Leak stereo 130 for Q acoustics 3020i

[Deepaksharma86]

Hi,

Just curious if anyone can share inputs on this? Have the q acoustics 3020i as speakers and using Mac for tidal (currently connected via HDMI to my existing avr 3072).

Given its usb dac and the amp upgrade, thinking the Leak might be a substantial sound quality upgrade vs my current setup? Or maybe I should consider an alternative?

Also, this will be for a living room size of 30ft by 20ft rectangular and so also considering whether the Leak and the q acoustics 3020i combo will have sufficient power.

Thanks so much.

 

[Ramanuj]

You have a huge room! The 3020 will sound tiny no matter how much you take support of the front wall placing your speakers. Your room needs big speakers that can move lots of air otherwise anything less and it will sound anaemic. You will need atleast a Qacoustics 3050i to reach somewhere.

 

[Nitin K]

+1 to what Ramanuj has mentioned. A subwoofer may also be helpful in this situation.

 

[argho]

A bit mismatched - Rs 25k speakers with Rs 85k amp ?

The 3020i speakers are lovely, but an entry level Marantz amp should be enough to drive them well.
eg. the Maranzt PM6007 also has a DAC.

Just a thought.
Am sure the combo will sound fine.

 

[chander]

@Deepaksharma86 I have a slightly larger room , where I am using my QA Concept 20s in an AVR setup. They get very very loud in that room and sound beautiful too.

as @Ramanuj said - they might sound thin, for the room size.

as @Nitin K said, you will need a sub.

as @argho said - unless you are buying this amp from a future upgrade perspective, sure, might be too much for your current speakers and there are cheaper alternative, IF you are planning to keep the speakers.

It is supposed to be a good amp though as per the reviews, I have been reading about it too.

 

[Deepaksharma86]

You have a huge room! The 3020 will sound tiny no matter how much you take support of the front wall placing your speakers. Your room needs big speakers that can move lots of air otherwise anything less and it will sound anaemic. You will need atleast a Qacoustics 3050i to reach somewhere.

Agreed. So I’m thinking of upgrading the amp first and then probably get bigger speakers down the line. So just evaluating how good the Leak 130 is, for current as well as future speaker upgrade perspective.

 

[Deepaksharma86]

+1 to what Ramanuj has mentioned. A subwoofer may also be helpful in this situation.

I actually do have a subwoofer but not sure if it’ll connect with the Leak 130.

 

[Deepaksharma86]

@Deepaksharma86 I have a slightly larger room , where I am using my QA Concept 20s in an AVR setup. They get very very loud in that room and sound beautiful too.

as @Ramanuj said - they might sound thin, for the room size.

as @Nitin K said, you will need a sub.

as @argho said - unless you are buying this amp from a future upgrade perspective, sure, might be too much for your current speakers and there are cheaper alternative, IF you are planning to keep the speakers.

It is supposed to be a good amp though as per the reviews, I have been reading about it too.

As you said, I am thinking of this amp from a long term perspective and so just trying to figure it’s performance, independent of my current speakers. Why I mentioned the speakers is because I also just wanted to check if there was any red flag between the leak and the 3020is in terms of compatibility or power mismatch.

 

[fLUX]

Agreed. So I’m thinking of upgrading the amp first and then probably get bigger speakers down the line. So just evaluating how good the Leak 130 is, for current as well as future speaker upgrade perspective.

Would suggest to shortlist/purchase the speakers first and then upgrade your amp to whatever works best for your shortlisted/purchased speaker. Not all speakers sound good with all amps , so you will be restricted on your choice of speakers.

I actually do have a subwoofer but not sure if it’ll connect with the Leak 130.

You can use the pre-outs on the amp to connect a subwoofer or else if your sub has the provision to take high level speaker inputs that is a second option.

 

[Nitin K]

I actually do have a subwoofer but not sure if it’ll connect with the Leak 130.

Ok, there should be a way in that case. Hope other FM's can help you with that if you can share a pic of the connections behind the Leak amp.

 

[chander]

+1 to @MaSh - you should perhaps look at speakers first, but either way, you can always achieve something great . So not a strict order there. A lot of us here have got speakers for our existing Amps and have been very happy with the setups.

The leak 130 has a pre-out BTW, so you can easily connect most subs out there.

 

[Ramanuj]

Agreed. So I’m thinking of upgrading the amp first and then probably get bigger speakers down the line. So just evaluating how good the Leak 130 is, for current as well as future speaker upgrade perspective.

I would again say that amplifier is not for you or your room. It's a meagre 40watt amplifier that will limit your choice of speakers. If you want efficient speakers like Klipsch and you are ok with soaring high frequencies then that amplifier might suffice otherwise to get reasonably good or big speakers to sing you will need atleast a 100/150 watt Amplifier with some decent continuos current output. To put things in to perspective look at pairings like Dali Opticon 6 or Zensor 7 Oberon with a Denon PMA 1600NE etc etc or a used Rega ElicitR with some laid-back speakers....

 

[Deepaksharma86]

I would again say that amplifier is not for you or your room. It's a meagre 40watt amplifier that will limit your choice of speakers. If you want efficient speakers like Klipsch and you are ok with soaring high frequencies then that amplifier might suffice otherwise to get reasonably good or big speakers to sing you will need atleast a 100/150 watt Amplifier with some decent continuos current output. To put things in to perspective look at pairings like Dali Opticon 6 or Zensor 7 Oberon with a Denon PMA 1600NE etc etc or a used Rega ElicitR with some laid-back speakers....

Thanks for your inputs. The power point is definitely worth considering.

Also, the options you mentioned are way above my budget. Need to figure something below 65k

 

[Ramanuj]

Wise would be to wait and pick up something worthwhile , pre owned in great condition & directly from the owner.

 

[jai1611]

Thanks for your inputs. The power point is definitely worth considering.

Also, the options you mentioned are way above my budget. Need to figure something below 65k

Below 65k, check out the Yamaha Rn803. I quite enjoyed it while I had one. Not recommended for four ohm speakers though.

 

[Deepaksharma86]

Would just like to give an update. I went ahead with the Leak Stereo 130 for my existing Q Acoustics 3020i and playing this setup in my 30ft by 20ft room. Without a sub.

Just one word. Fantastic! All doubts about the amp being underpowered go out of the window! The sound is full, even though I’m at playing mostly at 11 o clock. The amp has transformed my speakers and belting out substantial bass as well. Faced none of the potential issues listed above.

True testament to good quality components and how good quality watts make the biggest difference vs just blatantly focussing on a higher watts number.

 

[Murty P N]

Hi,

Just curious if anyone can share inputs on this? Have the q acoustics 3020i as speakers and using Mac for tidal (currently connected via HDMI to my existing avr 3072).

Given its usb dac and the amp upgrade, thinking the Leak might be a substantial sound quality upgrade vs my current setup? Or maybe I should consider an alternative?

Also, this will be for a living room size of 30ft by 20ft rectangular and so also considering whether the Leak and the q acoustics 3020i combo will have sufficient power.

Thanks so much.

Arcam and Q acoustics are good matching if you are interested in music

 

[premoddev]

Would just like to give an update. I went ahead with the Leak Stereo 130 for my existing Q Acoustics 3020i and playing this setup in my 30ft by 20ft room. Without a sub.

Just one word. Fantastic! All doubts about the amp being underpowered go out of the window! The sound is full, even though I’m at playing mostly at 11 o clock. The amp has transformed my speakers and belting out substantial bass as well. Faced none of the potential issues listed above.

True testament to good quality components and how good quality watts make the biggest difference vs just blatantly focussing on a higher watts number.

Congrats on your new purchase.. I too own same pair of speaker but driving with an older yamaha ax496 amplifier.