Correct amp for Dynaudio Audience 42?

With my then Audience 52SE I used Rotel electronics (RC1082 & RB1092)and these little bookshelves really belted out the tunes. I had them stand mounted which I really recommned for your 42s. If you go this route mass load (ad sand/lead shot to the stand columns)the stands.

I have a pair of Audience 42Ws for my office system, which have no rear port and can be placed against the wall. I picked these up on a whim with the intent to resell, not thinking to pair them with tube gear as I prefer. I was surprised at how good they sound with a variety of amps.

The Audience speakers seem to be fairly easy to drive, which has not been my experience with other Dynaudio models. I am currently playing them through a Golden Tube Audio SE-40 40w SET amp and using a Peachtree Decco as preamp. They sound great, and the tube amp really tames their slight tendency towards brightness.

Eric, you did good purchasing the Audience 42. I agree with the others, look for good useable power. Investigate what others are using, for example I have a pair of Audience 50's which I drive with a Cary SLI 80 tube amp. Sounds good with plenty of left over power. Good luck

You won't actually look at the specifications for an amp and be able to determine it's ability to drive speakers that like power. From my experience it's trial and reading others comments. As well as the manufacturers reputation.

I used Krell, Bryston and Aaragon at different times to drive mine and they all worked well. NAD may be a good match as well. They are certainly more affordable. I put Adcom in the same class.

One thing I do look at is the ability to drive a 8 ohm load and a 4 ohm load. If the amp is rated at 100 watts into 8 ohms and 200 watts or close to it into 4 ohms. It has a power supply and be able to do the job you want. If it produces 100 watts into 8 ohms and 140 watts into 4 ohms I would personally not want that for speakers that need power.

This is just my experience and others may have different opinions. Hope this helps.

Wow, thanks much, Detredwings.

I guess I just needed someone to say that Dynaudio's prefer to be driven by an amplifier with good power (measured in the unit "watts," right?) /and/ current (measured in the unit "amps").

I'd be happy to move beyond my blind allegiance to Marantz, and will first try to audition NAD amplifiers, which other Dynaudio listeners suggest makes an affordable pairing.

How do I know if the amplifiers I want to audition provide good current?

Everyone seems to talk about power (watts) and resistance (ohms) but never an amplifier's current (amps). Even reading howstuffworks.com I can't figure out how to determine an amplifier's current. I should have paid attention in school...

Eric I haven't used these particular Dynaudio's but I have owned two different models in the past. They do need a good quality power source to really shine.

The watts doesn't determine the amps ability to drive speakers actually. It's the amps ability to provide the speakers a good current source. That doesn't mean a good quality amp can't have high wattage and high current. Actually some of the good ones provide both.

You may want to move into something outside the Marantz line. Their old tube gear was great and some of their old receivers have a good following but I think you could do better. Check the forums for amps to match the Dynaudio's and look at your budget. Good luck