I am looking for a couple of cheap audio amps.
Budget is up to £200 in the first instance, £100 (!) in the second.
Any suggestions as to makes/suppliers to go for/avoid.
Ta
I have been very impressed with Cambridge Audio stuff. I think their are (at least part) owned by Richer Sounds these days, who stock all of their stuff.
On 25 Nov 2004 07:01:19 -0800, snipped-for-privacy@connectfree.co.uk (Zikki Malambo) strung together this:
I usually have a flick through the CPC catalogue then shop around for something cheaper once I've got an idea.
Richer Sounds.
First, by PA, do you mean 100 volt line?
Jumping in here Dave, I'm considering running a few field (Showjumping etc) events next year and have a requirement for a portable (12 volt) PA system with three or so weatherproof speakers, and a microphone on about 5 metres of lead. Have you any suggestions for a budget model?
I'd have to agree with that having just replaced a midi system with CA amp & CD player and the cheap 100W "monitors" from Richer. Can't say I've tried turning it up more than about 25% though!
Keep an eye on eBay.
A second hand decent quality pro amplifier should cost about what you have in mind.
There's nothing to really go wrong apart from mechanical damage. If they arem't bashed about too much, they keep going forever.
"John" wrote | Jumping in here Dave, I'm considering running a few field (Showjumping | etc) events next year and have a requirement for a portable (12 volt) | PA system with three or so weatherproof speakers, and a microphone on | about 5 metres of lead. | Have you any suggestions for a budget model?
12W10" Low Z horn
Useful things come on ebay. I saw a couple of nice Toa horns a few weeks ago. There's a Toa amp, check with seller for 12V power, item no 3763631375. There's a pair of "trumpet style" PA horns that look like they fell off a railway station at 3764678033
You do not need a lot of watts for public address work; music systems have high powers because bass drivers are inefficient. The Beatles played the Albert Hall with 20W. A lot depends on whether you just need to cover defined areas (spectators, competitor marshalling pens) or the entire arena.
Owain
Sounds OK, but it's mechanically unreliable (maybe not a problem for amps) and there's no service operation. I would _never_ buy another piece of Cambridge Audio kit.
What did you have that broke? I've only ever bought their amps, and really can't fault them.
They're actually owned by Richer Sounds...
Dunno if this is good or bad.
That's what I said! :-)
Wasn't the story something like "Richer sounds bought up several small UK audio companies, saving them from closure", or something to that effect?
Oh, sorry. I missed that bit.
And if you have to run longish speaker cables it may well be better to do it at 100v line rather than ordinary LoZ stuff. Apart from losses in the cable the amp might object to the much more reactive load.
CD transports. I've seen a couple with the same faults, so you can't even swap parts to get one of them going.
If they are owned by Richer Sounds, that was news to the clueless and unhelpful oiks at the Clifton, Bristol branch of Richer Sounds.
Not sure I follow that, Dave. The capacitance of a given length of cable of a given construction doesn't, to a good approximation, depend on its size. It depends more on the ratio of conductor diameter and spacing. So if you compare, say, 0.75 mm^2 cable for 100 V line use with, say, 4 mm^2 in a low-Z system the total shunt capacitance will be about the same (for a given run length). However the shunt reactance of the cable is going to have far more effect on the higher-impedance 100 V line system, since the reactive current will be a much larger fraction of the LS load current. If you're worried about the amplifier 'ringing' or bursting into oscillation then the low-Z system is the safer bet.
In reality though, with a half-decent amplifier it's only the series resistance of the speaker wiring that matters, and there of course the
100 V line system wins hands down if it's a long way from A to B.
Blimey - you'd think given the number of manufacturers in the Far East pumping out CD transports at ~50p a throw they'd have been able to source reliable ones.
Yeah, Richer Sounds are by no means perfect - they certainly employ their fair share of "you must use these £300 interconnects sir" types, but I do like quite lot of their stuff. Gale sspeakers are another one of my favourite Richer items - hugely underrated, nice speakers.
I've got a pair of those (I bought the whole lot from Richer Sounds in
2000). I still like the speakers, tiny though they are.Why am I still using a NAD tuner and tape deck that's 20 years old, yet the Cambridge Audio CD didn't last 3 years ? And the track display backlight didn't even make it to 2.
"Andy Wade" wrote | Dave Liquorice wrote: | > And if you have to run longish speaker cables it may well be | > better to do it at 100v line rather than ordinary LoZ stuff. | > Apart from losses in the cable the amp might object to the | > much more reactive load. | ... If you're worried about the amplifier 'ringing' or | bursting into oscillation then the low-Z system is the | safer bet.
If there are seriously long speaker cables then lump loading would be required to correct for the cable lengths.
| In reality though, with a half-decent amplifier it's only the | series resistance of the speaker wiring that matters, and there | of course the 100 V line system wins hands down if it's a long | way from A to B.
As well as making it a lot easier to use multiple speakers without faffing about with series/parallel oojits.
However the 12V power supply does suggest we are talking about Pony Club in the paddock rather than International Horse Show at Olympia.
Owain
It's easy enough to make a 12 volt 100 volt line amp of near any power - since it will have to have an output transformer. You simply need suitable current output devices - and of course a meaty power source.
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