Living room system: class A or AB amps?


Would class A be suitable for a living room system? Apart from hi-fi listening sessions, it's also used a lot for watching TV.

Would it make more sense to get good class AB amplifiers, which can be switched on permanently without drawing huge amounts of power? I wouldn't want to warm-up an amp first before getting good sound.

For this system, I have so far only purchased the speakers: Focal Stella Utopia Evo. Room is big: 1,200 square feet with openings to hallways.

I'd consider to pair them with Gryphon Mephisto and Pandora. But that's class A...

Opinions and amp suggestions are welcome!

robert1976

Showing 1 response by verdantaudio

Those speakers are tremendous.  A/B gear is going to run a lot cooler than class A.  I run low wattage tube amps and they run absurdly hot and warm my room.  Big, class A, SS amps are going to generate a ton of heat.

Not going to be as cool as Class D, but check out the AVM Ovation 8.3 mono's.  They will deliver plenty of power for any speaker and are extremely natural sounding. I have a pair that were damaged in shipping around if you want to hear them.  They are jaw droppingly good and I think will be an interesting alternative to Pass.  

Another interesting option would be VTL Siegfried IIs.  Again, tons of power and tonally VTL would be a good match. 

Gryphon and Pass are fine options and are certainly great sounding.  Good resale with both.  The other one I can't believe hasn't been mentioned is Naim.  It is the sister company and it sounds amazing.