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Need help What monoblock power amps for bass?

I own a pair of Silverline Sinfonia speakers.These are very large speakers (over 240 lbs. each),96 dB and 8 ohm stable.Very aesy load for any amp,so power is not mandatory,anything over 50W/ch is OK..
They are tri-ampable.I am looking for opinions on what monoblock amps to use for bass drivers ONLY.Each Sinfonia has two 12" woofers and one 7" woofer.7" driver also contributes to midrange,so this is the trickiest part of my amplification story.I don't want mellow and soft bass,but don't want cold vocals either.
I plan to use either tube or SS monos and limit them whit a potentiometer in order to achieve a tonal balance with midrange and tweeter.Midrange and tweeter will be powered with 320B XLS SET monos (30W/ch).
The areas i am looking for in bass are - slam,speed,definition and ambience.I like fast and tight bass (often connected with SS amps),that is a priority.
Any suggestions will be very welcomed.
audiobb
shadorne's avatar
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shadorne
7,477 posts
 
I like fast and tight bass (often connected with SS amps),that is a priority.

This will be largely determined by the speaker. I am not familiar with your speaker but it depends how they are designed. Q=0.71 is critically damped and will sound "tight" in the bass. Anything above a Q of 1 starts to sound pretty muddy.

Bass is two things - loudness and length of notes. A powerful bass can be achieved through longer notes and less decay (underdamped) a lean or tighter bass will be created with criticial or overdamping. In our modern world of impressive bass, often some bass tightness has been traded off to achieve deep satisfying bass extension - but you will hear the effect on a well recorded acoustic kick drum (such as Sheffield Labs Track 1 of their drum track album).

SS will certainly be tighter than an amp with a high output impedance but a lot will still depend on the speaker design.
audiobb OP
103 posts
 
Hi Shadorne,
I agree with you.Unfortunatelly,i have no acess to data on Q factor of my speaker.I enjoyed reading your post on other thread.
Underdog,
I thought about the idea of the 6 same monos.I was talked out of it.Plus i heard for myself in my system that different amps work pretty good.I think there is a lot of potential in that idea.Only combining amps needs to be careful.
Treble and mid driver will be amped by a tube amp that will be built specifically for Sinfonia.That way i can combine different things.
atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
12,039 posts
 
Audiobb, any idea what the impedance curve of the woofer section looks like? That will play a big role with the amp that you choose! Have you talked to Alan about this? He should be able to help you on that one.
pryso
1,958 posts
 
One of the best bass amps, and a great deal on the used market, would be from the Eagle/EKSC line. A pair of their 2 series (A, B, C) stereo amps or 400 monoblocs might be outstanding. They are fast, tight, and provide great woofer control while sounding musical without being dry and lifeless.
audiobb OP
103 posts
 
Hi Atma,

Nice to talk to you again.I know that impendance on each section (speaker is tri-wired) never changes more than +/- 10%.
Also,the whole speaker (if connected to one amp) acts exactly the same.8 ohm stable, +/- 10% maximum.
Seems an easy load for any amp.At least to me.
Alan said that tube amps work great in general (SET designs and Atmasphere OTLs), and also that Pass labs amps are also a great match.
He liked the idea of of 6 monos based on 320 B XLS SET.But i think bass drivers would be better with some other amp than SET.
The problem is that here in Croatia i can not listen to and evaluate a lot of gear.I bought Sinfonia only 3 days after i heard the name "Silverline" for the first time in my life.
And in amps there are many more choices...
So i am learning as much as i can for now.
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