Fatcataudio, I do understand what you are saying, and it certainly is a consideration, there are certain amplifiers that have a certain kind of performance that is very appealing, I think the Pass XA30.5 wo uld be a very good example, SETs and OTLs would be another, as they have unique qualites as amplifiers, and I agree with you that you could start there and find a speaker that matches well. On the other hand, I agree with Bill that the speaker is likely to be the component that has the greatest influence on the basic sound of a system, and the variations between speakers seem to me to be of a higher order than between amplification ans digital sources of similar quality and price points. For that reason, I still think that finding the speaker you love should come first and then find the amplification for it. Not that you couldn't end up at the same place the other way around, but I think getting the speaker right first will tend to lead you to a more satisfying solution. But there is more than one way to go about it. I knew I wanted tube friendly speakers so that guided my search, but the Merlins than opened up the possibility of going the OTL route or amps with 30 or so watts. If I had fallen in love with Thiels, I could not own the amps I do, not the even the great XA30.5.
