$$$Sensitive Speakers with $$Amps?

Charles,

I've heard the Horning Eufrodites driven by the Tron Telstar 211 SE. The Eufrodites use four eight inch woofers where the Aristoteles just have two, so they were recommended for my room size.

I think a trip to NY to hear both the Horning and Rethm on the same day would be smart.

Trelja's experience flies in the face of what our other Horning customers report, but it might have something to do with Joe's amps being 12-15 years old without any updates (its clearly time, Joe- you know the warranty reactivates with the update, right?). Most of our Horning customers have much newer amps.

From what I can make out on the Horning website, the specs and design notes confirm what our customers report: the speaker is an easy load.

The efficiency is what I would call verging on high efficiency. 96-100 db or so depending on the model- you will want some power with this speaker, a 7 watt amp will not do it unless you are listening near field in a very small room, at least if you expect the system to play anything- Black Sabbath to string quartets. My speakers at home are 98 db and I find that I do appreciate having more power, 60 watts is nice, very hard to clip. My room is 17' x 21' with moderate damping and solid walls.

Atmasphere,
Apparently the many who`ve heard the Horning-Tron 8 watt combo would disagree with you and your stated limitations.

Like Trelja, I hold onto my equipment for a long time, so it’s nice to have updates available. That’s always a plus.

I would like to create a list of possible candidates for low-cost/low-watt amps, and set a range for cost. I will not rule out the MiniWatt, but I’m thinking the low end should start at $1,500. I would also like to set the high end at $4K, because I know that Sam Kim can build me an amp for that, and it would be his best design for my speaker of choice.

I would also like to add to my sensitive loudspeaker list, but keep any additions within the range of the Maarga and Aristoteles ($8,500 - $11,000).

Loudspeakers:

Horning Aristoteles
Rethm Maarga

Amplifiers:
Note: I realize some models will be integrated, so a plus IMO. I put a few on the list that I know about.

MiniWatt N3
Red Wine Audio Signature 15
Yamamoto (Model? Under $4K?)
Déjà Vu 2A3 (Under $4K?)
VAC Renaissance (I can’t find this?)
Audioprojekte CA10
FirstWatt SIT (Under $4K?)
Atma-Sphere (Any under $4K?)
Traformatic Aries
Sam's Audio Labs

VAC Renaissance (I can’t find this?)

The VAC Renaissance power amplifiers were superseded by newer models some years ago, but you'll find the 30/30 model (32 watts/channel) occasionally offered for sale used, generally for a bit more than $3K.

The 65 watt/channel 70/70 model also appears occasionally, generally in the $4K to $5.5K area.

The manual for the 30/30 is here, and for the 70/70 here.

Both are extremely heavy, which is reflective of the high standards to which they are designed. The 70/70 MkIII model (that I have) sold for about $14K when new, roughly around a dozen years ago I believe.

Regards,
-- Al