Attention Piega P10 Owners/Listeners


Hello,
I am strongly considering picking up a used pair of Piega P10 speakers. I do have some questions, however, for those who either own these speakers, or have listened to them extensively.

1. The room that they will be in (for the time being) is 13 x 14.5 ft. Nearfield listening is an option. Is this room way too small for the Piega P10s to sound good?

2. Currently my amplifier is an Anthem AMP1, which is an EL34 amp, with 40WPC. Is this amp a good match for the Piega P10s, or would it be wise to go with a higher powered SS? Maybe it would be ok in the smaller room? Many people say whether or not an amplifier "supplies a lot of current" or not is something important to know. How do I find out how much current my amp supplies?

3. Are there any Piega owners in New England (I'm in Worcester, MA) that would like to have a listening session? I'd love to hear the Piega sound before I make a decision. I've been told they combine the best of maggies + dynamic speakers, and if this is the case, I'm game!

4. What do you think of the looks of the Piega speakers? I know the sound is more important (of course). Some speakers I think are ugly (Wilson, Dunlavy, Maggies, Martin Logan), some attractive (Dynaudio, B&W Nautilus, Revel, Avalon, Sonus Faber) and some just plain. From pictures, the Piegas look plain to me. Are they more attractive in person?

Here is my associated equipment:
Bottlehead Straight 8 (GR Research Paradox 1 in another room)
Anthem AMP1
Bottlehead Foreplay (soon to be replaced by Supratek Syrah)
Rega P-25 with Dynavector 10x4 cart
Phonomena phono (Syrah soon)
Ah Tjoeb 99
Kimber 8TC speaker cables
Harmonic Tech Truthlink ICs

Thanks a lot in advance for your thoughts!

-Todd
goatwuss
Dear Todd

I do not have p10s but have had p8ltd and will offer what help I can. Calloway and a number of other audiogoners have had the p10s and you might try to contact him.

With regards to room size that is not a huge room but I expect it would be fine, I used p8ltd in a larger room and had no problems filling it with sound. These speakers might be an even better match but come up less often for sale. There is a chance the p10s may overpower the room but I suspect not. Depending on how live your room is, you might wish to cover the rear tweeter ribbon on the p10.

With regards to the tubes option, Calloway has run them on tenors and had no problems and 40 watts of tube power should be fine. They have been well run with aloia amps which have only 30 watts out (though this probably underestimates the power of this amp). I ran mine with solid state as do a number of friends and they are certainly not averse to this, but I have a tubed preamp. Seeing that you will be going with a syrah you might consider ss.

Can't help you about new england but if you are travelling I might have some suggestions. You are always welcome up in Canada but its a long drive.

With regards to looks, they are stunning in my and my wifes opinion especially in the black piano. In fact that was her sole criterion for letting them in the house. They are like lacquered jewel boxes, understated but very elegant. You can see some pictures of the p8ltd and my new c8ltd on this site. Depending on your decor, and finances the c8ltd are every bit as beautiful if not more, disappear more visually and sound even better. The piegas won hands done in the looks department over avant gardes (my wife threatened divorce).

I must qualify everything by saying that when I bought these speakers I had no affiliation with any company but am now very happy to be representing piega in Canada (my daytime job remains being a surgeon - its a long story). I hope this is of some help, if you have any questions drop me a note. Good luck

Gary
I think your room size should be all right for the P-10's. They are an excellent sounding speaker but couldn't fill my 26X32 room. The looks are plain jane and fit into any decor without overwhelming it and have a nice tight footprint. I have had SS and tube amps and found a good 125 watts or higher especially in triode for them to sound there best and really sing. I found the best arrangement is having the speakers about 10 feet apart and sitting 10 feet away with them toed in to be the best. Cables are pretty important because of the fast,detailed high resolution sound of the ribbons. I have used nordost and currently using HMS which may be to bright for some. Top of the line transparent cables are also a good match and tend to cool the sound. You can't beat the used price.
I bought a demo pair here on Audiogon in high gloss black. They look beautiful and sound terrific at high and low volume levels. You will not be disappointed as they really blew away other speakers I've owned, including Revel Salons and ML Prodigys. With a used pair at ~ $5M, you can't go wrong with the right setup.

Good luck.