How Does It Sound?

Time to start our musical journey with Dave Matthews, “#41.”  This is a rather smooth song as a first offering and then progresses into a rather steady backbeat.  Dave’s vocals are accompanied by guitar, a saxophone player and the others in the band.  This could become muddy if not for this competent amp.  The drums are tight and crisp, the sax is clear, Dave’s guitar can be heard clearly, and the violin is not lost in this mix.  Dave’s song is the perfect pairing for the XPA-2.

Hitting the dance floor with Daft Punk’s “Lose Yourself in Dance” is where we are introduced to Nile Rodger’s guitar and Pharrell’s vocals.  What is interesting here is the exchange of detail of each that could easily be lost in a lesser amp yet is kept with the XPA-2.  Not to mention the panning of Daft Punk throughout the song from side to side that envelops you in the song.

Next, we are introduced to the aggressive yet slow style of picking in the Folk song, “Wild World” from Cat Steven’s guitar style accompanied by piano.  As the song carries on, Cat Seven’s voice evokes emotion and is never devoid of feeling.  The XPA-2 can reproduce the guitar with vigor, control and bringing the nylon strings to life.  As such we hear the upright piano being brought to life.

Time for something a bit different from Tool’s “Chocolate Chip Trip,” a true musical head trip from the drummer Danny Carey.  In this epic drum solo we are dropped into a series of bells followed by a gong and synth.  And the fun begins thanks to the synth, electronic drums, rolling of snare, hi-hats, toms, double bass drums, and the rest of the drum kit as it travels around us in a 360 panorama of sound.  Thanks to the power of the XPA-2 all of this is brought into its true-to-life form.  Each snap of the snare produces a crack, hi-hats ring out, toms make the correct thud, bass drums have the “in your chest” percussive force, synth swirls with might, and the details go on and on.

You will thoroughly enjoy the sweet new retro sounds of Durand Jones & The Indications with their next song, “Don’t You Know.”  The song starts with the classic 1960’s soul of the reverb of the guitar, classic drum kit, and retro harmonies, all of which are captured correctly.  With the XPA-2, we can reproduce the beautifully rich minute qualities of the song with it delivering the right amount of finesse to breathe life into what you hear.

To finish our show, we experience the Super Deluxe Edition of “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” by the Beatles.  We are truly able to be taken to the psychedelic, hippy era with a “mind-altering state” experience.  We start in the song with the disguised drug-filled lyrics, an electric keyboard of the ‘60s, a vintage drum kit and backed with the bass of Paul McCartney.  It sounds as if it was all recorded yesterday, which is due to the remix and a bit to the reproduction but is a testament to how well the XPA-2 can reproduce micro dynamics.

For this review I used the SVS SB-3000, which is a competent 2,000-watt subwoofer crossed-over at 40Hz and level matched.

The Power Section

The XPA-2 is a Hybrid amp that uses a switching rail technology of class A/B and is Class H.  At lower power operation the amp functions as normal A/B and delivering the beautiful BasX sound we know.  The true beauty of this amp lies in the higher power section of this amp.

As you use more power in this amp it seamlessly moves into Class H mode on a different rail of power.  This allows the amp to run cool with heat spreaders as this is a passively cooled amp, allowing the amp to run at an optimal temperature.

Each amp module includes its own transformer to produce a clean signal across the frequency spectrum as opposed to sharing one for the entirety of the amp.  Yet, another attention to detail that Emotiva has captured in the XPA-2.

Each module includes considerable filtering for noise, should it occur.  This leads to a more detailed and faithful listening experience.

Being this is a module-based amp we can easily expand from two channels to a full seven channels.

The Downside

There are some minor qualms or downsides to the XPA-2.

When it comes to the XPA-2 there is only one downside that I can see, and that is ever so slightly elevated floor noise unbalanced mode.

Due to the nature of passive cooling this amp is on the heavier side, though not over incredibly so.

My Recommendation

What complaints I have about this amp are minor.

My complaint about elevated floor noise is easily remedied by operating in balanced mode.

Other than this I could not find fault with this amp, and highly recommend this amp with a price tag of $999.00. 

Audio Specifications (Two High-Powered Single Channel Modules):

Power Output:

300 watts RMS/channel; 20Hz to 20kHz; THD<0.1%; 8 Ohms; one channel driven.

550 watts RMS/channel; 20Hz to 20kHz; THD<0.2%; 4 Ohms; one channel driven.

300 watts RMS/channel; THD<0.1%; 8 Ohms; two channels driven.

490 watts RMS/channel; THD<0.1%; 4 Ohms; two channels driven.

Power Bandwidth (at rated power; 8 Ohm load): 20Hz to 20kHz (+ / – 0.1 dB).

Broad Band Frequency Response: 5Hz to 80kHz +0/-2 dB.

THD + noise: < 0.005%; at 100 watts RMS; 1kHz; 8 Ohms.

Signal to Noise Ratio (8 Ohm load):

> 117 dB; ref FTC rated power; unbalanced input (A-weighted).

> 91 dB; ref 1 watt; unbalanced input (A-weighted).

Minimum Recommended Load Impedance (per channel): 4 Ohms (which equals one 4 Ohm load or two paralleled 8 Ohm loads).

Damping Factor (8 Ohm load): > 500.

Input Sensitivity (for rated power; 8 Ohm load): 1.5 V.

Gain: 29 dB.

Input Impedance: 33 kOhms (balanced).  23.5 kOhms (unbalanced).

Input and Output Connections

Input Connections (High-Powered Single Channel Modules): Unbalanced (RCA); balanced (XLR); one each per channel, independently selectable.

Input Connections (Stereo Modules): 2 Unbalanced (RCA); 2 balanced (XLR); two per channel, independently selectable.

Speaker Output Connections: Audiophile grade, gold plated, 5-way binding posts.

Trigger: Trigger Input: 5 – 12 V (AC or DC); <10 mA input current required.

Trigger Output: 12 VDC; can drive any load up to 120 mA.

Power Requirements

Between 100 VAC and 250 VAC @ 50 / 60 Hz (automatically detected).

Front Panel Controls and Indicators

Standby: push button (halo ring changes color to indicate Standby or On).

Status LEDs: one per channel; blue.  Status LEDs change to red to indicate a fault condition.

Rear Panel Controls

AC Power switch: rocker switch (switches AC main power).

Status LEDs switch: disables front panel Status LEDs and dims Standby button halo.

Input selector switches (one per channel): Metal toggle switches; select between balanced and unbalanced inputs.

Circuit Breaker: press button to reset circuit breaker.

Protection

The XPA Gen3 is protected against excessive operating temperature, shorted speaker connections, ground faults, and other common fault conditions.

Mechanical

Dimensions:

17” wide x 8” high x 19” deep (unboxed; including feet).

17” wide x 7” high x 19” deep (unboxed; without feet).

24 ½” wide x 12” high x 24 ¾” deep (boxed).

Weight:

35.5 lbs (unboxed).

40.5 lbs (boxed).

Gear used in this review:

·         Emotiva PT-100

·         Emotiva A-300

·         Emotiva T1+

·         Pro-Ject S2 DAC

·         SVS-SB-3000

·         Roon ROCK Server

·         Roon Client

Music Used:

Dave Matthews Band “Listener Supported (Live)”

https://open.qobuz.com/album/0078636789828

Daft Punk “Random Access Memories (Hi-Res Version)”

https://open.qobuz.com/album/0886443927087

Cat Stevens “Tea For The Tillerman”

https://open.qobuz.com/album/0060253781231

TOOL “Fear Inoculum”

https://open.qobuz.com/album/e1zvrby3z03ob

Durand Jones & The Indications “American Love Call”

https://open.qobuz.com/album/ras6h4rlph0gb

The Beatles “Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Super Deluxe Edition)”

https://open.qobuz.com/album/n9c12v86iszka