Coincident Super Eclipse and amp power


The Super Eclipse is marketed as a low-powered, tube-amp friendly design. This is, no doubt, very much true compared to many speakers.

Using the Super Eclipses, I tried the 18/36-watt Manley 300B Retros (in their interim version--after original issue and before the Neo) and the 47 Labs Gaincard-S (50 watt version with double power supplies) and found them both to be under-powered-- especially for large, orchestral music. My room is 16 x 25 feet with large vent-offs at the back, skylights, and heavy, wall-to-wall carpeting.

I am sure the kind of music one listens to influences a lot of this , but I have a sneaky suspicion that the 'Super E's' really like a lot more power than some of the rhetoric surrounding them (and their 92 dB, 14 Ohm rating) would suggest. Am I the only one who thinks that the "Supers E's,' really sound much better with about 95, strong, push-pull, tubed watts (transformer) or about 150, OTL, triode watts?
kalan
I find your post very interesting. I don't have Super Eclipses. But, I just bought a pr of Partial Eclipses (sensitivity 92db, 8 ohms; pwr req. 7-150 watts), for use in a rather smallish room (12'x13') with a Conrad-Johnson Premier 11A tube amp (70w/channel into 4ohms). No power problem here; I can play them as loud as I want, without any hint of under powering.

However, I also own an old Krell KSA-150 (rated at 150w into 8ohms), and out of curiosity I tried the Partials with the Krell. I was amazed to find that the spkrs sound much much better to me powered by the Krell than they do by the C-J. With the Krell, there is pristine clarity, definition and a sense of the presence of pwr, etc. (at all volume levels), that I just don't get with the C-J. This really puzzles me. I expected that since the spkrs' minimum pwr requirement is only 7 watts, when I pair them with a tube amp capable of 10 times the minimum I would hear the very best they can offer. IMHO, not so.
I've noticed that Wilson speakers, as an example, which have high efficiency specifications, are typically paired with LOTS of power via Levinson or Krell or equivalent. I'm sure you can drive them with small amps, but people seem to want big power anyway.
The best i have ever heard the Super Eclipse sound is with Atma-Sphere M-60II.I have spent hours at a local dealer who powers the SE with this amp.I love the sound.
Kalan: I just noticed a new speaker (to me anyway) at the Coincident website. It is named the Victory and specs 97 db A 18+ ohms. It is out of my price range and our cats would kill a pair of floorstanders, but it looks very interesting and does not seem to have side firing drivers. 97db is a big step up.