Whats with the Watts ??

In my experience as long as you have plenty of reserve power, the amp will control the speaker even at low volumes. One of the best systems I've ever heard was Magnepans driven by the cj premier 8's and the older cj art pre which was thier flagship for years, not sure if it still is. At low to medium volumes it was like magic and it sounded so good you didn't even want to turn it up. Go with the speaker you like but match it with power. in this type of equipment they will reveal bad recordings, that is normal. Get the best source components you can a really good cdp will help, I don't know if mine is really good but it brought almost all the cd's back to a point where I could listen again and they sounded good. On my old cdp there was just a handful I would listen to as the rest sounded bad to me.

Good luck
beerdraft

There is another thread on "active speakers" current now and others if you do a search. Since you are a musician you may be already familiar with them. They are at least worth considering and have some strong advocates on the Gon. Sorry if I made it more complicated. Take your time and don't get buyer fatigue!

I listened to the DALI Helicon 400 Mk.2 yesterday. DALI makes fantastic speakers. If the Mentors behave like the Helicons, then you'll need solid state with a high damping factor. It's more than watts. Some speakers need an amp that takes hold of the drivers and controls them. If the bass was a little wooly, it's because the AR wasn't conrtolling the driver. Rowland, Bryston, Conrad Johnson and several others have high damping factors. Most tube amps do not.

You can mix a tube preamp with a SS amp, but, like I said earlier, don't get too hung up on SS vs. valves.

If you really like the Maggies, then the issues that you heard can probably be fixed with a different amp.

One wild card when listening in stores is that the speakers are seldom set in their ideal positions. Also, nearby drivers suck up the power of the speakers you listening to. The back wave off the Maggies cancels the energy of the front wave, prompting you to keep turning them up. They can be set up to minimize the cancellation, but I'm afraid that you probably heard a set with both the wrong set and the wrong amplification. The fact that you heard the potential would say not to give up on them.

What did you think of the DALIs? They DEMAND a good setup and high damping factor, but they're incredible when everything is right.

What part of the world are you in? Maybe someone can suggest a particularly insightful dealer for you. Only one out of five seem to know their *ss from a hole in the ground, unfortunately. I highly recommend good dealers, but the others do more damage than good, IMHO.

Dave

Dave - I live in NJ (Essex County). I visited three dealers thus far. Two were outstanding - Audio Connection and CSA. Both were very knowledagble and helpful. The first is where I listened to the Maggies and AR. CSA had the Dali's and Totem (I listened through these with Simaudio I3 integrated and Simaudio cd player - don't know the model). I really liked the Dali's but wished they had other models, such as the Helicons, to listen to. Yes, the bass seemed wooly as you say (not tight). Thanks for the damping factor. I'll try and educate myself on what this means and what to look for.

The bass on the DALIs is night and day, depending on the damping factor. See if anyone carries Jeff Rowland research electronics so you can hear how good they can sound, then see if the dealer has a less expensive option.

Dave