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ProAc sound with SS vs tubes

Folks

I am close to buying a Proac D20R. I listened to them at the dealership yesterday, driven by a low power PrimaLuna tube amp, and was totally gobsmacked by the glorious midrange. When I get them, I will be driving them with something very similar - an EL34 powered 40w/ch tube amp. So I have a feeling they will perform close to how they sounded at the dealership!

The one caveat was that at the demo, when I played a bass-heavy electronic track and pulled the volume up, the bass started to get flabby and the port started "huffing". I don’t know if that is the technical term, but it felt like the speaker was losing grip on the bass and starting to lose control of the lowest frequencies with the synthesized bass jabs losing their timing. The track was Algae & Fungi, Part I - by Biosphere from the album Cirque, in case anyone is interested.

Based on that, my question is: is this something that is inherent to the speaker? I plan to switch my tube amp to a SS of significantly higher wattage soon. I am thinking either Ayre-V5xe, or the Hegel H-20 or one maybe even a Plinius-SA102 or SA-103 if I can find one at a reasonable price.

Can any Proac owners tell me if the bass response will tighten up with more power and a SS amp behind the speakers? Or is this a limitation of the D20R’s design that it’s bass response will not be well controlled with tracks that are bass heavy and highly rhythmic?

Thank you so much!
badri

Showing 1 response by cmach

cmach
193 posts
 
Hi Badri,

I auditioned the D-20R’s with my Manley Snappers. We ran them
in Ultra Linear (100W) and Triode (~30W). I actually preferred them
in Triode mode. The sound was more open and balanced in my opinion.
I ultimately ended up with the D-30R because it was about as big a speaker I could comfortably fit in my room. I run them in Triode mode
and still have dynamics to spare. A few things to note about Proac’s,
is that they do need time to break in. They can sound a bit tight and I recall the bass being a bit loose. At about 50 hours I started to hear noticeable improvements.
They also need space to do there thing. Too close too the wall and bass can be over powering and sloppy. The D-20R put on a good show and I was impressed with what they can do, especially at the price.
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