perfect speakers for atmasphere amp and preamp

I've heard the MA-1 / Vandy 5A combo that Metman refers to in the above post. Beautiful combo.

I don't want to say too much for now but I will say the TAD CR-1 with the zero former works very well with the MA-1,s.

They sounded pretty good on the VMPS RM50s in Vegas last January

I'm on my third pair of M60s, and listened to Atma Spheres (mine and others) with AudioKinesis (show), Avalon (acquaintance), Cabasse (borrowed from an acquaintance), Classic Audio Reproductions (show), Coincident (currently own), Consonance (previously owned), Daedalus (show), DeVore (my local dealer), ElectroVoice (currently own), Fried (multiple models - currently own), Gemme (previously owned), Gershman (my local dealer), Gingko (friend), Horning (currently owned), Lamhorn (friend), Merlin (multiple models - currently and previously owned), Millersound (borrowed from a friend), Rega (my local dealer), Vandersteen (friend), Voigt Pipes (friend), and Wilson (acquaintance).

Absolutely no question about it, the best, and it really is not even close, have been the true TL Frieds (Studio V, prototype Studio "6", Studio 7, and Valhalla System). Bud Fried disliked tubes, but was not at all surprised by this, as his raison d'etre was the "resistive, not reactive loudspeaker", of which series crossovers, true TL, and low Qts drivers were simply the means to the end. These same Frieds also seem to find their best match in the Atma Spheres.

I'd also give a recommendation, each for differing reasons, to AudioKinesis (rich, full-bodied, and easy to listen to), Classic Audio Reproduction (dynamic), ElectroVoice (dynamic), Merlin (coherence), and Rega (rich, full-bodied, and easy to listen to). Though I'm more than fond of the loudspeakers, I would be wary of the ancillaries, room, personal taste, etc. with the CAR horns, as things could cross the line of what I consider relentless. Apart from the kind of bottom end that a more modern high-end audiophile are not in love with (some also seem to focus on the poor woofer/horn integration), the Consonance M15 horns were a more than fair match as well, but the build quality of that loudspeaker precludes my recommendation.

In my opinion, the loudspeaker - amplifier match is among the most personal in audio; these amplifiers are unique enough that they seem to magnify that relationship.

My Atma-Sphere S-30 and Raidho C1.1s are, perhaps surprising to many, a perfect match using Paul Speltz auto-transformers. Lots of headroom. Now that I have the PS Audio DS DAC I have an extra 10db to 20db gain for tons of head room on all recordings.