H/K Citation 16 vs. Spec 4 vs. Bose 1801

[Dr.db]

Hey folks,


I´m wondering which poweramp I should use with my JBL 15"-woofs...
They are E-145 in about 7 cubic feet ported with 2440 and 2405 at the top.
Mid and High is running on a small H/K 930 Receiver....

Which poweramp is best sounding ?

Of course the 1801 has the most power, but how do Citation 16 and Spec 4 compare with power ?
Which one has more guts ?
( I choosed the Spec 4 due to its dual-mono design, allthough the Spec 2 would have had more power...)


Thanks a lot and all the best,
Olaf

 

[hunter00]

you've got some of the pieces there that I have lots of experience with namely the HK dual powered amps and receiver.Those were my keeper pieces after 30 plus yrs of this hobby.the jbls are pretty efficient so wouldn't need much to push them but I had AR9 speakers and bi-amped them with HK-16a amps and was very happy for a long time,Also used the HK930 in bedroom systems,dynamic sounding amps for SS for sure

 

[Dr.db]

Thanks a lot for your reply, do you have any comparison to the Pioneer Spec ?

 

[dshoaf]

All 3 of these amps were low-volume sellers through very few dealers, IME. This will make it hard to find someone with direct, long-term experience with all 3. Hunter00 is a good example of a solid report for the Cit 16.

Marketing blather aside, both used similar circuit topologies and top quality components for their day. As you can see from the internals, the Bose amp's power supply was a tour-de-force of sheer brute strength. The Citation, however, does just as good a job sonically. I always liked the meters of the Bose vs the then-new LED displays of the Citation.

Today, both will need a good restoration to actually hear what they would sound like when new.

Cheers,

David

 

[Dr.db]

Hi David,

thanks a lot for your reply!

I know they`re hard to find, otherwhise I would have bought all three of them and sell the worst of them and keep the best one.
But you`d be lucky to find a decent one of them a year...
Thinking in longterms, I´m going to let that amp be fixed and get a decent restauration.
Thats for shure
But before putting money in one of these amps, I´d like to know which one to pic.

The Bose has tons of power, but I doupt I´d ever need that with my very efficient 15"...
I heard smaler Harman Kardon Citation amps and they where great. But they have no protection-relay, very scary :sigh:
I´m just wondering if the spec 4 is as dynamic as the Citation 16...

 

[damacman]

I have zero experience with those particular amps but have run sub systems in my rigs for 25 years now. For vented enclosures, my preference as well, I find the choice in power amps to be far less critical than with other enclosure types. Currently I use an NAD 218THX to power the sub in my ht/ multi-channel setup and a McIntosh MC2300 to power the subs in my (somewhat mental) office setup. Both perform exceptionally.

Integrating the subs seamlessly to the mains is the key. And if you host the occasional get together I can assure you that thermal performance will be something of concern. After all you don't want the amp to shut off just as the fun begins ...

 

[dshoaf]

...The Bose has tons of power, but I doupt I´d ever need that with my very efficient 15"...
I heard smaler Harman Kardon Citation amps and they where great. But they have no protection-relay, very scary :sigh:
I´m just wondering if the spec 4 is as dynamic as the Citation 16...

I have no experience with the Spec 4 gear. The Cit 16 does have a speaker relay but it is rather simple - on a timer circuit that holds the speakers off until the initial turn-on thump passes. There is no instrumentation to measure DC offset or high current to cause the relay to kick out, however. It will open up when you power down to keep the thump from hitting the speakers.

Frankly, for the value, I'd go with a Cit 16 that's been fully restored given the 3 amps listed.

Cheers,

David