Fsmithjack, I’m not in a position to recommend a choice between the K-1xe and the ET3SE, and the recommendations you’ve received in favor of the Ayre come from members whose opinions and directly relevant experience certainly command great respect.
To add, though, to my earlier statement that:
Good luck, however you decide to proceed. Regards,
-- Al
To add, though, to my earlier statement that:
The CJ CT-5 is ok in terms of impedance compatibility, based on JA’s measurements. The 17LS is as well, so I suppose the 17LS2 and the ET3SE are likely to be also.... I subsequently found the following statement in the manual for the ET3:
MAIN OUT:Connect to the input of your amplifier (or crossover in a bi-amplified system). We recommend the use of an amplifier with an input impedance of 20k ohms or higher. Since this preamplifier inverts phase, it may be necessary to invert the speaker leads to maintain correct absolute phase.Also, given the reference in CJ’s description of the ET3SE to the use of Teflon capacitors it wouldn’t surprise me if similarly to the 17LS2 it uses two 2 uf output coupling capacitors in parallel, for each channel. That would probably result in an output impedance at 20 Hz of a little more than 2K, the exact value depending on the output impedance of the circuitry that lies ahead of the cap. That seems consistent with a 20K minimum load impedance recommendation, which appears to be satisfied by your amp, albeit just barely.
Good luck, however you decide to proceed. Regards,
-- Al