RS II Lab Test article w/ full measurements

[Jygesq]

if you think DSM was good

Thank you everyone, I am happy to hear that the docs have indeed been of interest.

I have been listening to these speakers the whole day today, barely getting any work done on the side. And they are simply amazing, best speakers / sound I have ever heard, w/o a doubt. My jaw just dropped playing Dark Side of the Moon, like I had never heard that album before.

I can't even imagine how these would sound w/ proper amplification. My Onkyo pushes clean 140 W per channel at 4 Ohms, and is doing a very good job, not sweating or clipping, the little amp that could, but still...I wish I could have grabbed that Perreaux too

Try mobilefidelity's The Wall , the welsh children chorus " we don't want no education" is simply amazing. Better yet the Helicopter that flies across your RSII 's is breath taking. These are both mentioned in Inifinty lit.When you get a larger separate amp and preamp , you will be more amazed. Do not push you ONKYO too hard or your Emit's may pay the price. Make sure you tweeter fuses are within spec.

 

[Seppo]

Try mobilefidelity's The Wall , the welsh children chorus " we don't want no education" is simply amazing. Better yet the Helicopter that flies across your RSII 's is breath taking. These are both mentioned in Inifinty lit.When you get a larger separate amp and preamp , you will be more amazed. Do not push you ONKYO too hard or your Emit's may pay the price. Make sure you tweeter fuses are within spec.

I demonstrated the system w/ The Wall, Another Brick in the Wall part I etc to my wife today, and it sounded great...until my little Onkyo went to safe mode and turned off. I had the volume at "-5 db", which is certainly at the higher end, but nowhere near max (which I think is "14db" for this amp). And the absolute (perceived) volume was not yet crazy loud, since she was still happy.

Anyways, clearly my Onkyo's output, which is officially rated at clean 140 wpc at 4 Ohms, is not enough or safe for these speakers. Although at moderate volume levels everything is OK, and sounds glorious.

After the incident I checked everything, and luckily there was no damage to the speakers, all drivers and EMITs seem to work OK. Also, the fuses did not go off.

Well, lesson learned, and time to start saving for a higher end amp...and replace those fuses w/ lower amperage ones in the interim...

 

[rnorton]

I've had great results powering mine with a Hafler XL-280, which produces 280 watts at 4 ohms, 360 at 2 ohms, and 325 at 1 ohm (but it WILL heat up).

 

[Seppo]

I've had great results powering mine with a Hafler XL-280, which produces 280 watts at 4 ohms, 360 at 2 ohms, and 325 at 1 ohm (but it WILL heat up).

Thanks. So ATM I am collecting a list of great (new or vintage SS) amps to keep an eye on for my RS-IIs. I think I would like to have something that is rated at least 250 wpc at 4 Ohms, and up from there.

My current short list has:

Perreaux PMF2150B
Hafler XL-280

I would love to hear everyone's suggestions and impressions.

Or, if this topic has been beaten to death here on AK already, if someone could point me to correct threads, that would be great (e.g. unfortunately the "what amp is powering your Infinities" thread, while a lot of fun, is way too long and scattered to be useful).

 

[crwilli]

One other Mfg'er you should add to your list is Threshold. They were and still are, used very successfully with the vintage Infinity speakers.

I have Threshold S\200's driving my RSIIa's with no lack of oomph.

 

[Jygesq]

I have had great results with Acurus a250 & a preamp

Thanks. So ATM I am collecting a list of great (new or vintage SS) amps to keep an eye on for my RS-IIs. I think I would like to have something that is rated at least 250 wpc at 4 Ohms, and up from there.

My current short list has:

Perreaux PMF2150B
Hafler XL-280

I would love to hear everyone's suggestions and impressions.

Or, if this topic has been beaten to death here on AK already, if someone could point me to correct threads, that would be great (e.g. unfortunately the "what amp is powering your Infinities" thread, while a lot of fun, is way too long and scattered to be useful).

. Acurus is rated at 250 w @8 ohms and 350w@4 ohms. If you are buying one on ebay buy one with separate cord, it is later model and one that power switch does not blink. replacement switches used to be available from Mondial designs, for about $30
but buy one that does not exhibit the blink. My preamp has never been higher that 12 o'clock on volume control before the sound is too loud to bear. Normally 10 0'clock is it. The acurus is built like a battle ship and has more than enough power. The power supply is so good you will hear music for 30 seconds after you shut the power off. About 300-400 bucks for good one. $1000 new when I bought mine. But you also need a preamp.

 

[chef free]

The GFA 555 amp puts out 200 watts into 8 ohms with lots of current. They can be had cheap but check for leaky caps!

 

[tomlinmgt]

One other Mfg'er you should add to your list is Threshold. They were and still are, used very successfully with the vintage Infinity speakers.

I have Threshold S\200's driving my RSIIa's with no lack of oomph.

Totally agree. A single 150wpc S/300 (well, 300wpc at 4 and no tellin' what when it sees 2 from the Watkins drivers) had more balls than Emotiva's biggest gun (XPA-2...which put its tail between it's legs and went into protect mode twice) with these.....

http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=537607

 

[Seppo]

Thank you everyone for all the recommendations. I have my homework cut out.

 

[Bkphoto]

B&k...

 

[rnorton]

Thank you everyone for all the recommendations. I have my homework cut out.

And you have a fantastic pair of speakers to listen to while you do it.

I got lucky on CL with my XL-280. The previous own had used it just to drive his subwoofers and blew a bias transistor that caused the right channel to overheat and shut down very quickly. He sold it for $70. One hour and one 2N2222 transistor later and it was as good as new. I'm a long-time Hafler fan, having built a DH-101 and DH-200 from kits back in '77 that have been in daily use without any repair work ever since. I've bought audio cap kits for both but haven't found the time to install them.

 

[Seppo]

And you have a fantastic pair of speakers to listen to while you do it.

I got lucky on CL with my XL-280. The previous own had used it just to drive his subwoofers and blew a bias transistor that caused the right channel to overheat and shut down very quickly. He sold it for $70. One hour and one 2N2222 transistor later and it was as good as new. I'm a long-time Hafler fan, having built a DH-101 and DH-200 from kits back in '77 that have been in daily use without any repair work ever since. I've bought audio cap kits for both but haven't found the time to install them.

I just put a bid on XL-280, wish me luck. They seem to be very reasonably priced in general.

 

[Bkphoto]

I have one, not a fan...

 

[Seppo]

Could you elaborate? Reading the Stereophile review, my take was that it is great value, competing with much more expensive amps.

 

[Bkphoto]

the exlinear adjustment is odd...Its just not as good as the B&K I'm now using...The Hafler sounded hollow, sterile, to me....But thats just me and everyone is different...

 

[Seppo]

Thanks. I am looking forward to hearing this amp, and comparing it to some other suggestions mentioned here... in other words, I am getting more and more in to this hobby, to trying out vintage amps, and selling the laggards...

 

[rnorton]

the exlinear adjustment is odd...Its just not as good as the B&K I'm now using...The Hafler sounded hollow, sterile, to me....But thats just me and everyone is different...

It's neutral. It will show up the non-linearities in your other gear instead of compensating for them. I've always aimed for neutrality all the way through my system. The little tweaker circuit they included doesn't really make an audible difference but is there for people who compare input and output waveforms with a scope turned up to the microvolt range rather than for serious listeners.

 

[Seppo]

Just started a thread in AK SS forum regarding thoughts on Emotiva XPA-2 driving the RS-IIs:
http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?p=8298950#post8298950

 

[chrisb089]

Here one more pic, now in 'home office' / listening position, testing w/ some Dire Straits, Love Over Gold :thmbsp:

That's a sick set up you got going on there man! Love it!

 

[Seppo]

That's a sick set up you got going on there man! Love it!

Thanks! That's my setup working from home, kids at school, speakers in the middle of the room, and me on the couch with the laptop.

These are simply fantastic speakers...I was listening to Boston "Third Stage" today, and having goose bumps listening to "The Launch". I even got so excited that I had to write about the experience here on AK earlier today:
http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?p=8298659#post8298659

...now I just need to find proper amplification to really get every last inch out of these babies