Focal v Wilson

I would not recommend running a pair of Wilson Watt/Puppies with a vintage tube amp. The Wilsons have a very demanding impedance curve (they drop to a low impedance over part of the audio band with a difficult phase angle), Depending on the version, they have an impedance of around 2 ohms over a significant part of the low frequencies.

Wilsons were designed and voiced using amps like Krell, Levinson, Pass, and D'Agostino that double their power with each halving of the impedance. If you use an amplifier that can't do that you will get weak, flabby bass and a distorted frequency response.

I don't know about the Focal's impedance cuve but it is likely to be much more benign than the Wilson's. The point here is that the speaker and amplifier have to be compatible to get the best sound. If you are planning to stay with your McIntosh your speaker choice should be limited to models that have a fairly flat impedance curve. A good example of a modern speaker that is designed to be run with tube amps is DeVore Fidelity.

here are some 20K speakers >>>>

Thanks guys -- to answer a couple of the questions:

-- why these 2 models?

-- upgrade your electronics first?

I am not an audiophile, I just enjoy music and inherited this system from my dad (who was an audiophile way back when): MC2720 amp (my replacement to 2100 from the '70s), preamp (C28) and Tuner (MR77)  Kyocera DVD and Bluesound dac -- current speakers are MC XD-715 - so a mix of '70s and 'late '80s/early 90's (other than DAC))

system will go to a much larger space so I am thinking i need a larger sound and that speakers (which are light even for current bedroom setup) would be the thing to change to most economically achieve that?

i listed the 2 that I did because they appeared to be the "best" for sale in the used market driving distance to me in my price range -- i am not looking to backward upgrade my entire system into the speakers that I choose - but rather would like to figure out what would best complement what I have and project more sound

it sounds like super high end/modern (or the label you wish) used speakers like the ones mentioned (which are modern compared to '70s electronics but both are 15 to 20 yr old) are "too good" for my electronics? -- so what should I be looking for ... some 10-15 year old Khorns? at the end of the day it always seemed smarter buying used in a premium market b/c there is such a markup for new...kind of like the value that drops off a car the moment it is titled one time even if it goes no miles

on the other hand, technology changes and maybe today's $5K speaker does what Wilsons' WP7 $22K speaker did from 15 years ago? I have no idea...that's why i am asking...................

@edelbby speakers are very personal. I do believe you can get fantastic speakers for 3K easily, especially used.

these are the ones I would audition:

Dynaudio, Totem, Fyne, Harbeth, Revel, Paradigm. These are great values, $ for $

About a year ago I too was considering the Focals and Wilsons. I also added in Sonus Faber as well. I really enjoyed listening to the Focal Alto Utopia BE and the Sonus Faber Amati Homage. But in the end it was the Wilson Audio Alexia's that won me over. In my dedicated listening room  they just simply spoke to me more. I could have easily lived with any of those three quite happily. Perhaps it's my overall system; Conrad Johnson LP275M monoblocks (or my Bryaton 28B-SST monos), Aesthetix Callistio Eclipse preamp, Modwright PH9.0XT phono or Cary DMS-600 dac/streamer. My cables are all Audience Front Row. Three TT's; My room is 22 X 25 with a vaulted ceiling. The Wilsons seemed to need more power and that I had in spades. The Focals and SF Amatis seemed to need less power to get the most out t of them. The Wilson's bass extension is as deep as I could ever hope for. No more using separate subs as I was doing with my Avalon's. I really liked the Avalons but do admit that I am a sucker for a good soft dome tweeter. I feel that Focal does about the best job with a BE tweeter. My absolute favorite speaker of all time is the Focal Grand Utopia, but those cross over into six figures price wise and would not have been feasible. There are so many great speakers available these days. Listen to as many as you can, preferably in your home with your equipment. If it's at a dealer, see if they will let you bring your amp/preamp for the listening session.