b & w 805's with denon3802? (1 Viewer)

[Steve R]

Is this pairing ok? I heard the 805's at a shop that didn't sell denon,they sounded great imo. Does the denon have enough power to to take advantage of their potential? Any opinions or thoughts.

Steve

 

[Mark C.]

You'll get some varying opinions on this one. I'm of the camp that says high quality speakers demand high quality power. When I first started a HT, I hooked up B&W CDM7SEs to a Nakamichi AV-10 receiver. It sounded very good. Later, I purchased a Rotel pre/pro and Rotel 5-channel amp. Awesome!

When I set up a two-channel system with Nautilus 804 speakers, I didn't skimp on the quality of the power driving them. I also purchased a Classe integrated amp.

Bottom line: If it was the CDM line you were powering with a Denon, I'd say it wouldn't hurt. But when you're talking Nautilus, you owe it to yourself to get high quality power.

 

[CraigR]

Steve,

IMO that combination will sound ok but I agree with Marc in that the 805's will sound even better with better electronics. You don't have to get the upgraded electronics now when you purchase the 805's. You can enjoy the speakers now with the 3802 and upgrade later. You could do it in stages like add an amp to the 3802 and maybe later a pre-amp. There are many ways you can go. Have fun.

 

[Rob Rodier]

Does the denon have enough power to to take advantage of their potential?

The Denon will never expose their real potential.


-rob

 

[Steve R]

Mark,Craig and Rob,thanks for your imput. I was thinking about getting a parasound amp as an initial upgrade.What are your thoughts on the parasound?

Steve

 

[Chip E]

Unless you get a 5803

 

[Ned]

3802 with 805's is fine. If you can afford a separate power amp later then that's even better. Don't believe this rubbish that separates are absolutely required. With this mentality they would probably have you buy lesser speakers merely because you aren't going with separates now. That's certainly not doing you any favors in the long run.

 

[Mark C.]

Steve:

Parasound makes quality gear. So do a number of companies. The best thing to do (and the most fun) is try to do home tests with a variety of amps to see which one sounds best with your equipment and in your environment.

Other companies to look at: B&K, Rotel, Aragon and Classe. You can get some good deals in the used market.

Good luck.

 

[rodneyH]

"3802 with 805's is fine. If you can afford a separate power amp later then that's even better. Don't believe this rubbish that separates are absolutely required."

They aren't "required" BUT neither are 805s (as you hinted at), I think the question was a valid one and to truely maximize the potential of the 805s, why not do it right. The Denon is fine for now, but I would look to at least get a 2 channel seperate amp to start with.

 

[Bob Saylor]

Pardon my lack of knowledge here but the 805 is rated to 120 watts. It sounds like everyone is saying to feed even more than that. Why would you feed it more than 120 watts?

 

[rodneyH]

Bob, it isn't just a matter of the quantity of power, it is the quality as well.

 

[Steve_D]

Ditto what Mark C said. Exactly. It's the only way to be sure.

 

[KeithR]

No. That is like a Ferrari with a 4-banger inside...not to mention B&W has some impedance swings that I would test out on my 3802 (i run cheap speaks with it....separate audio system is where i spent the dough)
Parasounds new amps are cheap, and look cool. Still haven't heard one yet.
www.odysseyaudio.com (check AR reviews) is pretty decent, and inexpensive.
Also, Classe and B&W seem to be a decent match.
Have you looked at Dynaudio btw?

 

[Frank joe]

i myself had a chance to purchase the 3802 . but i purchased a pioneer elite 39tx instead and i am very happy with my selection. they only thig i added was a elite seperate amp. for total 7.1 sound . if you are in the price range of the 3802 u can also look at the integra. not everyone has 5k to through down fora reciever. but just my thoughts.

 

[Hyun K]

A couple weekends ago, I home demoed a Classe CA 201 + N805's vs. my 3802 + 602S3's. This is basically $1400 vs. $5000. Hardly a fair contest but I came away from the test being very unimpressed with the classe/805 combination. I was rooting for them since it was proving ground to my wife that an upgrade in amplification and speakers would bring about a substantial difference. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that there were no differences. The Classe + 805 combo basically had better bass control and more detail in the treble and upper midrange. But these difference were subtle. When I paried up my 602's with the classe, the lower end sounded exactly like the 805 + classe... it was more controlled and punchy. My wife did a blind test for me where I listened to music I am very familiar with, and with me blind folded, I had to distinguish between the 805 +classe and the 3802 and 602. I got 4 out of 7 right. Goes to show you that the differences were not too noticible... at least to my ears. By the end of the test, I felt I could confidently distinguish between each of the two set ups.... but bottom line, those differences were not worth the extra $3600. In the end if I had to decide between a speaker upgrade or an amp upgrade, I'd go amp upgrade. The amp made a difference. The 602's with the classe sounded very close to the 805's minus the slight detail in treble and upper midrange. I'm sure if I paired up the 805 to the 3802, it would only be very subtlely better than the 602 + 3802 if anything. In my situation, the 602 + classe was just as satisfiying as the 805 classe. Anyways.... these are just my opinions and not gospel so take it for what it's worth. Ultimately up to you to decide after much auditioning.