Cool article about Emotiva CEO Dan Laufman

[ROHfan]

Nice article about a fellow audio lover. Enjoy!

http://www.technologytell.com/homete...f-jade-design/

[Geoff4rfc]

Very nice article indeed! Read one similar in Stereophile.

I think this line sums it up perfectly; "Chinese manufacturing has allowed me to do what I do: make true audiophile gear for the working man. Reviewers may not respect us because we’re not expensive enough, but I’m not trying to change the world here; I’m just trying to do right by my customers.”

[Toolfan66]

That was a good read indeed!!

[pearsall001]

Very nice article. Pretty good insight into the man & the company. There's a reason Emo has been so successful.

[KellyMic]

I've never used any Emotiva equipment but that was a great read. I am about to order an Emotiva XDA-2 though...

[cfrizz]

Outstanding article, it's great to see a business owner who does his best to make money but also offer real value to his customers.

[Tankman]

@cfrizz I agree outstanding article,Dan Laufman work real close with Bob Carver designing some of Bob Carvers amps.Dan Laufman is a cool dude very open and honest.I see in your "signature"You have a Sunfire amp which I find to be one of the best amps out there.wish I could find one for my set up.Cfizz by the way you are one of the Coolest Ole timers in here and I injoy reading you post.You have help lots of us youngsters in here.Thanks!

[mantis]

Very cool , Wish there was some place to go to listen to some of his gear.

[ROHfan]

Very cool, Wish there was some place to go to listen to some of his gear.

Then come over to Long Island and bring some CDs! I just ordered a UPA-200 to power my SDA 2As and it arrives on the 19th. Bring wings, too!

[mantis]

Thats not a bad plan , Long Island isn't that far from me. let me know when you get everything all set up.

[cfrizz]

Thank you Tankman, you have just made my night.

I love my Sunfire gear, it's not the latest or greatest but it more than gets the job done in great style usually all day long on the weekends.

I am gratified to hear that you find my posts informative and helpful. I know that I approach this hobby from a totally different direction than most of the guys on here and there isn't a lot of feedback for me to know if I am on target for at least some or not. So you have made me very happy.

As for getting your hands on Sunfire gear, be patient and stalk Audiogon on a daily basis. I had to wait about a half a year before I scored my Sunfire prepro for considerably less than I was willing to pay!

Enjoy the tunes Tankman!

Cathy

@cfrizz I agree outstanding article,Dan Laufman work real close with Bob Carver designing some of Bob Carvers amps.Dan Laufman is a cool dude very open and honest.I see in your "signature"You have a Sunfire amp which I find to be one of the best amps out there.wish I could find one for my set up.Cfizz by the way you are one of the Coolest Ole timers in here and I injoy reading you post.You have help lots of us youngsters in here.Thanks!

[ROHfan]

Thats not a bad plan , Long Island isn't that far from me. let me know when you get everything all set up.

You've got it! I've always wanted someone who actually knows what they're doing to come listen to my setup. It seems the more I get into this hobby the less I know. And that's coming from someone who does fiber optic engineering and copper wire certification for a living! Go figure.

[Daffypuck]

Very cool read indeed. I recently was bitten by the audio bug again and began my quest for my first power amp. I was considering all sorts of companies but kept seeing the Emotiva name everywhere. So after some poking around and reading I discovered they were right down the road from me. So after some research, I decided to take a chance and purchase the XPA5 for my HT setup. Even though they have free, yes free, shipping, I decided to go to their HQs and pick it up while also checking them out for myself. I wasnt there long while I waited for my amp to be brought out to me before Dan himself came out to greet me and my GF. We mustve stood there and talked for at least 20-25 minutes. The article was spot on, this guy is truly a talker and a passionate audiophile.

[kuntasensei]

I wish I had just bought an XPA-3 despite all the Emo haters. I'm now 3 for 3 on bad used amp purchases - an Adcom GFA-5503 from eBay and Parasound HCA2003 and HCA1206 from two Polkies, none of which work right, even after spending months in the shop. I've spent enough at this point that I could've bought two Emo amps to power my whole 9.1 setup. Been very tempted this week to buy the XPA-3 and throw all three of these amps in the Gulf just to purge my soul.

[Tankman]

Thanks, Miss Cathy!..

Carl

[Mike Reeter]

Then come over to Long Island and bring some CDs! I just ordered a UPA-200 to power my SDA 2As and it arrives on the 19th. Bring wings, too!

Just a word of caution, if you haven't already, you might want to check and see if the Emo. amp. you are getting is a Common Ground design. I don't know which models are, but I know some are not.

[drumminman]

Enjoyed reading that. Wish they had showrooms regionally as I'd like to hear some of their stuff demo'd without having to buy.

[ROHfan]

Just a word of caution, if you haven't already, you might want to check and see if the Emo. amp. you are getting is a Common Ground design. I don't know which models are, but I know some are not.

It is common ground, but thanks for the heads-up anyways.

[Mike Reeter]

It is common ground, but thanks for the heads-up anyways.

That's great, I thought about a new Emo. a few years ago for driving SDA's and it wasn't Common Ground. Glad your model is.

[ROHfan]

Finally got delivery on my UPA-200 Tuesday night. I hooked everything up and was really looking forward to hearing what this thing could do but, unfortunately, channel 2 was DOA. I checked all interconnects and speaker wires, swapped things out, did some point-to-point checks with a meter but it's definitely in the amp. There's amplification to Ch. 2 but it's not seeing any input. Probably an issue at the PCB level. Shame. This is one beautiful piece of equipment. Wife was even impressed!

Anyhoo, called Emotiva and the replacement comes tomorrow. A big disappointment but at least I got a first hand experience of Emotiva's exceptional customer service. What a pleasure to talk to actual people on the phone who want to help their customers.

[amgala]

Thanks for the read! It makes me want an XPA-5 even more!

[kuntasensei]

For the record, my XPA-3 arrives today. We'll see how it fares.

[Jhayman]

It is an Excellent read, he seems really down to earth.
Making their gear affordable, by manufacturing it in China is a no brainer everybody wins.
Lots of Big name Amps are made in China, Emo's are designed in the USA.
Look at Apple it's all made in China and at one of the worst factory's in the world, in regards to treating human beings with dignity.
I Love my XPA-5.
kuntasensei I'm sure you will be impressed and I'm looking forward to your thoughts..

[Devlon]

I think one thing that is really cool about this Laufman dude is how he is open to talking about other companies gear on his own forumsite! He is even open to criticism on his own gear because he said it helps him and his engineers to make better gear. Wow. He even recently bought a BK Butler Tube Amp off a guy on Emotiva's Forum, again this was off his own Emo site and he was very open about it. Double Wow. This man is really open to trying out other companies gear even though he has his own brand. Triple Wow. This is just not common behavior for CEO of a company to do. I think this dude is just truly that in to audio. He's one of us.

[cstmar01]

I think one thing that is really cool about this Laufman dude is how he is open to talking about other companies gear on his own forumsite! He is even open to criticism on his own gear because he said it helps him and his engineers to make better gear. Wow. He even recently bought a BK Butler Tube Amp off a guy on Emotiva's Forum, again this was off his own Emo site and he was very open about it. Double Wow. This man is really open to trying out other companies gear even though he has his own brand. Triple Wow. This is just not common behavior for CEO of a company to do. I think this dude is just truly that in to audio. He's one of us.

False.

[Devlon]

cstmar01, not False. My profile name on the emo forum site is "islandman". What's yours? Also, how many times have you spoken tothis man in person? I have been fortunate enough to have 3 times so far.

[naturallight]

Yes..it's a nice read. The guy is trying to make "affordable" amps for people. Yes there all made in China..which in today's world, what is not. But i also think it comes down to..you get what you pay for... Now i have never heard an Emo amp....I can't say if they sound good or bad.



All i can say is, i have an Onkyo M-504 bought in the early 90's or so. I have moved that amp into a dozen houses over the years. Played a bunch of different speakers on it. If the speakers were bad..the amp goes into protect mode...it never blows up speakers, and protects itself.

It never fails to work, and will power any decent speaker to massive volume if needed.

Granted at this point..it needs some new caps..LOL But it still plays music extremely well even with the old caps in it. Yes i paid more money for it back then then an Emo amp....but it still works fine.

Would i trade this in for an Emo amp..NO.....but that doesn't mean Emo amps are not good.

I only play 2 channel music..Emo offers a lot of amp for the HT group..which i think is fine.



Do i have a problem with Emo amps..NO....I think it just comes down to the point of..you get what you pay for. Nothing more. If you bought them and they work fine for you..great. If you bought one and it blew up your speakers..well then not so great.

[pearsall001]

So what your saying is that if you also listen to 2 channel then you're out of luck...does the amp know???? Maybe they're "Smart Amps"

[naturallight]

NOPE....I said "I" listen to 2 channel only..I don't have an HT set up. So i'm sure any Emo amp will work fine for 2 channel. I did not say they were bad.

[Jhayman]

First off It's still not proven that the Amp was the cause as Emo tested it and apparently it's fine..
Second "ou get what you pay" You really believe that?are you really going to tell me that certain speaker cable is not OUTRAGEOUSLY over priced, marked up by 100's of percent.
That is a very naive way of thinking, so I guess you have never paid more for something than it's worth.
Do you own Polk speakers, knowing that they have a bad resistor in them, yet still sell to customers.
FYI sometimes electronics do break down, just ask Kuntasensei.
I guess you have never had a car issue, house, computer, TT, or anything..

Yes..it's a nice read. The guy is trying to make "affordable" amps for people. Yes there all made in China..which in today's world, what is not. But i also think it comes down to..you get what you pay for... Now i have never heard an Emo amp....I can't say if they sound good or bad.



All i can say is, i have an Onkyo M-504 bought in the early 90's or so. I have moved that amp into a dozen houses over the years. Played a bunch of different speakers on it. If the speakers were bad..the amp goes into protect mode...it never blows up speakers, and protects itself.

It never fails to work, and will power any decent speaker to massive volume if needed.

Granted at this point..it needs some new caps..LOL But it still plays music extremely well even with the old caps in it. Yes i paid more money for it back then then an Emo amp....but it still works fine.

Would i trade this in for an Emo amp..NO.....but that doesn't mean Emo amps are not good.

I only play 2 channel music..Emo offers a lot of amp for the HT group..which i think is fine.



Do i have a problem with Emo amps..NO....I think it just comes down to the point of..you get what you pay for. Nothing more. If you bought them and they work fine for you..great. If you bought one and it blew up your speakers..well then not so great.