Best AMP for GE Triton Reference Speakers

McIntosh is out. I stopped at the dealer today and listened to them paired with a couple of MCs. They were great at a lot of things, but string instruments sounded off to me especially in the mid to higher range. The sales guy said something about McIntosh eliminating harmonic distortion? I don’t know, but strings in particular sounded off to me. Tons of power, great dynamics, great bass, but slightly depleted midrange from what I’m used to. Good detail, musical but not analytical. They were  far from fatiguing, slightly warm. But, just not as accurate as I would like. (And great sound stage/ imaging…) 

Avanti, I see and understand your point. And, I will check out premaluna. (Gross has used everything from PS Audio, to Peachtree to Firstwatt, to Prema too… I’m wondering if going with a solid state amp with a prema preamp could be the ticket?) These are sensitive speakers, but they do seem to do better with more power. 
 

The sales guy said for what I’m looking for, the Anthem would be my best bet. But, I’ll go in over the next week or so and judge for myself and keep this posted. (They also don’t have Parasound, but Classe instead…) so, we will see. Thank you everyone! 

I have an Anthem P2 statement amp now. Which could explain why I lean towards that sound. 

@noromance What do you not like about them? (Not trying to argue, just curious of what your thoughts are.) 

I should have said this to start too - but my current Anthem P2 was 1) purchased used and 2) isn't working correctly. And while this is silly, the looks leave a bit to be desired. It still works, and I really like the sound of it, but I notice one channel "blanking" out / distorting at times. Usually, resetting the power fixes it but there have been times I need to reset it 2 to 5 times to get it working right again. Or, in other cases, I have to toggle the balanced/ single ended switch to make it work right. After I get the new amp I'll have it fully serviced and then resell it after making certain it's working correctly. 

The Benchmark amps look interesting, but I don't like their small size. But, that is an excellent suggestion and I might want to try that out with my office system. Thank you! And the Aesthtix is out because of their warranty. (3 years and non-transferable?) The PS Audio route is an interesting one... I'm really considering ordering in their M1200 monoblocks and testing those out for a bit. And for the price difference the 250 may not be a bad option either. 2 very different amps, but I'd really like to sample them both and see how they sound. 

And Stereo5 - I listened to the MC312 - I really liked it (so please don't think that I was discounting your system or sound there.) There was more, really good bass, but the top end just sounded a bit warmer than I prefer. I could totally see loving it over time, but I like a slightly less warm, more forward top end than the McIntosh was giving me. (I hope that I'm using the right terms.) 

There is another dealer nearby that sells Parasound, so I'll go down to that outfit soon to hear that. (I was wrong in my original post, my dealer does not have them.) They also don't have the STR in stock but they said they would order one in asap.

@stereo5 @noromance 

I can see where Noromance is coming from to an extent - the speakers can be dull and not very dynamic, but I think it depends on the music being played. If it's fun, dynamic, music, GE's just faithfully reproduce that, no more and no less. They're analytical speakers and pick up on every little tidbit within the music. And, if you're not used to hearing those details - they almost jar you out of enjoying the music at times, I can see and totally understand how people wouldn't like that! And, they have to be setup perfectly within the listening room to get the best from them. (And yes, the room does matter. So, at a show, I can understand them not being that hot. 

And Stereo5 - you paired your TRefs with a McIntosh. That wasn't my cup of tea from my audition a few days ago. But, I can see and understand why a LOT of people would really like that combo! The bass and lower midrange is great. The top end just seems rolled off to me / what I'm used to. But it's a warm, dynamic, rich sound that isn't harsh at all. It's just not as analytical at the top end as I prefer.  

I think that the big thing is this. Almost all speakers and electronics that get up over that 1k mark, very few of them sound "bad." B&W 800 series aren't my cup of tea. I really don't like the way that they sound. BUT, they have great detail, pinpoint accuracy within the soundstage, as you go up that line their bass gets better and better, they are very dependent on the electronics being used, but if you get that right, they're really good, and yet, I still don't like their tone. They're GREAT speakers, but just not my taste. Brass sounds off to me a bit with B&W's. But I can totally understand why so many love them and get that. 

​​​​@yogiboy - I get people not liking TRef speakers. They, just like all speakers, aren't for everyone. But, how is it helpful to tell me to dump the speakers, when I'm asking about an amplifier for them? Do you think you're offering anything of value? Or help? Did you even mention another brand of speaker to check out? How is that helpful?