@kalali - Actually, it was very surprising. My room is fairly large (14' by 20' in the immediate area, and open to about 40' in the off axis in an open floor plan. Listening position is about 12 feet from the speakers. The room is fairly lively with hard wood floors, though tempered with an area rug in front of the speakers, plus cloth covered furniture and a couple of drapes next to the windows. My listening ranged from both small and large jazz bands, as well as rock and symphonic works. I was very concerned in my evaluation that all my very wide listening tastes were represented.
I truly was surprised at how well the SET amp handled everything. As I said, bass was not quite as tight as with the solid state amp, but I only felt it was lacking in direct comparison. I also played pretty loud (for me, anyway), registering an average of about 85 db at the listening position using an SPL meter.
I don't have a great deal of knowledge about electrical engineering, but after doing some searching with google it MAY be that judging speaker and amp match by looking at wattage might not be the whole story and that current delivery plays a significant role in matching.
Again, though, this is my experience, with my room and equipment, my taste in volume levels, and of course, my ears. I'm just suggesting that the OP shouldn't write off a lower power tube amp, particularly with the Sabrinas, without direct evaluation.
I truly was surprised at how well the SET amp handled everything. As I said, bass was not quite as tight as with the solid state amp, but I only felt it was lacking in direct comparison. I also played pretty loud (for me, anyway), registering an average of about 85 db at the listening position using an SPL meter.
I don't have a great deal of knowledge about electrical engineering, but after doing some searching with google it MAY be that judging speaker and amp match by looking at wattage might not be the whole story and that current delivery plays a significant role in matching.
Again, though, this is my experience, with my room and equipment, my taste in volume levels, and of course, my ears. I'm just suggesting that the OP shouldn't write off a lower power tube amp, particularly with the Sabrinas, without direct evaluation.