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Amplifier Recommendations to Match the Tannoy GRF90

Hi Everyone,

I previously posted a very similar post, but it was about the Tannoy Westminster GR, and it appears that since, I have become a Tannoy adept. I have a second system which sounds real good, but the Westminster GR are just stratospheric, so I have opted for another pair of Tannoy, and I got a real good deal for the GRF90. The thing is that I have never heard them, but I got a fairly good description from the agent which is a well reputed and trustworthy person. From what he says, they are in the Prestige line, but do not play at all like the Prestige speakers. They are built and sound more like the Kingdom Royal which is top of the line; very dynamic, with a more nuanced bass and especially a very transparent speaker. They are 95dB.

My idea of sound is simple; it needs to have everything done very well - resolution, tones, imaging, soundstage, scale, rythm/timing, balance, and I particularly love attack and dynamics, which to me are essential because they bring the music to life!

My gears are Esoteric P-01X and D-01X for transport & DAC, Masterclock is Esoteric G-01X, preamp is Coincident Statement Line Stage.

Now I am looking for the fantastic amps, must be monoblocks, that will make the GRF90 go to full potential!! So, thanks a lot in advance for sharing your knowledge, views and experience, especially if you have or know well about these GRF90.

Tunefully yours,

hddg
cal3713's avatar
cal3713
1,421 posts
 
@hddg & @charles1dad 

When my (second-hand) Coincident PREs were shipped to me, UPS dropped them.  Although there was no structural damage to the cabinets, the internal woofer wire spools ripped off their zip-ties and broke the connections to the woofers, damaging the crossover components in the process.  Eventually had to send them to Isreal to bring everything back to as-new status... ended up being $6k in repairs.  When pulling out a woofer, he put three 2" x 1" scratches in the veneer.  No mention of the damage, no attempt to fix, no price break on repairs.  I'm sure I could have complained and (hopefully) sent the entire sub back to Canada, but ended up just eating the issue because I had to move. 

He also drastically overstates the efficiency of the speaker design.  Despite stating that they can be driven by as little as 3 watts and advertising that the Franks can "easily drive every Coincident speaker model", other owners believe the PREs need at least 30 watts.  When I complained about the bass response created by my Franks, he immediately stated that they do not have sufficient power.  

These are not among my favorite experiences in this industry.
mulveling's avatar
mulveling
2,154 posts
 
One (more) nice thing about Tannoy is that their listed efficiency/sensitivity numbers are legit, at an honest 8 ohms nominal. And they leave the low-end extension intact to get there.

When I see a speaker, that isn't humongous, claiming 98+ dB with any kind of low end extension past 50 Hz...yeah, "not sure if srs". The Westminster in particular is a unique marvel -- where else can you find: 99 dB, 8 ohms, and extension past 20 Hz in a point source?
charles1dad's avatar
charles1dad
10,250 posts
 
Hi Cal,
Sorry to hear about that. For what ever reason I have had no problems. I don’t think all of Coincident speakers are easily driven to the same degree. My Total Eclipse II speakers shine with the 8 watt Frankenstein (14 ohm nominal load surely helps). For sure other Coincident speakers require more power than the Frankenstein provides. They should be very clear about this issue.
Charles
hddg's avatar
hddg OP
123 posts
 
mulveling, i totally agree with you about Tannoy, and that’s also part of the reason i chose the Westminster GR. But still, despite the high efficiency, I have put very powerful amps on them (Tannoy give a hint about that in their manual). So many Westminster are being played with real small and unpowerful tubes, surely sounding very nice to a certain point, but i believe these owners do not even guess or will probably never know the full potential of those, which is enornous.
hddg's avatar
hddg OP
123 posts
 
Hello everyone, thanks for all your help so far.
  
I wanted to share the last developments on my side and get your advice and thoughts about it. I have just received a very good offer/opportunity for a pair of Pass XA.8. Why a pair will you ask since these are stereo amps. Actually, my thoughts are to use them as monos and vertical bi-amp the GRF. I have not heard these amps, but heard and read only very good evaluations about them.

What do ya think?  
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