ML Vantage and Peachtree Nova - OK for a small apartment?

[topofroc]

My very loving and understanding wife has recently asked me to try and downsized our current home theater to a more manageable 2 channel system. We live in a small 900 square foot apartment, and our current system consists of a pair of Vantages, powered by Emotiva UPA-1 monoblock amps, fed by a Pioneer Elite VSX-92 receiver.

My question is, can a Peachtree Nova integrated amp, with its 80 wpc, successfully drive a pair of Vantages (in my small place)? Anyone have experience with this?

Other suggestions would also be appreciated.

Along with enough wattage, the amp needs to also fit in a media tower (max depth of 15.5 inches)...

 

[twich54]

My question is, can a Peachtree Nova integrated amp, with its 80 wpc, successfully drive a pair of Vantages (in my small place)? Anyone have experience with this?..

short answer.....yes, given the Vantages powered bass drivers you should be fine, especially given your small listening space

 

[autoformer]

I heard the new iNova recently at a dealer event here in Seattle with the new Golden Ear towers. Sandy Gross of Golden Ear, Jim Spainhour of Peachtree were there and John Atkinson played some of his own choral recordings. Sounded great. That room seemed to generate a lot of buzz that night.

Also consider the new Bel Canto C5i integrated. 125 watts/channel into 4 ohms. Includes a DAC with 24/192 input on USB and also has a line level analog input and phono stage. The price is $1895. I haven't heard it myself, but Bel Canto has a good reputation. Designed & made in USA too, as compared to the iNova, which is designed in the USA, but manufactured in China.

http://www.belcantodesign.com/Belcanto_C5i_DAC_Integrated_Amplifier.html

My very loving and understanding wife has recently asked me to try and downsized our current home theater to a more manageable 2 channel system. We live in a small 900 square foot apartment, and our current system consists of a pair of Vantages, powered by Emotiva UPA-1 monoblock amps, fed by a Pioneer Elite VSX-92 receiver.

My question is, can a Peachtree Nova integrated amp, with its 80 wpc, successfully drive a pair of Vantages (in my small place)? Anyone have experience with this?

Other suggestions would also be appreciated.

Along with enough wattage, the amp needs to also fit in a media tower (max depth of 15.5 inches)...

 

[topofroc]

Great feedback

Thanks for the replies! Keep them coming...

I hadn't heard about the BelCanto. Any idea what chip is in the DAC?
I'll check my local shops to see if I can listen to it. I know my wife will love the small size, but may balk at the price tag.

Any other suggestions?

 

[autoformer]

No idea what chip is in there, but previous Bel Canto DACs have been favorably compared to the Benchmark DAC1 and many others. Price is about the same as the iNova. For units of this caliber with this much functionality, $1900 is a bargain, though I understand it's still alot of money in absolute terms.

Thanks for the replies! Keep them coming...

I hadn't heard about the BelCanto. Any idea what chip is in the DAC?
I'll check my local shops to see if I can listen to it. I know my wife will love the small size, but may balk at the price tag.

Any other suggestions?

 

[jmschnur]

Key will be ability to drive a 1 ohm load or less.

Check the specs or call the mfg support team.

 

[topofroc]

Good call...

Following jmschnur's lead, I decided to drop Peachtree Audio an email to make sure the Nova was up to job of driving my Vantages...

I got a quick response from Dave Richardson. He said that the Nova would NOT be a good match for the Vantage. While the unit would be stable at 4 ohms, the periodic dips below 4 ohms would push the amp beyond acceptable levels.

I appreciate the spin-free honesty. I'll keep Peachtree on the short list for future upgrades.

In the meantime, I've decided to use this opportunity to scratch my Tube itch. I just ordered a Jolida 502BRC integrated amp (60 wpc). A big part of my interest in the Nova was its tube pre-amp anyway. With the Jolida, I'm now going whole hog...

Thanks to everyone for the help!

 

[autoformer]

The Peachtree people are pretty candid and honest. David Solomon frequents some forums and will answer questions. I've even seen him leave his mobile number in posts!

Zu Audio is another company where you can sometimes talk to the company founder via phone or email and get honest answers. That is always really nice while it lasts.

 

[Hocky]

I spent some time talking to Sean Casey of Zu at the show in Vegas - super nice guy and would entertain at length any topic we wanted to talk about. He even offered to send me some cad files of his speaker designs for DIY stuff. lol

/off topic

 

[Audionirvana]

I heard the new iNova recently at a dealer event here in Seattle with the new Golden Ear towers. Sandy Gross of Golden Ear, Jim Spainhour of Peachtree were there and John Atkinson played some of his own choral recordings. Sounded great. That room seemed to generate a lot of buzz that night.

Also consider the new Bel Canto C5i integrated. 125 watts/channel into 4 ohms. Includes a DAC with 24/192 input on USB and also has a line level analog input and phono stage. The price is $1895. I haven't heard it myself, but Bel Canto has a good reputation. Designed & made in USA too, as compared to the iNova, which is designed in the USA, but manufactured in China.

http://www.belcantodesign.com/Belcanto_C5i_DAC_Integrated_Amplifier.html

I agree the Bel Canto C5i is a excellent choice, the Peach Tree is nice as I have owned one that drove a pair of Dynaudio C2 with no problem. I also would look at Musical Fidelity M6i or M3i they mate well with Martin Logan as I am using a M6i right now with a pair of the Electromotions.