Best SS amp for Zu Druid Mk IV speakers


Down-sizing and want low cost Solid State option that I can leave on all the time - I know its sad
128x128saffy
Luxman is the way to go with Zu? What model Luxman are you using to drive your Zu Druids? Definitions? Presence? Please furnish some of the specs. thanks
Thanks all - its just that my budget is around $1000.00 for a SS solution for the Druids, any specific recommendations based on that price point?

Im coming from a 300b....and will have the Empirical "Pacecar reclocker + Modded i2s Benchmark DAC" front end soon.

Warrenh - If you weren't such a nice guy I'd call you a highjacker
The question was "What low cost solid state option for Zu." Luxman 550A II at 20 watts class A is more than enough for any Zu speaker. Luxman sounds "fantastic" with Harbeth 40.1, spent several hours with this set-up. Spent weeks with it driving my Kharma 3.1 ce's. One can be had here used for a good price. Luxman will sound great even with stats. Read the review. I also heard it with Maggies. I'm not a stat guy, but it was a beautiful mid-range experiance. Peace and Good Listening, Pat.
Warrenh, FWIW, ZU has made a 30 ohm version of the Definition (and your set can be easily modified). It works great with our S-30 and the power is nearly unlimited as the S-30 will make nearly 50 watts into that impedance. ZU knows this- they built the 30 ohm Definition for the S-30 as they had one on hand for years. This amount of power will get you on target.

I know a lot of people think its crazy to run power levels like that on a speaker of that efficiency, but IME you have to if you want to reach life-like levels that real live music often plays at. A typical orchestra can easily hit peaks of 115-120 db. You can't do that without power and without efficient speakers. The key is make sure the system does not produce excess loudness cues, else it will be too harsh to run at volumes like that!

The loudness cues I am referring to are odd-ordered harmonics, and at vanishingly low levels, but our ears can detect very slight amounts (100ths of a percent) with ease since the presence of odd orders is how the ear detects volume. Most transistors will generate too much odd-ordered content to be usable on a speaker this efficient- you really do have to use tubes, preferably triodes for linearity since you can't run any feedback either. This is BTW exactly the sort of thing we built the S-30 for :)
Saffy it's the nature of the 'gon beast. I am sorry though, but I couldn't resist. I'll try to STFU. That wasn't, however, one of my New Year's resolutions...lol..
Atmashpere, are you saying that my Bel Canto SET 40 (35wpc) will give me more dB than 116 with a 30 ohn version? Sending my Defs round trip to Utah, and the cost to modify the Defs to 30 ohm, may not be worth it. I don't have a clue how expensive that conversion would be. Thanks so much for the info, though. It would be a tease if I got 119dB. 122? --- a sure thing.
Maybe you would email me on this so I don't clog up saffy's thread with my stuff? thanks