THE RalphK? The Hawks may need more power. I had started with an S30 (30 Watt/ ch), and there was a distinct midrange dip with the Hawks. I then got a pair of Zeros, which helped a lot. We then tried a pair of older M60s, again a big step up. Best sound of all came with the M60s using the Zero's 4X tap. This combination was more natural sounding in the mids than the Golodmund, but had the tradeoffs mentioned. My dealer didn't have a pair of MA-1s available to try, and they are out of my price range. So it seems like the more power the Hawks got, the better they sounded. I'm not sure if this would keep going if I went further up the Atma line, or if the ability of my source to power everything is also an issue. Maybe the Hawks impedance varies considerably from the nominal w/ frequency? I wanted to give the Atma-spheres as much of a chance as possible, because I've heard them trounce other amplifiers with the right speakers, they look way-cool in the MA-1/S30/'new M60 chassis, the last-a-lifetime philosophy, and the company's reputation. I could look for other speakers, but I have a difficult room, and I tried a lot of stuff before I settled on the Hawks. Thanks for your inputs.
Does this mean I need Pre Amp w/ AtmaSpheres?
System is GNSC modded Wadia 850 running into Goldmund amp driving Talon Audio Hawks. CD also drives directly 4 Entec subwoofers. I tried a pair of Atmasphere M60 amps w/ Zero autoformers earlier this year. With the subwoofers off, each amp had its own pros and cons. With the subs on, the system sprang to life with the Goldmund. The bass seemed better integrated and springy, and spaciousness was much more clearly portrayed. The Atmaspheres sounded a bit lifeless and dull. I did prefer the upper midrange of the atmaspheres. I'm wondering if this is due to my Wadia not being able to drive the amplifiers and subs, or is this just the nature of tubes vs. solid state? Should I give the Atmas another chance w/ a Pre? (It's a pain, because the dealer's far away).