Thats why all my stuff is from the same manufacturer
Yawn.
Tubed or solid state. A great tubed pre- is going to be expensive, but you can pair it with a relatively inexpensive ss power amp and get amazing results.
+10
Matching amps and speakers with sensitivity, power ratings, current drivability, etc., guarantees nothing.
As a SoundLab A1 owner for 15 years now, and now with the latest back plates, I have been through many trials with amps to ultimately find magic with these speakers. The CAT amps have been the end of the road for me here, but these are crazy expensive. And I was looking for cooler amps to run during the summer months. Fortunately, I discovered a few surprises with other much more affordable amps.
Yes, these speakers mate well with some tube amps out there, but the 70wpc VAC 70/70 never had a chance here, and this was a huge disappointment. It makes me wonder if the highly praised 140 monos would have any chance to bring these speakers alive. But the Atma Sphere MA 1 and old Wolcott monos make these speakers sing. No doubt the VTL and Manley amps do as well. But all of these tube amps get into high price ranges. The older Counterpoint SA series are a wonderful match here, and quite affordable. But the discovery of the century for me was Symphonic Line amps.
Several years ago I found the bottom amp model in the SL Line, the RG-11, at an insanely low price that I felt I had nothing to lose. Unfortunately it sat in my HT setup for a couple years until I had the curiosity to try it on the A1's. I had mediocre sound quality with current Odyssey and Belles models, and older Threshold amps, on the A1s. These amps were able to drive the speakers but the sound was, well, boring. I threw the RG-11 into the system. I had little experience here but the result was overwhelmingly positive. It all made sense immediately from what I remembered an A'gon member had told me years ago: go try the SL product line. Well, better late than never. The RG-11 did not take the A1's to the same SPL as the other amps, but what this amp could deliver to the A1's, was truly beautiful. The purchase of this amp is hands down the greatest deal I ever made in all my audio purchases in just under 40 years.
I wanted more of the RG-11 magic so I jumped at a rebuilt RG-1 and that is even more refined with greater clarity and detail than the RG-11. And the greater SPLs with the RG-1 bring the speakers another step in the direction with the CAT amps. Oh to hear the bigger SL Kraft amps.
So why do I share the above details? Because I know that with some hard work and patience, I can find some pretty darn good amps, and even more impressive amps, at not such budget breaking prices to mate with any speaker. But this is not at all the case with line stages. From my experiences with trying a ton of preamps and line stages over the years, the quickest way to destroy the 3D capabilities of my system was to throw in just about every line stage out there. One after another has been quickly rejected because of this. Only a few had any chance of survival and then it could be a tough choice as to which way to go.
As insane as it sounds, if I had to choose between keeping the CAT amps and being forced to hand over my preamp/line stage and run with any one of 90% of the highly praised line stages out there, OR, keep my preamp and run with the RG-11 amp, the latter choice would be an easy choice. Again, contrary to all the preamp models praised out there, only a handful truly cut the mustard.
So @emergingsoul, go find a not-so expensive amp that can comfortably run your speakers to the SPL that you like, with decent sound quality. And then put all of your focus on your preamp quest. Try everyone you can get your hands on. But first find one with a tube rectified power supply. This will be your reference. I guarantee that you will reject preamp model after model after hearing this. Once you find a model that knocks your socks off, and is within your budget, you can return to refining the amp......or.....the speakers. Oh, and one more thing here: the interconnect from preamp to amp is uber critical! Do not skimp of some cheapo pair of ICs here, or you will never hear what I am writing about. If you would like some ideas here, you can send me a message.
John
