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Amp Upgrade for Aerial 10t's

I've got a pair of Aerial 10t's driven with a MacIntosh-7106 amplifier. The amps 6 channels are bridged to 3 at 200 watts each (third is for Aerial Center Channel). I'm looking for recommendations for upgrading the amp. My thought is to use the 7106 on the center still and get something new to drive the 10t's.

Two amps on my research list are the Plinius SA-250 and the BAT VK-500.

Any recommendations are appreciated.

-Mike
mfishhead
yioryos's avatar
yioryos
723 posts
 
I own the 10T's too.I intent to use a pair of Rogue M150's on the top with a Rogue Zeus on the bottom,in a bi-amp mode.
I do have all the amps e.t.c at home in storage at the moment due to my ever ongoing renovations,I am hoping to be done in the next few months.
Regards
George
dan_ed
2,451 posts
 
I would be seriously concerned driving 10t's on 50 wpc. They'll clip that amp before you even know it. Please be careful with the volume.
yioryos's avatar
yioryos
723 posts
 
Dan_ed Hi
I like to share this experience with you.I bought my Aerial's from none other but Gilbert of Blue Circle Audio.The guy goes through speakers a lot in his demo room.
The day I brought them home I had nothing avalaible to drive them with to check the operational status.Please note that I had my system dismantled due to starting renovations.
I did however had my Conrad Johnson MV-55 still on the rack,and guess what I hooked it up.NO PROBLEM.I was going to play for an hour and ended up playing music the whole night.The speakers are great and did a good job on 45W per side as you know the MV-55 provides.Actually I left everything wired and played some more music the following day while packing.
Best regards
George
holenneck
127 posts
 
people are stuck on the wpc spec, they really dont know any better. its how good the power is, not neccisarily how much.
dan_ed
2,451 posts
 
I'm not stuck on specs, I'm an EE.

Guys, I'm not saying you can't run the 10t's on 40-50 watts. What I'm saying is that these speakers have a nominal impedance of 4 ohm, which means they can drop really, really low under the right conditions. You do run the risk of clipping low powered, and even some higher powered, amps. More specifically, these speakers need a high current amp. User beware. I know several dealers that will not even attempt to run the 10t's on tubes. I wouldn't go that far, expecially considering some of the big tube amps that are available. If you listen at low to moderate volumes you probably will be just fine.

As for performance, 500 watts is no guarantee of great sound, I agree. The quality of power is what matters with the 10t's. This is especially true with bass response as Holenneck posted before. My experiences with the 10t's lead me to believe that the more quality power you give them, the better they respond.

Best to all and enjoy those 10t's!

Dan
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