OK, if this were my primary system, I would be most interested in the absolute performance I could get given my modest means. However, this is my secondary system which also sees limited A/V use. I have an Upgrade Company modded Oppo BDP-83SE that was driving 4 channels of a Theta Intrepid to biamp a pair of BG Corp 520 loudspeakers. Subs are Def Tech ProSub 100's. All cables are made from 16 gauge solid core silver plated copper. This is vintage wire and is shockingly detailed. It kills my Granite Audio 470 interconnects and easily competes with Wolff Audio BOHICA power cord. I use this as my speaker cables and power cords; as such, there are 7 runs per pole. That's a very substantial wire so no issues with power transmission.
This system plays music with grace and detail and is so much easier to use than the tubed main rig (due to power consumption and an insane amount of heat--45 watts of class A SET plugged into a PS Audio P-600). However, when playing DVD/Blueray, the maximum output is too low. Frequently, the dialogue is lost to me. When driven via RCA, the gain on the Intrepid is only 25db. So, I thought I'd try a pair of Emotiva XPA-1 with a gain of 32 db and several hundred more watts per channel.
I do have my some doubts as to whether the Emotivas will be good enough musically. The Intrepid is a really nice sounding amp. So, I'm willing to do a bit of work to get as much out of them as reasonably possible but, come on, this is my secondary system. The 15amp IEC's I'd install are the Furutech Fi-10 (R). I'm sure these are quite a step up from the stock IEC's in the XPA-1's anyway. And I really don't want to drop $250-$300 for a pair of 20a Oyaide 246 plugs if I can do the same thing for $70 with the Furutech IEC's.
Any comments now that I've confessed that the amps are merely Emotivas? Thanks all! Your advice is greatly appreciated.
