Most speakers today are low efficiency box speakers or stats/ planars. Tube amps, other than CAT, don't work on modern box speakers, as tube amps such as Audio Research and pretty much everything else out there, sounds very syrupy, and lacks the micro-dynamics, and has very flabby bass. I know many guys who go with tube amps on their magicos, wilsons, etc., like that, but for many, realism is missing with such compromises.
Enter solid state...Yet one need very high powered SS amps to completely grip them and submit these power-hungry box speakers to squeeze the micro-details of the music out of them. Otherwise, they sound like crap. Once the power is right, one can then pick the tonality - lean SS like Spectral and Soulutuion, Class A SS, or something in between. And even then one may get fatigue and a headache...
So when someone is dabbling with high-efficiency speakers, many of which may be driven with 20 watts or less, what are the rules of thumb in trying to mate the speaker to the amp? Is there anything one can look at to determine if it's a potential match, or is it purely trial and error?
A lower-powered SET may sound better than a higher-powered push pull design. Anyone understand why?
Enter solid state...Yet one need very high powered SS amps to completely grip them and submit these power-hungry box speakers to squeeze the micro-details of the music out of them. Otherwise, they sound like crap. Once the power is right, one can then pick the tonality - lean SS like Spectral and Soulutuion, Class A SS, or something in between. And even then one may get fatigue and a headache...
So when someone is dabbling with high-efficiency speakers, many of which may be driven with 20 watts or less, what are the rules of thumb in trying to mate the speaker to the amp? Is there anything one can look at to determine if it's a potential match, or is it purely trial and error?
A lower-powered SET may sound better than a higher-powered push pull design. Anyone understand why?