2nd Rowland Model 1 to improve my Aerial 10Ts?


My first day and post here, so pardon me if I stumble a bit!

I have a pair of Aerial 10Ts, Wadia 6 CD Player going balanced in to an old Rowland Model 1 (60 watts @ 8 ohms, 120 watts @ 4 ohms or 360 watts bridged), with interconnects and speaker cables being Synergistic Research that are essentially matched for the gear. I thoroughly enjoy what I hear, which is why there have been no purchases in 5+ years. However, I sometimes think about adding a second Rowland Model 1, but have no idea what benefits, if any, I would get. My room is adequate...not bad and not great. I listen at moderate volumes, generally listening to blues, jazz, and classical. What improvements might I get by beefing up the power with a second amp? My thanks in advance!
brian_scherzer
Tough choices...the Aerials' impedence dips a bit low in the bass, so you'll likely get more punch and control with better ease and dynamics with another Model 1. I owned a pair some years back with Apogee Duetta Sigs and they were fantastic bridged, though still a bit recessed, soft and sweet (and dynamic).

Then again, your Wadia is falling a little behind the curve, so if you're listening habits are low to moderate volume and your room is on the small side, you might benefit more with a good modern DAC...tough choices...
Like Richards.........I once owned a pair of Model 1's bridged.....driving Duetta Sigs. Great sound. Eventually traded the 1's in on a Model 8....which had a lot more oomph. The Duettas needed more than 60 watts per side......and in bridged mode, the 1's were fine. The model 1 is a great amp, and you can find them used at a reasonable price. Probably get a little more bottom end with the added amp.
IME, it takes more than 300 watts/channel to get the 10t's to really sing. I like mine, but they're not the most efficient speaker by far. I wouldn't bridge your amp just to get more power. This will divide in half the impedance the amp sees and just makes it run hotter. I also think most amps sound better in stereo mode. You could get another identical amp and connect them vertically to the speakers. That is, one channel of each amp driving the woofers and the other channel driving the uppers. However, I still think the 10t's need a lot more power. It may be cheaper and more satisfying in the long run to find another, more efficient speaker.
Like Dan said, 10t's like power. I personally am biased to Levinson amps, however any quality high-current amp with 200w/channel or better will light up your 10t's.

At one point, I was powering my 10t's with a pair of Classe' M-1000 monoblocks. 1000W/ch at 8 ohms.

These days, I'm running Aerial 20t's with Levinson 33's.

Good luck in your quest.

Best,

Paul :-)