Would a Pass Aleph 5 be able to drive Thiel 3.5 ?

As a current owner of Thiel 3.5s; I would agree with Unsound's remarks. The 3.5s DO sound better when they have a higher powered amp to drive them. A Bryston 4BST would be an excellent choice. I'm a McIntosh fan - so I'm driving mine with an MC150 amp right now - though I'm considering a
possible move up to a Mac 200 watt amp later this year.

I would think the 5 would be up to the task as I had a 4B ST & replaced it with a 5. I had more efficient speakers than you do but on a comparative level the 5 did everything the 4B ST did in terms of adequate volume but much more musical. I sold the 4B ST as it was too analytical for me & subsequently sold the 5 as it wasn't quite what I was looking for. I now have an Ayre V-3 which I'm really happy with but will probably move up to a V-1.

I would say if classical, jazz & female vocals make up the bulk of your listening, then the 5 will do it for you. If you prefer rock, electronica, metal & so on it may not float your boat. That was my experience with the two amps.

Of course, the best thing would be to try an in home audition but even if you purchased & it didn't work out, you'd be able to resell easily. Good luck!

The Pass Aleph series are all single ended. That topology cannot operate in anything other than class A (and still be listenable!).

Get a used Plinius SA-100 and end your search ($1800 to $2100 depending on the condition). The Aleph 5,Bryston 3B, or 4B-ST will not have enough current to drive the Thiel CS 3.5.

With all due respect to Audiomax while the Pinius SA-100 might be a good choice with the Thiel CS 3.5's I don't think that the two Bryston amps lack the current any more so than the Plinius might. All would be at the very least adequate. In fact the Bryston 3B is probably very very close to the Plinius in this regard. I'm not so sure about the Aleph 5, but my guess would be that it too can handle the load.