I have Maggie MG 1.6's - need amp advice

You really need to determine at what loudness levels you listen at or would like to listen at, then you can start to narrow your possible choices of amps and power.

I listen to all types of music (mostly rock and jazz)at levels between 75dbs to 85-88 dbs in a room size of 14' X 24' X 8' high ceilings. I am sitting around 9' from my 1.6's and for me, my 100 wpc KT88 tube based Music Reference RM-200 is way more than enough. That's not to say the other's suggestions above are wrong or out of whack. It is all about what you need in your particular case to achieve the sound levels you're wanting.

BTW, I also owned a Dodd Audio EL34 based tube amp that produced 50 wpc and achieved the sound levels I was looking for as well. I just wanted a different sound, hence the RM-200.

Good luck!

i too have magnepan 1.6 speakers and am looking for an amp. i am looking for a tube amp. i am considering the macintosh 2102 (100 watts) or the wolcott stereo amp (140 watts). i don't think either of these amps is insufficient to power this speaker. remember, quality of sound is more important than spl.

Mrtennis...At least with Maggies, the "quality of sound" delivered at a five watt average power level (about six volts rms into 4 ohms)is better when it comes from a powerful amp although one would think that 100 watts would be plenty. That's my experience, and I am not alone. I haven't a clue why this is so.

By the way, you could actually try a ZR1600 amp for less than the cost of rolling tubes once!

Contrary to popular belief, the 1.6s don't need nearly as much power as the 3 series maggies. Actually, I found them to sound better with tubes. But you will need a good solid 100-150 watts of tube power, but the coherency and midrange you get will sound much better than an average SS behemoth. My RM-9 did a fine job with 1.6s, but was a total flop on 3.5s.

Oz

Look for a used Spectron Digital One. 500 wpc into the Maggies; it really opened my speakers up and tightened the bass on my pair. Class D switching amp...tiny and the idle current is only 20 watts, so you can leave it continuously on without juicing up your electricity bill.

Think of it this way: all cars will do 70 MPH, but some get there MUCH more quickly! It's not just a question of "loudness" [SPL] but the "opening up", or just darn sounding better...the 1.6's require a lot of power to "open up".