Considering Wilson or Sonus Faber floor standing over my Rockport monitors & Wisdom Sub

I think you will find that all Wilsons play well with tubes. Indeed I’ve owned 3 different sets (Sophia, WP7, Sasha and possibly soon to be Alexia) and have had them in house with a number of systems including all McIntosh tubes, all ARC tubes and tube pre and D’Agostino solid state stereo amp.
3 nearby dealers feature them mostly with tubes. Sophias are the easiest to drive. Sashas quite a bit harder and Alexias the toughest.
A number of members at Audio Aficionado who are also ARC fans use the Ref 75 or Ref 75 SE with 75 watts per channel and feel they need no more on either their Sophias, Watt Puppy/Sashas or Alexias. No doubt that is true for Sophias. I like the Watt Puppy/ Sashas and Alexias much better with the Ref 150 or 150 SE. Alexias are the only speakers in the Wilson line that are noticeably better (10 to 15 percent) with 250 watts (eg Ref 250 or 250 SE). The question then is---Is that percent worth doubling the cost of amplification?

I've listened to the SF Olympica iii's with a Halo A21 and also with mono Bel Canto M1000 class D amps.  Both amps are superb with these speakers. If you crave an emotional connection with the music the SF's deliver in spades.  In addition to sounding very nuanced, delicate, and finessed, they can deliver believable, tactile, full bodied, linear music at satisfying rock and roll levels as well.  Not to mention the gorgeous build quality....

gpgr4blu,

thank you for the insight!  Do you feel the ARC VT100 mkII can handle the Watt Puppy 7?  I am considering the WP7 and the Sophia 2, but I am not interested in changing my amplifier.

if you were in my shoes, and considering the Sophia 2 and WP7, which would you choose for yourself with a VT100mkII?

I drove my watt puppy 7s for a few years with the McIntosh 2102 (100 wpc). I was very happy with that combo. So the answer is yes. Also, the WP 7s were easily my favorite WP. They were the first to be voiced musically. In fact, when the Sophias first came out, the WP 6 was being phased out and the dealer offered me a huge discount. I actually preferred the Sophias (with no discount) and purchased them instead. They were my first Wilsons.
When the WP 7 came out, it had the musicality of the Sophias but with greater depth, extension, imaging, texture, etc, etc. So I moved up from Sophia to WP 7. When the W 8 came out, I felt they lost a little of the 7s magic. Of course, others may feel differently and they would not be wrong. Also, SF makes great speakers on the opposite end of the musical spectrum from Wilson. You pick your flavor and go. 

I own the Sonus Faber Olympic II Speakers and like them very much.  They provide great musical sound and I highly recommend them.  I am using Hypex NCore NC400 Bridged Mono Block class D Power Amplifiers to drive these speakers.   The addition of these power amplifiers (no pre-amp) into my system provide more natural sound, clearer music, more bass, an overall lack of noise, excellent dynamics and musical details. Another layer of sound is also presented WITHOUT THE pre-amplifier in the system.   My Bricasti M1 DAC (with a volume control) is going direct into these power amplifiers.    

I compared them to the Sonus Faber Olympic III Speakers and decided there was too much bass in the Sonus Faber Olympic III Speakers for my space.  In addition, the Sonus Faber Olympic III Speakers were large and not a good fit for my living room (not a dedicated space).  The Sonus Faber Olympic III Speakers are excellent but my sense is they require a large space to really sound good (you need to verify this in your own space).

Speaker selection is not an easy process so I suggest you listen to the speakers you are interested in and not rush the process.  I suggest you listen to several songs from 3 of your favorite albums to help you decide.  Unfortunately, this might take several listening sessions since sometimes I really liked a speaker on one day and did not like it during other listening sessions.  The main point is you have to listen to music you are familiar to ensure you make the right decision.  Comments from Audiogon are interesting but you have to make your own decision based on your existing equipment, space and listening experiences.  Please let us know what you decide.