2. speakers
  3. 1297115584

Experience w/ 40-75 watt amps on Dunlavy IVs

I love my Dunlavy SC-IV improved speakers. no really, I do. They have been in residence longer than JM Labs Mezzo Utopias, Dynaudio Contour IVs, Thiel CS 5is, Apogee Mini Grands and Wilson Watt Puppy Vs.
The current amp is an Ayre V3 with all available updates. Preamp is an Ayre K1xe and sources are a VPI Aries with a Dynavector karat Mk II and an Ayre C5Xe. I really like the sound of the rig but have the itch to try something new in the way of an amp. I will keep the Ayre V3 but am looking a a lot of alternatives.

BAT VK-60
Music Reference RM 200 II HC ( 40 watts )
Pass Aleph 5 stereo
Stereo Knight M-75 monos
McIntosh MC 275 MK V
Pass Aleph 0s

All are in the 40-75 watt range. With the exception of the MC 275 and Music Reference all are in the sub 2k range used.
Having been down the Krell MDA 300 mono and VTL MB 450 route with other speakers, I am wondering if anyone has experience with moderate power into the SC-IVs. Most listening is done in the 85 db range BUT the occasional head banging evening will strike. I supplement the lowest octave and a half with 2 sealed 12" subs driven by good old ice power.

Any practical experience out there with 4- 75 watts of gas into the SC-IVs?
128x128meadowman

Showing 1 response by pryso

pryso
1,909 posts
 
One year at the CES, John Dunlavy used a SET Bel Canto amp (sorry, I'm not familiar enough with them to identify model) to drive DAL SC-IIIs.

Stanwal, if your friend is the same as mine it is not a similar system. My friend has Duntech Princesses which, in spite of their efficiency rating do require significant power to perform their best. His JC-1s puts out 800 wpc into 4 ohms which is the rating for those speakers. I also owned a pair of Princesses for 19 years and can vouch for the match with the JC-1 amps.

On the other hand, from all I've read, the respective DAL models (different drivers and crossover from Dunlavy's Duntech models) are more compatible with lower powered amps so a quality 40-75 watt tube amp could be a nice match.
More to discover