Tubes and less sensitive speakers


I love the sound of tube amps but I use Maggie 3.7's.  I have tried  an 45 watt tube amp  and while I loved the clarity of midrange, I missed the low end slam, even with a sub.  Is there a tube amp out there that matches well with Magnepans?  I am using the Hegel H360 and a friend recommended Coda high current amps but I still am thinking tubes.

boxcarman

The Music Reference RM-200 MkII might make for a nice amplifier choice for Maggies as @bdp24 noted. One of the reasons is that it is one of the few if not only amplifiers with a tube output stage that outputs more power into lower impedance loads. As measured by Roger Modjeski on his bench the amp puts out 112 watts into 8 ohms, 145 watts into 4 ohms, and 125 watts into 2 ohms.

 

Regarding the poet by @blisshifi: Mating subs with Maggies (in fact any and all dipole loudspeakers) is indeed a challenge. The solution is a dipole subwoofer, which Magnepan has been working on a for a few years now.

There is already a real good one available, the Rythmik Audio/GR Research Open Baffle Servo-Feedback Subwoofer. It employs two or three (your choice) 12" servo-feedback-controlled 12" woofers in an open baffle frame, and works splendidly with dipole loudspeakers. Check the GR Research website for details.

 

I have no personal experience with the Sanders Magtech amps (other than reputation), but they are manufactured by CODA, and that is never a bad scenario

Many years ago when they were current products, William Z Johnson came to our local dealer to demo his new model Maggie Tympani.  He was using ARC tube electronics, including large amplifiers.  That system sounded absolutely wonderful and with a wide varied of music.  Of course there was a connection between Magnepan and Audio Research for many years.  But tube amplification can work well if of sufficient power.

, I missed the low end slam, even with a sub.…

For more bass weight, must move more air which is typically a weakness of non-coned panel speakers.  Adding cone bass/sub-bass to Maggie’s is problematic- the Maggie’s are much faster than the cones and some do perceive this unsatisfactory difference.