2. speakers
  3. 147249-21

Easy to drive, outstandingly natural sound from 40-50 Hz up.....AN-E, O/96, others?

If my goal were to find natural-sounding, dynamic, and efficient speakers that can be driven with a somewhat lower-powered a (i.e., 50-watt SS) amplifier, and that work well with a variety of music, would I be looking at AN-Es, O/96s, or which others?
I am not particularly interested in using a 10-20 watt SET, but being able to use something lower-powered than the 300-watt amplifiers required for my 85dB speakers would open up a lot of other amplifier options and simplify things for me.  I have two fairly high-quality powered subs so the goal would be to fill my (moderately large) room from 40-50 Hz and up and let the subs handle the lower registers.
Any thoughts on the two speakers listed, or recommendations for others?
mitch2

Showing 3 responses by charles1dad

charles1dad's avatar
charles1dad
10,227 posts
 
Exlibris,
I’m familiar with Thomas Mayer amplifiers/preamplifiers and they occupy a very elevated performance tier and are universally acclaimed for their magnificent built and sound quality. I commend you for your taste. I’ve no doubt that your amp pairing with the Nenuphar will be simply splendid. If you have the time I’d love to know your listening impressions. I looked at your system page and you have a wonderful system.  The Thomas Mayer amplifiers are gorgeous 😊.
Charles
charles1dad's avatar
charles1dad
10,227 posts
 
Exlibris,
 The owner of the Nenuphar  I referred to uses a 2A3 SET  amplifier and confirms it works exceedingly well with this speaker. If the chosen low powered amplifier is of sufficient quality the Nenuphar  will exploit it attributes and provide a beautiful listening experience.  I hope your upcoming audition goes well. 
 Charles 
charles1dad's avatar
charles1dad
10,227 posts
 
Exlibris,
I would give the Cube Audio Nenuphar serious attention. I know an owner of them who’s opinion I have considerable regard for. He says this is a superb and very natural sounding speaker. Open sounding to the point that they seem to completely disappear in the listening room. Also an exceptionally easy impedance  load. Perhaps one the very finest single driver speakers currently available.
Charles
More to discover