100w tube vs ss for Mag 3.6s


Newcomer to high end question.

I have a pair of new Maggie 3.6s -- my dealer wants me to match them with Cary Audio products that will drive them with about 100 watts of tube power. Would I be better off to use a 200 watt solid state amp like the ARC 100.2? My listening room is large (24' x 33' w 13' ceiling).
mmschimmenti

Showing 1 response by thorty40

We heard a David Berning ZH270 with 3.6's a couple weeks ago in Chicago at Audio Consultants. We had taken the 270 in to hear with the 1.6QR's but we thought we'd throw it on the 3.6's just for kicks. It was awesome to say the least, the 1.6's were knocked silly with dynamics and the most bass (I had actually owned a pair for a short period about 1.5 years ago) from any solid state or tube amp I've heard mated with them. A single ZH270 (70Wx2 @8ohms, 84W at the onset of clipping) sounds much more powerful than the SimAudio 4150 (150W x2) that we used originally with the 1.6QR's.
The match concerning the 3.6's and the Berning was just incredible as well, it allowed all the virtues of the 3.6's to reveal themselves in spades. You would have thought the Magnepans had been injected with pure life energy, they sounded amazing, the soundfield was deeper and wider than I thought possible with the Maggies. I understood then why the designer of this amplifier is so fond of these speakers, the match is amazing.