TJ,

That's the great thing about audio gear, there are plenty of options out there and something to suit everyone's listening preferences. To my ear, the Hegel was better than the Rogue gear but I believe I like a neutral and natural sound. While I did not do a side by side comparison of the Emotiva gear with Hegel or Rogue, I believe my XSP-1 and dual XPA-1Ls sound very good. I certainly wouldn't put them a mile apart, except for the price... I have no doubts that the Hegel, in my home, would best my setup but I think it would be an interesting blind test and the results may be closer than you would expect.

Of course, when you get into comparing the Rogue versus Hegel, it's a bit like comparing Audi to BMW. It mostly comes down to user preferences (sound, budget, other gear, planned use, environment, etc.). That's why I typically like to recommend that people go and audition their options first hand. What works for you or me may not work for somebody else. It would be nice to be in your shoes and have the benefit of having all that gear to experiment with on a regular basis. This certainly gives you the benefit of hands(ears) on experience. Feel free to stop in any time with a Rogue and Hegel for a head to head shoot out. I'd love to be proven wrong, even if it would cost me...

Cheers,

T Cobe

Yeah, BUT, T. Cobe, you are being kind and accommodating and diplomatic, but really you don't need to be willing to be proven wrong.
You should be VERY happy with what you have already!!!!
Does somebody in the world have something better than you??? SURE!!!!!!
The guys with mega bucks have equipment that cost more than our homes do, and probably never turn it on or really appreciate it.
I turn my system on every day and listen with it, and ENJOY it!!!!! I am ThankFUL for it and do not give a second thought to someone having a better amp or bigger TV, or whatever.
EVEN when I read this forum, I get tempted sometimes, OFTEN, to wish I had the Triton Ones, and a SC XXL and XXL sub, the right cables, etc.
But that just gets in the way of trying to help people get what they need and get their systems sorted out.
Enjoy what you have, smell the roses.
God Bless,
Wayne

T Cobe wrote: TJ,

That's the great thing about audio gear, there are plenty of options out there and something to suit everyone's listening preferences.

Spot on. My options are fewer though due to my 2X performance/$$$ requirement. I think I'm doing ok but even that is subjective. Getting great gear gets easy if you want to spend a bunch of money.

To all you Emotiva Fan Boys...Gen 3 will be making an appearance at the 2016 CES early next year.www.avsforum.com/emotiva-updates-xpa-amp...ers-to-generation-3/

Anthem,

I have seen the articles as well. At this point, I'm not quite sure what to make of it all. The XPA line is going to see a significant increase in cost and they are using the same power supply in all the amps... It's too early to be sure, but it sounds like some compromises are being made to allow for bigger profit margins for retailers. I'll reserve judgement until the initial reviews are in. I will still need 4 more channels of amplification when I implement Atmos/DTS-X. The flexibility of the new XPAs will allow for more configurations and finally allow for a 4-channel amp. The new class D gear is interesting as well and should offer even better bang for your buck.

I may be guilty of being an Emotiva fanboy. The XSP-1, XPA-1Ls, and ERC-3 are incredibly good for the money. With just $2,500 invested in electronics, my T1s sound amazing! I can't imagine a better sounding and more capable set up for $2,500. This doesn't mean that I'll follow them blindly through their transformation away from an internet direct brand. I'm hoping to be able to keep my gear for a while before upgrading, but I admit I am still itching to add tubes somewhere in the signal path. In any case, I'm looking forward to the reports from CES 2016.

Cheers,

T Cobe

I think this great discussion deserves a resurrection. A lot can change in 1 year.

Does anyone have a new XPA-1 Gen 3? It is class A/AB, sort of like the XPA-1L but with more headroom in class A, I think 60 watts. I wonder if it would be better than a used Parasound A21.

Tube amps are really interesting to me. But I couldn't find any that have XLR inputs. I also use my system for both home theater and (mostly) music, so not sure how practical it would be.

I currently have an XPA-3 and XSP-1 preamp. Oh, and Triton twos .