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Pass X 250.8 or Pass 30.8 question?

Help me understand what would be the better amp for my situation. I know the obvious differences, One is a low wattage class A amp. The other being basically the opposite.

My setup for one of these amps is : Martin Logan Montis speakers(91db). Source components- VPI scout and lossless files through a Mac Mini through a Cambridge Azur 851D DAC.

My room is pretty lively. I don't need a lot of volume to play music. I currently have a Parasound Halo Integrated. I would say that the volume never exceeds 40% of the volume knob. If your familiar with the Parasound Halo....The volume knob is usually between 9-10 o'clock.

I need some opinions....Am I better off with a lower wattage amp like the 30.8......or would huge power like the 250.8 ( 500/4ohms) serve me better even though my speakers are fairly easy to drive and my room isn't unusually big.

I don't pretend to be an expert in home audio...so if these are stupid questions I apologize in advance. However any and all insight would be greatly appreciated. 

Also- I would really appreciate any other Pass .8 series owners to chime in with their insight and opinions.

Thanks in advance,

krelldog





krelldog

Showing 1 response by jmcgrogan2

jmcgrogan2's avatar
jmcgrogan2
6,346 posts
 
I would think that you would be better off with the X250.8 because according to Stereophile, these speakers are no easy load for an amplifier. Here is the full measurements page from that review:

http://www.stereophile.com/content/martinlogan-montis-loudspeaker-measurements#bv85MhYk1MRC0Sf6.97

Here is an excerpt:

I estimated the Montis's B-weighted voltage sensitivity as 88.7dB(B)/2.83V/m, which is higher than average but lower than the specified 91dB. As with other MartinLogan electrostatic loudspeakers, the Montis's impedance drops to a very low value at the top of the audioband. The Montis is specified as having an impedance of 0.52 ohm at 20kHz. My measurement (fig.1), taken with an Audio Precision System One, gave a figure of 0.7 ohm at 20kHz, but this included 15' of speaker cable. Repeating the measurement using the DRA Labs MLSSA system, which compensates for the speaker-cable impedance, gave a figure of 0.55 ohm at 20kHz. Either way, that this speaker is a difficult load for the partnering amplifier to drive is compounded by the high electrical phase angle, and ameliorated only by the fact that music rarely has high levels of energy in the top octaves.

 

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