Use Pioneer M-25 Power Amp With SA-9800 Integrated Amp

[bcharlesd]

I've diligently searched for a previous post that addressed this question, and I can't find one where the answer to this question is offered.

I have a SA-9800. Currently it's driving a pair of HPM-100s (speaker A) and HPM-1500s (speaker B), It does a fine job. And being able to switch to just the 100s or just the 1500s is nifty.

I'm wondering, however, if the 1500s need a bit more horsepower. If I hooked up a M-25/SPEC-2 power amp to the Pre In/out jacks on the back of the SA-9800, could I drive the 1500s with the M-25/SPEC-2 and the 100s with the SA-9800? And would the volume knob on the SA-9800 control the volume on both sets of speakers?

It seems like most threads indicate I'd only be able to hear the 1500s in this proposed configuration. And in the case of the M-25, it only allows for one set of speakers to be connected.

I'd love to figure this out before I seek out a separate power amp.

Thanks audio geniuses!

 

[whoaru99]

You'd need to use a pair of Y cables to do that.

You could use two Y cables like this style. Use the two male ends in place of the pre out/main in jumper straps (one "Y" per channel) then extend the female end using another cable to the separate power amp inputs.

 

[merlynski]

The Y cable is exactly correct, I did that with my SX-1050 to drive an SX-780 that was my Zone 2 amp. Fed the pre-out Y to the Aux input on the SX-780. Your SA-9800 will be fully functional, and you can leave the SPEC-2 off until you want to drive the speakers on it. You will be able to set the SA-9800 speaker switch to OFF and listen to the SPEC-2, while still having full controls' functions from the SA-9800 preamp section.

 

[bcharlesd]

The Y cable is exactly correct, I did that with my SX-1050 to drive an SX-780 that was my Zone 2 amp. Fed the pre-out Y to the Aux input on the SX-780. Your SA-9800 will be fully functional, and you can leave the SPEC-2 off until you want to drive the speakers on it. You will be able to set the SA-9800 speaker switch to OFF and listen to the SPEC-2, while still having full controls' functions from the SA-9800 preamp section.

Thanks for the clarification.

My remaining question is: Will I have to power on either the SPEC-2 and listen to the HPM-1500s only OR the HPM-100s via the SA-9800 (with the speaker selector set to A)? Or with this setup, can I turn on the SPEC-2 to drive the HPM-1500s AND set the speaker selector to A on the SA-9800 to drive the HPM100s simultaneously?

Is it an either/or proposition, or can I drive both sets simultaneously?

Many thanks gentlemen!

 

[whoaru99]

Any of the ways; one, the other, or both.

 

[KingBubba]

I have three distinct systems in my house and they are all set up as you describe. I have three stacks tha play together in each room. The bedroom has the DCM T400s on top of JBL L36s, the living room has DCM T600s on top of Klipsch Quatrtets, my work room I has DCM CX-17s atop a pair of TimeWindow 1s. Each pair of speakers has its own power source, saving me fears of impedance issues that can happen with doubling up speakers on the A/B systems on most receivers and integrateds. The 9800 is a fine integrated BTW.

 

[merlynski]

The Y cable feeds the output from the SA-9800 Pre-Out jacks back into the Power-in jacks, and also to the Line input of the Spec-2. You must have the SA-9800 power on to get its preamp section working.

 

[bcharlesd]

10,000 thank yous to y'all. I ended up scoring a SX-D7000 to drive the HPM-1500s. The Y-adapter approach worked brilliantly. The SA-9800 drives the HPM-100s, and the volume knob controls all 4 speakers.

Cheers to y'all for the advice!

 

[bcharlesd]