Have you heard of EMOTIVA?

It's fine. What did you think.

Like Newbrook said above,"What did you think?" Why should it matter what others think when you know what you heard?Just curious as to why you asked.

obviously the op wants validation for his purchase. we all need validation sometimes, so why the barbed responses?
in any event, stickman, emotiva registers a fine company with good customer service. their power amps are commendably neutral and very good value and their processors are all the rage with the ht crowd. i'm sure you'll enjoy your purchase.

Gosh, I'm soooooo needy.... Bought these amps as show demos without trying them out at home in my rig first; will have them by Thursday and then I will let you know 'what I think.'

I would add my curiousity about Emotiva quality and performance since I am considering adding a UMC-1 processor to the HT system.

Perhaps the phrasing in the original post led to the some to jump to the conclusion that Stickman451 was looking for validation rather than informed opinions on this gear.

Price point seems to indicate an overseas build but who engineers/designs their stuff?

Lonnie Vaughn is their in-house engineer, unless things have changed. They manufacture their stuff in China to keep costs down. I got into H/T with them and there's a lot of bang for buck. Do a search on this forum for Emotiva and you'll come up with lots of threads. Or head over to their own forum.

I am considering their USP-1 preamp because of the bass management capabilities. The only other preamp I have come across that has similar features is the Parasound 2100, also built overseas. I have listened to the Parasound and was impressed, but cannot listen to any Emotiva gear - there is none to be found in showrooms in Denver.

i know emotiva has a free in-home trial on all their new gear--they'll take back anything you don't like for any reason. good, no-risk policy.

Well, now I have heard the Emotiva XPA-1's in my room with my 3.6's; I've spent a good part of this weekend listening and comparing them to an old NAD 2200PE that I've had since 1987 and also to a NAD C275BEE that I just picked-up off of Audigon. Result: In my opinion, both of the NAD's sounded better in my room with my other gear than do the XPA-1's. The XPA-1's don't sound bad, they just sound more like BIG SS to me. To my ears, both of the NAD's were much smoother, more liquid, more 3-D, projecting a wider/deeper stage than the XPA-1's, and just plain sounding better overall with more 'in the room' realism...

Most surprising to me however is the fact that the C275BEE definitely had more sold 'thump' in the mid-bass and bass in general. Drums were much taunter, tighter, and more articulated though the NAD; that surprises me! The XPA-1 is 500/1000 into 8/4 ohms while the NAD is 150 Watts continuous. The NAD's have a lot of headroom obviously and I don't think that they ever sounded stressed even with big rock music at 90 db peaks in my 17x26 room..

I would still like to hear a good powerful Pass Labs or maybe the solid state Cary 500 mono blocs on the 3'6's but until I do I am holding on to the C275BEE. Most highly recommended!

Excellent to hear as I own the c275bee. Wonder what Dann G has to say about this?

I have the Emotiva DMC-1 pre/pro and the MPS-1 7 channel amp. They are a great value and are neutral sounding. But they are limited by their respective design compromises. I suspect the NAD had more high current capability and hence the smoother sound.

I had their LMC-1/LPA-1 combo and then the DMC-1/MPS-1 combo. Good components for the price but don't expect miracles. I have since moved on from these products but friends and family members still have their LMC-1/LPA-1 combo.

Kenobi

i've had emotiva amps before... i would get them for HT due to the nice bass, but not for music, they are not musical at all, the midrange is uninvolving/dull, among many other things

I second the HT vote. Great for that purpose. That being said, so is my $500 Onkyo receiver :)

"..That being said, so is my $500.00 Onkyo receiver:)"

I am considering order the pairs od UPA1's for FM radio listening but I have never had gut to do so. I feel safer with Rotel, Parasound and Adcom for non-critical listening.

Your message is well received.

Wow...

I have the USP-1 preamp and have been very satisfied. If you have a perfect listening room, and expect the ultimate in the state of the art, go elsewhere. But I have a large, assymmetrical living room, with very high ceilings on one side.

Driving Vandersteens and a big Bag End sub, it does a fine job with both digital and vinyl. Not the last word in sound, but a solid performer.

Emotiva is great bang for the buck audio. Not quite as good as Parasound but better than mid-fi stuff.
Very decent sound at RMAF.

The guys in the emotiva room were also very friendly and glad to answer questions. Still the only room i've ever been in at RMAF that just hands you the remote. And I've been going to these shows since 2008. Always a pleasure visitng their room, but I would love to hear their gear with some better speakers, I have not ever been a fan of the emotiva room's sound.

A lot of people have drank the Emotiva kool-aid! There are people who make wild claims that this stuff sounds better than the best high end equipment! lol.

I think they have a ton of home theater fans, not as many 2-channel fans, tho...

I have an Emotiva UPA-7 power amp for HT and it suits my needs. For 2 channel enjoyment I did really like the Emotiva USP-1 preamp. A very solid performer with all around. Might be worth the price on the phono section alone. A'gon member Ferrari did a nice thorough review on it in the archives.

I think the XDA-1 DAC is one of the best budget buys in audio. For $200 you get an very good dac, remote controlled, with multiple inputs, 5 year warranty. I use it in my current main system (CJ/Nakamichi/Paradigm) and absolutely love it!

I talked to them about the updated version of this DAC at RMAF, the new version has a much better volume control, and i think features a fully balanced internal circuit.

had the emotiva ultra 10 sub. didn't like it. guy that has it now works at a high end stereo shop and has it paired to some zu's. he likes it. to each his own!

I just bought the balanced preamp, getting it in a week or so. It is not in the same "league" with my other stuff but I'm looking to streamline and the balanced feature is appealing to me.

Ditto on the XDA-1 DAC, now discontinued however. Also have their smallest amp. Sounds solid and great build. Much bang for the buck. Easily worth ones consideration.