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Amp current - how much high current to go for

Hi All,

        Some of you may remember me from a while back talking about my NuPrime IDA-8.   After three months of break in and a fat ass Silnote power cord it's significantly better but still not where I need it to be to drive my pair of Kudos C2.   I think it's time to move on to a better high current amp.  My question is, how much current do I need to go for.  For example, I've been eyeing

Parasound Halo Integrated - 45 amperes max

NAD M3 - 50 amperes max

Parasound Halo A21 - 60 amperes max

B&K EX-440 (vintage) - 70 amperes max

Mark Levinson No331 - ? amp max

Thank you ahead for the education.

P.S.  I missed out on a deal with Cullen's Cable or else would've got with Patrick instead of Silnote.  Patrick is really a nice guy, highly recommend talking to him if anyone is interested in a power cable.

hifineubee
erik_squires
15,647 posts
 
Hi OP,

I think you are concentrating far too much on a single spec. 2 way speakers are usually pretty easy to drive for almost any solid state amplifier, and usually have a very benign minimum impedance around 4 to 8 ohms.

How is your room? I would reach out to GIK acoustics before doing anything else. They could very well fix your problems. :)

After this, I'd try some rather modest but stiff amps if you still felt you had a problem, such as a Parasound A23 or A21.

Best,

E
hifineubee OP
56 posts
 

Thanks for the continuous feedback.  I had my eye on a Parasound Integrated Amp not too long ago but tax month messed up my plan.  Hopefully just a short delay.

Otherwise, I would like to let everyone know that the NuPrime ID-8 finally broken in after what feels like 500hrs.  I did buy new speaker and USB cables which might've contributed to the long break in period.  Anyway, I would now say NuPrime ID-8 is a solid product for the money!

atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
11,574 posts
 
This speaker is relatively easy to drive (for example would be a good match with most of our amps, which are tube). I think you will find speaker placement to be a far better investment of your time than that spent looking for a new amplifier. How close the speaker is to a wall can have a big effect on how it plays bass- the same can be said for corners of the room.

Further, I really doubt that an amp with 'high current' (which is often more marketing than anything else) will get you more impact. In fact you may find that an amp with *less* current (for example a tube amp) might be able to do it better.

Also, keep your speaker cables short if you can- they have a way of eating up bass in longer lengths.

Have fun- don't drive yourself crazy!
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