I own an Arpege Reference and play it through a pair of B&W CDM 7 NTs, in a room with hardwood floors. The thing kicks ass. Nick Gowan of True Sound introduced me to it (I found out he is the ONLY authorized repair person in the US for their equipment). A special note about the tubes--one of the respondents said he had upgraded the tubes, probably a bad idea because the tubes Audiomat supplies have been rigorously tested and selected for the specific requirements of each amp (they really do keep these records), so when you buy a set of replacement tubes, they are for your amp. Messing with this is messing with elcetronics that are not forgiving, and it may be a quciker ride to Nick's shop for repair. I will probably uppgrade my speakers in the futrue, though, if I can't bring them home to audition in my room, I won't buy 'em. The room requirements dictate a huge amount about what will sound good.
Ron
Ron