Speakers: Color VS. Nuetral

Amp was Pass X250.5

I have a couple of power amps that are like yin and yang. Both are from the early '80s. One is a Perreaux PMF1150B and the other is a Heath AA-1600. The Heath has a very sharp initial transient and brings some snap and liveliness to dynamic speakers. The Perrreaux has very wide bandwidth and therefore a fast risetime, but is devoid of overshoot or ringing, so it can sound a bit soft on some dynamic speakers.

But the Perreaux is a perfect match for my Magneplanar 1.7s, and the Heath made them sound a bit rough. But previously when I had dynamic speakers, the Perreaux sounded soft and the Heath made them come very much alive.

I agree that a different amp might give you what you want. Of course, we won't make any progress until you weigh in again. The good news is that an amp for headbanging rock doesn't have to be refined. It mostly has to be powerful and fast. A Carver Professional or an old Adcom should do just fine.

I agree they deserve a better amp, but you still can only push so much air with two 6 1/2 woofers in a small/medium enclosure. But they are great sounding speakers, and the MS5 even better.

When Peachtree introduced the Grand, they paired it with B&W N802 at shows. Those may be slightly more sensitive than the Dalis, but they also dip to 3 ohms. And Peachtree didn't pair the Grand + 802 to play harp music - they showed them off playing classic rock. I think you're on the right track in looking at new speakers.

Thanks everyone- This forum thing is awesome and very helpful. Too bad I made my purchases already! What about adding a preamp to the Peaechtree's amp? Or use the peachtree's preamp/ Dac and then getting a different amplifier to plug into?

In regards to the Aerial 9ts. The technician at Peachtree actually recommended the Aerial 7ts as a great fit for that price range. I saw the Dalis used locally at a good price and couldn't hold off. I just bought the Peachtree new a month ago.