Does anyone have any idea how the NAD T793 and would sound with the Pioneer Elite 55TXI as a pre? I eventually (after a year or so of selling the wife on the idea) want to get Maggne Pan speakers front and center (following Hawks suggestion). Right now I have Monitor Audio Golds,GR60 fronts, Gold center and GR10 surrounds, with an HSU VTF-3 sub (with no ghosts).
Sorry, this is in a very large room with a very high peaked ceiling, proper acoustic treatments and will be used for 50% music and 50% HT. The music is for me the HT is for the family.
If you already own the 55TXi then I guess your set-up makes sense. A bigger amp would probably make the Monitor Audio's sound better too. The amp section of the 55TXi is not meant for a huge room, as it is THX Select, not Ultra 2.
I think the NAD T793 is brand new with no reviews yet. There is no reason to think there should be any hiss or hum problems, unless you already have that problem with your set-up.
If you truly want to be sure not to have any amplifier hum or hiss you need to get a double ended balanced amp (balanced at both the input and output), such as ATI's new Pure Balanced amps in the 2000 or 3000 series. The ATI 2007 has received rave reviews for mid to upper mid-priced amps. It is 200 watt per channel as opposed to NAD's 140 watts. It lists at $2995, but probably can be picked up at $2395.
As you can probably pick up the NAD (list $1995) at around $1595, it becomes a matter of what you can afford in your budget and what speakers you have.
The Maggies thrive on lots of good power--even much more so than the Montior Audio speakers. While I am sure they will play fine with the NAD amp, I would love to have the extra power and headroom for the difficult and loud musical transients.
I have the MA GR10's and have played them on both my Pioneer Elite 49TXi (which powers 5 channels at 145 watts) and have powered them with my downstairs Aragon 2007 amp (7 x 200 watts). If I had the tower MA GR 60's I would definitely go for the 200 watt amps--and since you seem to be switching them out for Maggies, I would definitely go for 200 watt amps.
You didn't say what model Maggies you were considering. You already own a fine pair of speakers IMO, and congratulate you on your step up to the Maggies and real high end sound.
I agree with Gman, that they want good clean power. I have a pair of 1.6's driven by an Aragon 8008x3 thru a Proceed pre-pro. The sound is pure sonic bliss. Just make sure the amp(S) you are considering give you clean (low THD) power into 4 ohms. Anything around 200WPC should be fine, the more, the better. Good luck.
I'm considering the MG 3.6's with the CC3 center. I already have the 55TXI and like it very much but I want to add more power through an amp. I was considering the NAD because even the people who are mad at NAD say they love the sound. I can go about $4K for the amp. I'm looking for 200 - 300 WPC, continuous to all, 5 channels. This is new territory for me so I don't know which brands to start checking out.
Maggie 3.6's ? In a word, WOW !. With a budget of $4000 I would be looking at Bryston, Lexicon, and Aragon for new. Dare I say it, if you consider pre-owned, you can touch the high end gods of Mark Levison and Krell. I do envy your choices. Just add a good pre-pro in the future, and you are there.
I have an Aragon 2007 amp (7 x 200 watts into 8 ohms), but they also have a 2005 that is the same for 5 channels. It is a fine amp and in its silver aluminum chassis with glowing blue light on the Mondial/Aragon logo is a magnificent piece of industrial design mixed with art. But it isn't a balanced input/output amplifier. The 2005 (list $2500)can probably be bought for around $2,000. I saw a great deal from Audio Advisor on a 2005 in silver that was a demo at this years CES show for $1499---if I didn't have a 200 watt amp I'd get that one.
If I was worried about hum I'd get the ATI 2005. ATI is a great OEM company that makes amplifiers for other medium to high end "manufacturers".
I have a friend (for about 25 years) that owns two audio salons that sells both Aragon and ATI. Roger Kahn at the Soundseller in Marinette, Wisconsin. If you call him and mention my name I am sure he would give you a great deal--he also sells NAD.
But I doubt any deal would beat the $1499 Aragon 2005 demo at Audio Advisor. But he might not be too far off on a brand new unit.
Thanks for the advice. I'm seriously considering the Krell TAS as the main amp with the Martin Logan Odyssey's for fronts and the ML Theatre i center. That is the best setup that I've heard so far. The ML's seem to have better dispersion than the Maggies and a wider sound stage, also a little better bass response. The Krell of course is a reference. Nobody criticises it's sound, they just say that you can get "as good" for less money. Getting the best Pre/pro will be a real challenge.
If I get this system, will I get thrown off of this forum?