More power for better sound at low volumes?

I'd guess that your present speakers couldn't use all of the power presently available to them with your amp, and even if they could you would leave the room or loose some hearing! :-)

Personally, just on principal alone, if I were in your place I would look about for a very high quality low(er) power, high current, Class A amp. At least one highly esteemed amp designer/manufacturer has long proclaimed that its the first watt that really counts.

BTW, in my experience, quality low volume sound levels are more the function of the speaker than anything else. A lot of speakers really don't open up until they reach a mid level volume regardless of the amps used. Both dynamics and electrostats/panel speakers anyway. Don't know about horns but they don't take much power anyway.

At least one esteemed amp designer/manufacturer has long proclaimed that it's really the first watt that counts.

Bad beans I think. With some discrimination as well as expert advise I'd imagine you could do better. :-)

I'm no longer sure what folks here believe the issue is evidenced by. FWIW I measure the low level resolution by the height/width/depth of the soundstage.

Tmsorosk, FWIW I agree with you in part. My experience with electostatic speakers (Quad 63s and Accoustats) which I used over 8 years, support the observation in you first sentence.

Where we part ways is in the second sentence. For example my Silverline Boleros (92db) sensitivity have excellent low level clarity and create a fully dimensional soundstage at SPLs in the low-mid 70's when driven by low power tube amps or high power tube amps. I believe this is not unique. To further contest your statement I owned Paragon dynamic speakers with a 86db sensitivity, 5ohm min/8ohm average impedance, that when driven by 160 tube watts still did not open up until you reached the 80 to 85db spl level. A big difference, for me at least. Think crossover issues perhaps.

In my mind the 'overdamping' issue just serves to demonstrate that our systems (most anyway) are best served by being heard in rooms which add information (from reflections) which are not in the source. No one listens to music in an anechoic chamber but it might be interesting to hear in other than a nearfield set up what all of the subtle detail sounds like without interference from all of the reflections which would mask them, especially the higher frequencies. Just a thought.........

Maybe we like all of the reflections because our basic systems are just not up to the task and they mask a lot of crap?

Not really Mapman, with earphones you loose the open soundstage effect of a well set up system which I value as I know you do as well. Although not stated I recognize that there are speaker designs which depend on reflections for their imaging characteristics (need I tell you? :-)Other than that I find the headphones (mine anyway) very rewarding. I bought 2 sets (headphones and tubed amps) for my main system and, where they really shine, in the TV system where soundstaging is not a big deal.