Adcom Amps? How Good? (1 Viewer)

I'm looking for opinions on Adcom amps. I've noticed several e-bay auctions for their GFA-7300 5-channel amp with prices between $350-$400.
How good are they? Are they a good buy or should I wait for something like the Rotel RMB-1066?
Initially, it would be paired with a HK AVR-55 until my number comes up in the Outlaw 950 lottery
Regards,
Kevin

They are solid, well built amps, and compare favorably to other amps in their price range, IMO. They are worthy of consideration for those looking to move into seperates without breaking the bank.

I use a GFA-5400(125 X 2)to power my Tempest sub and it provides plenty of juice on all but the most difficult passages on DVD. I used it to power my front channels before I got my Sunfire Cinema Grand, and although it didn't have the raw power the Sunfire has, it performed admirably.

DJ

I’ve had a pair of Adcom GFA-555II amps in my system for six or seven years now, one powering the subs, one the L/R mains. Been very happy with them.

Regards,

Wayne A. Pflughaupt

I have a GFA-5500. Excellent well-built amp. It will do 200 WPC at 8 ohms or 350 WPC at 4ohms, continuous.
That's enough power to handle most anything, especially if you have efficient speakers. No cooling fans to
make noise or break, either. It's one of the best values around in amps. It's has two channels, but
Adcom also has a GFA-5503 that is designed to be used with the GFA-5500. The GFA-5503 has three channels
that meet the same specs as the GFA-5500's two channels. Together that gives you five channels
of some serious matched power for all your speakers.
Cost for the two would be somewhere around $2,200 if you could find a good deal, maybe a bit more.

Bought a GFA555II in 1991...using it today to power my SVS-20-39CS....works great. Almost sold it when I got my Outlaw 750....didn't have the SVS then. Sure am glad I held on to it.

I've been running a GFA-7500 for over a year now and am loving it.
150x5 is plenty for my speaks...plus I am in an apartment so I don't often (read: ever) have the chance to drive it hard.
Ahh maybe someday...

My mains run off a pair of GFA-565 monoblocks that I have had since 1991. Rock solid, powerful, cool running and understated. I personally like the sound of the older Adcom power amps (535, 545, 555, 565, 585, 2535, etc.) and will be expanding out my amplification with some strategic purchases of Used Adcoms from Audiogon and eBay.

I'm running four Adcom 545ii (100W stereo) power amplifiers, the first of which I picked up 5+ years ago when I preferred it slightly over the equivalent Rotel of the time (while not straight-wire-with gain, it doesn't do anything glaring to the sound). In comparison, the newer 5000 series FET amps seem to trade a little bottom end for a bit of smoothness. The current home-theater amps are bipolar like the old 500 series and ought to sound similar.

Apart from alleged problems with the 5800, all the Adcom gear is well-built and affordable, and the power amplifiers compare well to others in the same price range if you're looking for something somewhat neutral.

What are these alleged problems with the 5800 amp?

Kevin:

Everybody has its own opinion. You got here an ADCOM group that loves their amps. Years ago I had a GFA 545, and later a 555. These were the brightest, grainiest amps I've ever owned. Mediocre bass to boot, after that, had 4 Aragons. WOW! what a difference! The one exception was the GFA-565 monos that JimN own. Now those are worth looking up even today. Superb sound from those monster monos. I missed the opportunity to buy those years ago and I'm still sorry.

JaimeB

My opinion. I had a GFA-535 or something. Very nice amp for the money. Then I moved on to Nakamichi, Aragon, Acurus. Never looked back. Adcom makes great amps, but there's a lot of competition out there too. B&K, Rotel, Outlaw, etc. Sometimes you get what you pay for...

Drew- Please elaborate. I have a 5800 and am curious. Thanks.

I see that this is an old thread- Drew posted in 2002. Did not notice that the first time around. No need to elaborate.

I have 4 Adcom amps for my HT and love them. My first was the 555 II, have had it for 8 years and have found no problems at all. I added another 555 II, a 2535 and a 545. The 2 555 II's run the front mains and the rear surrounds. the 2535 has 4 channels but you can bridge one side for a 200 wpc output which I have done and it runs the center. The other channels are idle for now. The 545 runs another pair of rear surrounds. With the Radio Shack meter used to calibrate, I very much like the sound. Have never had problems, plenty of volume, more than I can use. You might consider Ebay for Adcom amps, there are always a good selection there. The last amp I bought was there (555 II) and it came from a guy who was using two of them in mono mode and was repalcing them with a high end amp. Felt comfortable buying an amp that had been used that way and have no regrets. David

I have the 7807, 7 channels 300watts per channel. I bought it to replace Adcom 3 channel and 2 channel. Extremely happy with all of them. The new 7807 is incredible!

Hey, I have a 7807 as well. Love it!

Good amps. My first system had a Series 1 GFA-555. Great midrange and bass, but I little light on the highs. Great for a first system though. The reviews I read on the new HT Adcoms are very much raves.

Good amps for the money.

well i dont know abot adcom but go to onecall.com and look at the closeout for ati 2505. its 250 watts x 5 channles

into 8 ohms original price was 2,700 now 1,486 a steal at that price . i just got delivery of it yesterday . lol the poor fedex guy , shipping weight was 125 lbs . the amp itself weighs in at 106 lbs. an requires a 20 amp circut. thats 1250 watts total. check it out

frankie

I have 4 Adcom GFA-535's in my rig. Three are bi-amping my mains and center and the fourth powers the surrounds. Excellent sounding amps. They were a great first step into separates for me. Inexpensive, plenty of power for my Polks and small HT room and a great step up in sound quality over my Marantz receiver that I am now using as the pre/pro.
Peace Out~

Had two 535s to power my subs and shakers, cheap, durable, and on the used market can literally buy them and lose money on the shipping when reselling them.