of the amplifier.
great video! thank you much! quick question. is it possible to use two 3-channel amps on one AV receiver to power 6 channels total?
Thank you for the comment. Yes, you would be able to split system that way with no issues!
Did the same with a vintage Marantz and a used A-100 i found on line. Are you better off using a decent RCA cable vs using the cheap ones you get free with your DVD player?
What if my home theater reciever only has preouts for center and woofer? Its a Magnavox MFX 450...from 2002
I wish my current AVR had "pre-outs" for at least the LCR channels. However, I often wonder if an external amp is worth the expense. My LCR are 4 ohm Emotiva T-Zero towers and a C1+ center.
So, Brent, in your honest opinion, does an external amp make a $500+ improvement in audio quality? Thanks.
I think this is a great question, but one that is difficult to answer definitively. Will a BasX A3 or A5 outperform the internal power amplifiers in most common AVRs? I think the answer is almost always yes, the performance will be better using a dedicated amplifier. But there are many variables, like your listening habits, room size, etc. as to whether you will reap all of the benefits of an external amplifier. Even if you aren't pushing the amplifier that hard, the quality should still be an improvement over the AVR amplifiers in most cases. It can be difficult to put a dollar amount on personal enjoyment of your audio system regarding upgrades, but based on personal experience with the amplifiers and talking with countless customers who make the upgrade to external amplifiers, it can make a big difference in your setup!
Personally, if I was gonna upgrade I'd really upgrade.
@@Roof_Pizza same basic process applies to the higher powered amps like the XPA Gen3 that can also be added to AVR setups for even more power! Adding external amplification to some or all channels with an existing AVR is a great way to incrementally work up to a separate processor and amps for all channels.
@@brentberkompas4740 I wouldn't bother with upgrading the surrounds unless I moved into a huge place. Yeah, the XPA 3 channel or similar.
@@brentberkompas4740 Sir, your answer ids surely correct. I've been wanting a processor - amp system for a long time but the $ are never in my favor. Maybe someday a MC-1 and amps will be powering my system, but that someday seems so far away. I've even been considering cutting the amplifier section out of one of my old AVR units and installing RCA jacks to connect an amp to. Thank you and all the very best to you and yours, Kevin
Is it okay to only use receiver as a preamp? Meaning no speakers attached only preOut to amp. Doesn’t the receiver require some sort of speaker load since there is no speaker connection
?
I’m new to this, so you plugged all the pre outs to the power amp, and now run cables to the speakers?
Why not complete the job and show how
Excellent instructional video!
Glad it was helpful!
I'm new to this concept, once you get everything setup, how do you control the volume, through the receiver or the amp, or do you have to adjust volume on both amp and receiver?
The preamp/processor/receiver will control the volume. Once the amp is hooked up, it pretty much just sits there.
@@nickmandara8231 Thank you Nick
@@alanb2140 Whwn you connect the two with the trigger wire one you turn on the avr it automatically turns on the a5
There is no volume knob on the amp.
It is an amp, it only amplifies the input.
if I have a powered subwoofer (built-in amplifier), where does it fit in your setup ? , C,R,L, rear surrounds(2) - 5 ports/options.
Powered subwoofers will always connect to your processor/preamplifer's subwoofer output and NOT your amplifier.
Perfect video, I mean spot on!
So what are the precuts for that say zone 1 and 2?
Have watched many videos about the BasX line-up, I'm considering the BasX-5 amplifier. Could you tell me what the best option is to purchase the unit in the EU / The Netherlands? When adding the shipping costs and possible import duties the price adds up fast
Great video. Thank you.
I learned a few things, thank you.
Now I need to research what Amp to use.
If anyone has any suggestions I just upgraded my front main speakers to the b&w 702,s. My av reciever is a Yamaha A2080. It sounds awesome. I've been hearing my particular speakers would excel with more power than my reciever will put out.
The A2080 is 140 x 2.
I'm thinking of a 200 to 250 x 2.
Take a look at our XPA-2.
so what if the receiver only has subwoofer pre-outs? I guess you can't connect a 2 channel amp to these pre-outs? What is this used for then?
If you want to connect the atmos speaker you can connect it in amplifier?
Am I able to use the one set of stereo pre out and send the signal to all channels of my basx?
Hi just want to know...is there always signal in the preout on the avr even if u not using them...if for example I want to put a graphic analyser will there be signal.in the preoits
Great video. One question... When I plug the pre out from the receiver to the amp, does to signal automatically get sent to the amp, or do I have to go into the receiver menu to change the settings for ot to go to the amp?
Depends on the receiver model. Some automatically recognize the pre-outs are being used and others you have to go into the menu to tell it that channel is using external amplification.
Do you have to use the ir cable. Or I can use without. Thanks.
Just to clarify, on the receiver side, it doesn't matter if I plug the single RCA connection into white or red?
Correct. As long as the single ended RCA Pre-Output matches with the correct speaker connection on the amplifier, you are good to go!
@@EmotivaAudioCorp awesome, thanks so much
Is there a way to limit the power output to speakers to ensure they do not get damaged?
No, but that goes into a deeper understanding on speakers and power. You are more likely to underpower your speakers and cause them to clip which will damage them versus overpowering them. Speakers will only pull the amount of power they need depending on the circumstance. You can drive them too hard with massive amount of power but will most likely blow out your hearing before that point due to the decibel level they would be playing to get there.
Great video! So you leave the sub-woofer connected to the receiver?
Yes
That is correct
Instead of running the full room corrections again, wouldn’t you just want to use an SPL meter to adjust the volume to reference? It takes about 35 min to re run room correction with 11 speakers.
But if you had a Emotiva MR1, you wouldn't need an external amp, correct?
Way i have it is from my sony avr to pioneeer avr. My sony has 2 hdmi outs. One goes to tv...then hdmi out 2 to the pioneer. I am doing this to power 4 atmos speakers as the sony one only has 2. I noticed the pioneer one has pre outs. I preffer the sound of the sony it seems its class A/B but the pioneer is class D. Initially had all connected to pioneer but didnt think it sounded so up front and clear.
In all honesty i know nothing about pre amp. Never used it. But do i need to ise a specific type of receiver to receive the pre amps? Like could i just connect the pre amps from my pioneer to my sony?
My Onkyo-8050 Receiver has a R (Red) and L (White) preout. I want to use it as a pre-amp and Tuner. It says in the manual to connect the L and R to the Line in on the amp. If I purchased the BasX A4, would that mean connecting the RCA cables to Channel 1 and Channel 2?
So, if my Klipsch floor standing speakers have 4 speaker wire inputs, do I need to grab the bottom speaker cables (since the top are in banana plugs plugged into my Marantz) and hook up the bottom Klipsch speaker wire inputs to the Emotiva A5 along with the banana plugs plugged in too?
Very well done! Thanks.
Thanks for watching!
Show me how the BASX-PT2 Preamp connects to the XPA-5 amplifier and i will buy them. It has me stumped.
Just curious why the XPA-5 with a stereo preamp?
@@EmotivaAudioCorp That's the way that I did it with my equipment back in the 80s. I had a Sumo Andromeda amp and the Sumo Athena preamp. The pre had the CD/Tape/aux/etc inputs and the volume knob. The XPA -3 or 5 has no volume controls, ergo a preamp or processor.
Can I use my Emotiva TA1 as a pre amp and add a more powerful external stereo amp. I just need more than the 60 wats I’m getting from the TA1.
He makes it look so easy. In our worlds it’s a tangled mess of electric spaghetti that you’ll get tangled up in trying to squeeze behind your cabinet to connect it all. Then come to find out you actually connected yourself inside a spiderweb of wires and now you’re stuck there. So it’s either disconnect everything so you can get out, or call the fire department to bring a ladder in order to climb over.
Or maybe it’s just me?
Either way, Emotiva is in my future this summer and I look forward to it. Thank you for this video!
Cheers!
It can be accomplished, just takes patience and a plan.
Is it possible to use the same 1 rca input signal for 2 amp channels? Want to have 2 pair of surround speakers (2 SL & 2 SR) from 1 pair of rca input. Is there any setting on the amplifier which can do that. Or can it be done with Y splitter without any impact on sound output
I just want a single pre out on an AV reciever to connect to a power amp. The power amp is a proper power amp i.e. it has no volume control. This is to power some very powerful speakers. I dont want to go through zone two line out as I want all speakers to play at the same time. Is this possible??
Ok, so now I know how to wire it, but I still need a video on the benefits of going through all this. Why wouldn’t I just buy an AVR like the Yamaha Aventage A6A and be on my way?
Because they only give 50 watts per channel
Will the RCA cables on your website be coming back in stock any time soon?
We are working to get those restocked.
Thank you. Please explain about the ems required for Klipsch rp8000f tower 8ohms continuous power of 150 watts rms. Emotiva 5channel gives 95 watts at 8 ohms. Will it be enough?
I have the Klipsch RP 8000f and I have a marantz sr 6015(110wpc) and I also have the emotiva basX 3 (140wpc). The 8000f spec's say 150 rms 600 peak. From my understanding everything is based on volume of reference level which is 85db and peak volume which is 105db. When watching movies at reference, which I myself never do, you have scenes like with talking that don't take a lot of watts to produce sound and you scenes like explosions which takes more watts. Unless you listen very loud continuously you should be fine. Also, the RP 8000 has a high sensitivity which means it doesn't take a lot of power to drive them. Hope that helps but if you want more info power handling and receiver wattage you should look audioholics u-tube reviews.
Hi, ive got a onkyo tx609 av receiver and im going to connect a arcam9 power amplifier. (Its got no volume control) could i just add more speakers to my amplifier instead of using the speakers from my av receiver. Then ADD a cd player to the amplifier aswell. Would that work?? 😂😂
So my 2 Klipsch R-800F front towers requires 150 watt per tower, but I don’t want to spend to much on an external amp. Any recommendations?
Great job. Thank you
I have no pre out on my OLD surround avr. Just sub.
So.... What can I do to add external power amp.
Do you set the gain on the amp on full and then use the receiver to control the volume?
If there is a gain adjustment on the amplifier, we recommend maxing that out because you will use the volume control from the receiver.
@@EmotivaAudioCorp That is what i did, not sure if i can do the same with the headphone output, I've read that the A 100 is an excellent headphone amp as well.
How to connect the subwoofer? Any suggestions please
Your subwoofer usually connects directly to your receiver or processor if it is a powered subwoofer. If it is a passive subwoofer, the same concept applies with this video, the amplifier you have to power your sub will connect back to the subwoofer output on your receiver or processor.