Thiel Owners

Silvanik 
I've been meaning to write and welcome 
a fellow McCormack amp owner and a passive pre-amp user .
You had me daydreaming about the DNA-2 , great specs ,
there was a Deluxe edition for sale on E-bay starting at $2,000 ,
buy then I saw the weight of the unit !
Ironically the Thiel thread was discussing the weight of equipment 
and the aging of the owners , daydream over .

I had just purchased a new phono pre-amp that has taken my system to a new height in listening pleasure .
( luckily because if I hadn't just spent $1,800 I might have still been daydreaming about the DNA-2 amp ) 
I went from an entry level SimAudio Moon 110LP s.s. with a regulated power supply ( big improvement over the stock wall wort ) to
and Tavish Design Asiago tube unit .
New height , width , depth , definition and BASS !
My 2.7s let me hear every improvement every detail with bass that
is so clear and low WOW , no tube roll off here or at the high end either . 

It took me over 2 years to make the decision on which one to move up to 
with  the Manley Chinook , the Decware ZP3 ,
also the Parasound JC jr  and the Sutherland Insight as the contenders .,
but the Tavish Designs with it's separate power supply and all tube MM amplification won out .

Are there any other McCormack amp Thiel speaker guys out there ?
Do any of you use a passive pre-amp ? 
I have seen many of the Thiel owners praise the power of tubes ,
do any of you have a tube phono pre-amp ?

Happy Listening All
Today is Classical Sunday 
Rob

Hello everyone.  First time audio fan here.  

Last year I jumped into the audio world by purchasing a pair of Thiel CS2 speakers (the original CS 2).  Found them on Craigslist for $500.  I used speakers with my Sony receiver (100W) that I purchased at Best Buy for $300 until I could purchase some real equipment. 
Despite the poor equipment, the speakers sounded very good.  

Last month I purchased a Classe DR-5 pre amp and two (2) DR-8 amps.  Despite being older equipment, everything came in the original boxes, was stored in a closet for about 20 years, and looks brand new.  In mono mode, the DR-8 amps have 240 watts into 8 ohms, and 540 watts into 4 ohms.

The Classe equipment really made my speakers sing for about a day.  That is when I noticed the woofers in my Thiels making a bad vibration sound (at first I thought I blew a tweeter).  At higher levels I notice the sound was distorted and did not sound right.  I have confirmed that both woofers need to be replaced, and replacement is about $450.  

Question is did I damage the Thiels with the Classe equipment when I played it at loud volumes (my wife likes to play dance/club music loud)?  Just wondering if the speakers being so old gave up the chase, or if we sent too much power to the speakers and damaged them.  I also read online that I could have damaged the Thiels with the old Sony receiver by playing the music loud and not having enough power, which in turn damaged the speaker.  Either way I will have to replace both woofers, but I do not want to damage the speakers in the future.  I just hope the speakers will sound the same with new woofers.  Also, my speaker wire is not the best so I hope that did not cause an issue either (feel free to recommend good speaker wires).  

In addition, while I love the sound of the CS2 speakers I have, they are old and I am wondering if I should upgrade to something newer.  Was thinking of the 2.4 or the 3.6, but I did not know if my equipment would be enough power for the 3.6 speakers.  If someone could comment on this I would appreciate it.  

Thank you in advance for any suggestions and input.