Hi All,
I currently own an Outlaw 950 preamp, Adcom 7605 125x5 amp and Rocket 750's, Bigfoot center and dipoles for surrounds.

I have enough cash to upgrade just the preamp or the amplifier. I am wondering what the best bang for my buck would be. I was considering upgrading to the 990 pre amp or to the 5x200wpc amp. Any advice?

Thanks a ton!

Joe

CRUZMISL WROTE:

I am wondering what the best bang for my buck would be. I was considering upgrading to the 990 pre amp or to the 5x200wpc amp. Any advice?

It depends on what you now have for equipment. If you have enough amplification and are satisfied with speakers and amp(s) you won't be disappointed with 990. OTOH if your pre/pro is good you won't be disappointed with outlaws 7500.

Could you be more specific?

ooops.
Sorry I overlooked something as I got distracted.

Hmmm, good question. Thrilled with everything but have an opportunity to sell either my amp or processor for almost what I paid for it. I've had the processor and amp for about 3-4 years now. To me they work fine but I don't know what the new stuff sounds like so I don't really know what I am missing, if anything.

The Rockets are not the most efficient speakers and I find that I need to turn the volume up quite a bit when I want to really rock with concert events. This depends on the source as well. DVD's are usually OK while Dishnet concerts on Soundstage have much less gain and I can usually turn it up 100% without it being loud enough but without distortion, something with the signal.....

My reference sound for movies is -10bd on the 950 which is PLENTY loud enough. My gut is telling me to get the bigger amp just because more power is always better and I'm sure an amp running at 70% will sound better than one running at 100%. The power I have is certainly enough but there are odd occasions when I wish I'd have more. Conversely, I'm not sure if the processing with the new 990 is clearly superior or if they are similar which is why I'm asking for advice


I hope this helps.

Joe

-10dB is still not going to be all the way to 100% on your Adcom. Even with the Rockets' efficiency rating taken into consideration, you'd have to do a lot to truly max out a 125W amp. Going from the Adcom (125W per channel) to a Model 7500 (200W per channel) is probably going to be similar to my upgrade from a Model 750 (165W) to the 7500 (see my 7500 review for details) - you're likely to hear a difference, and possibly more of a difference than I did, but you'll still run at -10dB on the 950 to get to your preferred movie volume. After all, that volume is based on the reference level at which you calibrated your system.

The 990 doesn't add a lot in the way of specific processing modes. Pro Logic IIx is added, and Cirrus Extra Surround is dropped as a result (PLIIx being better than CES at doing the same thing). Dolby Headphone and a headphone jack are added, as is DTS 96/24 (which I don't think I've ever had the opportunity to use). I'd classify the 990's DAC's as being better than the 950's (my 990 review touches some on the sonic differences that I found in the move from 950 to 990). Remember also that the 990 is large: it's the same height as a Model 7500 (7.75") and just about as deep as well.

For what it's worth, I wouldn't rule out either upgrade. Not having used that Adcom amp, I don't know how much difference the 7500 might offer, so it could be worth a try. I do know that I definitely got some satisfaction from my 950-to-990 upgrade.

Ideally you would do both but from 125 watts to 200 is only about 2.5 db more headroom. I would expect a more pronounced difference in sound by upgrading the 950 to the 990. Better DAC's. Then again, the 7500 is phenominally quiet and incredibly robust in the power supply. You could do the 7500 now and by the time you can afford the processor-maybe HDMI 1.3 will be there...

gonk, thanks for the reply. I think I'm with you on the amp. While listening at moderate volume levels you won't really notice any change but when you really want to rock listening in stereo or Dolby digital concert events is when the amp will impress.

I am very happy with the 950 even though it may be getting a little old it functions perfectly. I am a bit hesitant about upgrading the processor with TrueHD sound on the horizon. It could be a reason to hold off which makes me think the amp is a better option at this point.

Would the added 75wpc make a noticeable difference in headroom? I think it will only be 3db louder though.

Joe

Guido, didn't even see your reply. Thanks!