Baby Steps back to Tubes.

Has2be. No amount of tube "power" will ever make up for big variances in impedance curve. If you want to use tubes you must have a tube friendly speaker.

On an over, over simplified level:

A transistor amp’s output goes up as the impedance drops i.e 100wpc into 8 ohm, 200wpc into 4ohm, 400wpc into 2ohm etc. etc. Obviously as the speaker impedance goes up, the output goes down. So speaker manufacturers will make certain that when their speaker’s impedance drops, the speaker is less efficient, and more efficient where the impedance is higher. That way the speaker’s output remains constant across the frequency range.

Tube amps do not react like transistor amps. Their output does not double when the impedance halves; in fact some of my amps put out more as the impedance goes up! And they lose the plot totally when the impedance drops too low.

So can you imagine the frequency response you get when you play a tube amp on a speaker voiced for a transistor amp? Not nice ...

Thanks Rodman9999, thats exactly the type of options I would like to know about . Not nessacarily the well known but some of the descent not so known brands.Thanks! Keep em comin! Pauly, I fully agree with you on tube friendly speakers and the importance of it when using tube amps. I like the NHT 3.3's and they are by no means tube friendly by any stretch of the imagination. Thats why I thought a good ss state or maybe a hybrid would be best for my system. I know if I went for an all out tube amp I would then be looking for speakers . Thats what I,m trying to avoid for now, till I can afford to make more changes. If I had the money the Reference 3A Grand Veena with 30-40 quality tube watts/ch would make me very happy !

Has2be, is your question then what 30-60 watt tube amps do we recommend? Pauly, of course is right about that speaker with tubes. So are you just looking for tube amp recommendations of certain wattage and our price points? Seems you are already decided that tube amps with tube friendly speakers is the way you want to go. Another tube friendly speaker to consider would the Merlin VSMs when you are ready to make a speaker change. If sticking with SS, you can hardly do better than something from PASS with enough power for your NHTs.

No that was not my question. It was a statement or more a wish to happen quicker. The question is the one asked at the start of the thread! Eventually down the road I may like to go tube amp and change speakers. But not right now. Thanks , have been eyeing the pass labs and have heard the X250.5 at the fellows house I bought the Esoteric DV50S from. Impressive. Cheers

Sorry, misread your question. Then yes, hard to beat a Pass X series for driving a speaker like yours (the XA.5 series might be better a yet, but a lot more $$$ for the watts). Another SS brand to consider is Ayre or Symphonic Line (German), if you get a chance to audition.