How much power?

The AR11s are the High Res series from the early 2000s, they are 3 way.

Thanks!
Nick

Nick:

If we are talking about vintage AR 11's from the late 1970's, they are an acoustic suspension, 3 way speaker that I believe had a 12 inch woofer (the late 1970's descendants of the AR 3). If that is the case and depending on your room size and loudness preferences, you will require an amplifier that can deliver the goods ... we are talking at least 75 to a 100 wpc measured at 8 ohms across the full frequency bandwidth.

If we are talking about the AR 11's from the High Output series of the early 2000's , then we are talking about a floor standing, ported (?) speaker that has a much higher sensitivity rating and would require somewhat less power. I have a friend who uses these speakers in a mid-level Onkyo HT receiver based 5.1 channel system ... which are the types of systems that the HO and Performance series were designed to accomodate.

I use AR 302's (the mid-1990's descendant of the AR 5) which are a 3 way; 10 inch speaker in 2 of my systems. In my main system, they are paired with a Musical Fidelity A300 amp which is rated at 225 wpc. I have the second set paired with a NAD C320 BEE (50 wpc). Because I live in an apartment and wish to keep the peace with my passive aggressive neighbors (they will complain to management, never to your face ... yet, say hello to you), I rarely play my speakers even at moderate levels, so the amp's power capability is never an issue.

You can try AR Speakers - the Classic Pages for more information about vintage AR's. The web-site (www.arsenal.net) has been down for the past few days, which is not uncommon.

Regards, Rich