That thought did occur to me but I would purse that after I have played with the B-1S a little bit. My speakers are in what was our formal dining room. It is probably 15 feet wide. The speakers look like a wall that hides the electronics which makes the wife happy. I have a couple of real traps on stands in the corners (no other traps because of waf but I might be able to put one behind the B1s) The speakers fire into my living room that is adjacent to dining room. The most I can move the speakers from the back wall is about 5-6'. The ceiling in the dining room is 12 ft high. The living room is much wider probably 20-30 ft wide and extends at least another 30 feet from the dining room (although where I would sit is about 16- 20 feet from the speakers). The ceiling in the living room opens up into a loft area that is probably 15-20 feet high in places (high pitched roof).
Soundlab Speakers - Budget Amp Suggestions
I have tried to read as much as possible about different types of amplifiers capable of driving electrostatic speakers. Thanks to everyone for the great articles and discussions. In particular, I am looking for a ss amplifier that can drive Soundlab speakers. The Soundlabs have a low impedance at high frequencies and a high impedance at low frequencies. A high power ss amp that can drive difficult loads appears to be the ticket (I'm not interested in tube amps). High current is needed for the high frequency/low impedance (but not necessarily high power) while the high voltage (albeit at lower power) can drive the high impedance at low frequencies.
While looking for speakers I came across the Soundlab speakers and really liked the sound. I basically blew my budget on them, which for me is not a bad compromise because I don't want the speakers to be the weak link in the chain.
So this is what I have:
1. Two Soundlab A-1 speakers (1992 vintage)
2. One Soundlab B-1S subwoofer (pre 1990) - This is a stereo subwoofer having two separate inputs to drive each interior panel.
3. The A-1s have the toroidal and impedance upgrade.
4. I had all the speakers reskinned with the px mylar.
There will be some type of crossover between the A-1s and the B-1S (the frequency and type of crossover is undetermined at the moment)
I believe that having the B-1S reduces some of the constraint of having the highest power amplifier to drive the A-1s (e.g. 500-600W) since a lot of the bass will be coming from the B-1S. I was told to limit the power to the B-1S to a 400W or less ss amplifier. I am thinking that perhaps I could get away with a lower power amplifier for the A-1s because of this scheme. Please let me know if I am wrong.
As I said my budget is limited. I have about 1.2K and perhaps up to 2K to spend on an amp. The amp I have targeted is a Sunfire Cinema Grand Series II 5-Channel amplifier that outputs 425W a channel. The channels driving the B-1S won't be delivering a lot of power as the impedance is 16 to over 30 ohms. The amp should be able to drive the A-1s adequately. As a side note I have a couple of amps (Crown K1 or Citation 7.1 which output between 300-400W) that I could use to drive the B-1S if needed.
Are there some vintage or other budget amps that I should be considering. Is my analysis wrong? Any suggestions on crossover frequency? I appreciate any and all input. I want to thank every one in advance for their thoughts.
Regards,
GWHO
While looking for speakers I came across the Soundlab speakers and really liked the sound. I basically blew my budget on them, which for me is not a bad compromise because I don't want the speakers to be the weak link in the chain.
So this is what I have:
1. Two Soundlab A-1 speakers (1992 vintage)
2. One Soundlab B-1S subwoofer (pre 1990) - This is a stereo subwoofer having two separate inputs to drive each interior panel.
3. The A-1s have the toroidal and impedance upgrade.
4. I had all the speakers reskinned with the px mylar.
There will be some type of crossover between the A-1s and the B-1S (the frequency and type of crossover is undetermined at the moment)
I believe that having the B-1S reduces some of the constraint of having the highest power amplifier to drive the A-1s (e.g. 500-600W) since a lot of the bass will be coming from the B-1S. I was told to limit the power to the B-1S to a 400W or less ss amplifier. I am thinking that perhaps I could get away with a lower power amplifier for the A-1s because of this scheme. Please let me know if I am wrong.
As I said my budget is limited. I have about 1.2K and perhaps up to 2K to spend on an amp. The amp I have targeted is a Sunfire Cinema Grand Series II 5-Channel amplifier that outputs 425W a channel. The channels driving the B-1S won't be delivering a lot of power as the impedance is 16 to over 30 ohms. The amp should be able to drive the A-1s adequately. As a side note I have a couple of amps (Crown K1 or Citation 7.1 which output between 300-400W) that I could use to drive the B-1S if needed.
Are there some vintage or other budget amps that I should be considering. Is my analysis wrong? Any suggestions on crossover frequency? I appreciate any and all input. I want to thank every one in advance for their thoughts.
Regards,
GWHO
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- 61 posts total
- 61 posts total