Will 80 tube watts run MartinLogan SL3?


Have a Sonic Frontiers SFS 80. Wondering if this is enuf to really drive these hybrids, or do they really need something over 100 watts, and solid state? Looking at a demo and don't want the hassle if its just going to be a waste of time.
chazzp1934
U will not get the full sound from ur speakers...try moderately priced high current high powered solid state. Nothing wrong with high powered Tubes, but they cost away too much. My suggest is to look into Adcom 5802, Classe over 200 watts, bryston 4b st, DNA, parsound 3500 etc.....with any electrostatic speakers, never enough high current power. better current better sound. My personal choice would be adcom and the classe to smooth out the rough edges in the highs and mids and make the sound more clear.
No, they won't. To get the SL3s to run properly, you'll need an amp capable of some serious current. It'll have to be stable into a load of about 1.5 ohms to get the sound they're capable of. That means you'll need Krell, Levinson, Aragon, etc. I had trouble getting Classe to drive mine. Never tried Bryston, but they would likely be O.K. I wouldn't recommend Adcom or Parasound. Remember, Wattage doesn't matter, the amp just needs to be stable into a really low impedence. Good luck...
ML says that the SL3's will run fine on either tubes or solid state. One other factor to consider is the size of your listening room. I have SL3's in a fairly small room, and at my normal listening level (usually below 90db), I get plenty of dyamics from my McCormack DNA .5, which has 100 watts/channel.
I have used the SFS 80 on the Re quest, the question is at what levels? 80 watts will do fine to a point. If you put an Adcom amp on that system it will be the biggest mistake you will likely make so far this year. Tubes have always done fine on ML speakers, set the taps to the lowest outputs this may require some re soldering of the out put trans contact "Sonic Fronties. I have had alot of experience driveing ML with SF 80 and the 160 it is a great combination.
Hi. My friend drives his SL3 with an ARVT100MKII.This amp throws a huge sounstage and is very accurate.If you have a very large room or listen at high spls, try the 200 watt version.