Please recommend a high-powered SS amp


I'm on the lookout for a SS power amp that goes for $1000 or less (used) and puts out, say, 600W RMS into 8 ohms. Am I being unrealistic or do they exist?
khwarezm
Khwarezm,

Ah,now I get it .Certainly SET is out of question....

With Proac,I always find that Bryston[especially the 4bsst]give the best match.What you need is high current amp.....

Hope that help.
.....And try to control the resonance of your speakers and electronics with resonator-type feet like Finite-elemente/Harmonix tuning feet.You would be surprised at how wide and deep the soundstage suddenly becomes.

And lastly,I recommend looking at the speaker positioning..You would be amazed at how easy it is really,to fill up even large room once the speaker resonance is sorted out..

good luck
Khwarezm,

To get a 9db increase, you would need 8 time the power, and that is assuming the speaker itself does not begin to severely compress the signal (heating of the voice coil increases resistance) which it will do. The Proac speakers I have heard were quite efficient, so 175 watts would put them well into the point where speaker distortion, not the amp, would be a limitation.
Thanks again. First things first - they are Proac response 1SC monitors; I think theyre 87 dB efficiency. I usually do not play them at high volume levels, but there are days when I want to play some loud blues or rock and on some CDs I find I need to take the volume beyond 60% and that dont make the speakers sound too clear. Of course it could be the room too.

Fafafion could you elaborate on resonator-type feet; I have no idea what that is.

And dang! that was bad arithmetic. Thanks for the correction Larryi.
Way back when I had Proac monitors, too. I think that your speakers are becoming congested at higher volumes, rather than your amp clipping. Monitors speakers in general probably aren't your best choice if the goal is loud music. For that, look into horns, or at least decent-sized floorstanders.

That's my guess, anyway.

Michael