NHT power5 amp, Givin it some lovin - Page 20

I have a very dim view of this kind of baloney. This is a stand alone amp that had no such warning about 4 ohm use in the user manual. As such it would normally be expected to work well with 4 ohm speakers.

These amps while sounding great, and being very efficient electrically have had poor longevity. Mine started losing channels after about 3.5 years, and I was using it with 8 ohm speakers.

Basically I'm pretty disappointed with this - amps should last a long time, and not give up after less than 10 years, at least.

It really sucks to have failures this early, but ICE amps are relatively new compared to the class A/B designs.

Also, be glad that NHT is around to suppor these amps. My Maelstrom sub blew, and Exdous Audio went out of business

The problem is that with so many failures you have to question the value of having the amp repaired vs putting the money towards a new amp.

Well, having the option to repair the amp is still better than not. Not saying the amp is perfect in anyways, just saying it could be worse.

Having the option to repair is worse, I went that route under warranty and it came back with the exact same problem so I was out $70 and major inconvienence.

I use my P5's for 4 ohm speakers, no problems so far. Crap, I shouldn't have said that....

I'm a current NHT Power5 owner, and have been very happy (using 8 ohm speakers, thankfully :/ )

I'm in the process of setting up a second 2 channel system in another room and am torn between getting a used Power 2 or an Emotiva XPA-2. Either one would be connected to a Emotiva XDA-1 DAC/preamp, which has balanced circuitry and XLR outputs in addition to RCAs, meaning that if I go with the XPA-2 I'd run it balanced. I'm aware that the XPA-2 is rated for 300w into 8 ohms vs the Power2 which is rated for only 200, but the truth is I doubt that I'll ever be playing my music so loud as to really use the extra power. That said, having some extra headroom can't be a bad thing.

Have any of you guys ever had the chance to listen to both an XPA and an Power amp, and if so, do you mind giving me your impressions?The music I listen to is a mix of blues, jazz, classic rock and the occasional hip hop. I really have appreciated the clarity and neutrality of the Power5 I already have.

The speakers will be Ascend Sierras. I will also be actively crossing over for my sub, so the amp won't have load at the low end.

Thanks!

Well, looks like my luck ran out. I've been a Power5 owner for about 5 years and last week my center channel, Ch. 3, died. Green light on the front panel, no output. I verified it wasn't the cabling, pre-amp, or speaker. Called NHT service and have just shipped it out to be repaired. Don't know how much they will charge to fix it, but I'm already out about $130 just to ship it...I didn't keep the box.

I've been very happy with it, driving reasonably efficient 8ohm Paradigm Studios (5 channel) with no trouble until now.

Any other Power5 owners out there that have had similar issues (other than already posted)? Also, anybody have a recommendation for a newer 5-channel Class D amp? I'll probably run with this one once fixed, but if it dies again, I might be better off switching to a new amp. I'm partial to the Class D designs, as they run cool and don't trip my breaker!

I had mine "repaired" a couple of years ago and they claim to have replaced the dead channel, however after a few days the same dead channel reoccured. I discussed the issue with a competent local repair shop and they said its probably the power supply. This has a switching power supply that is probably a design flaw. Mine had intermittent problems with multiple channels cutting out but all panel lights were lit. Drove me crazy trying to diagnose it. Gave up on it and bought a Parasound Halo and enjoying it far better. Better sounding amp as well.

If you sent it to NHT like I did, insist they replace the power supply though it will likely fail eventually like a lot of ours. According to their ste I think they will repair it for a flat fee of $200 plus two way shipping. I cut my losses.

Thanks for the advice! I'll have a diagnosis hopefully next week...will ask about the power supply as well.

Unfortunately the reliability of the Power5 amps is not the best. I had one for awhile back and had an amp channel die on me. I had the amp serviced by NHT and then sold it not long after that. I sold it while the warranty was still valid and the buyer was made aware of the repairs made. I replaced the Power5 with a Boston Acoustics A7200 amp and I'm quite happy with it. The A7200 has less power but it has more than enough for my system and is far more reliable.

Bill