Power amp/integrated amp suggestions for SUPER POWER HUNGRY/INEFFICIENT SPEAKERS

Wow I'm thinking about it i will get back to you asap.

Great speakers and great amp, I have no first hand exp. with Schiit,  but they seem to be a good price/performance for the money.   One of my biggest regrets in audio is selling my McCormack DNA 125,  they make great amplifiers....   Enjoy....

Congrats.  Enjoy!  Now start saving for a preamp.  Heh heh. 

@soix thank you thank you thank you for suggesting that amp! I hooked up my system today, and even with the Lyr as a preamp it sounded fantastic. The bass especially was tight, controlled, and impactful. The McCormack drove the speakers extremely well with minimal distortion. I am very happy with this purchase, and now just have to sort out some room issues to get the most out of this system.

Sweet!

I got a used McCormack DNA 0.5 for $650 shipped. It arrived yesterday, and while I haven't heard it yet, the build quality and soldering looks top notch. Can't wait to try it out once I get some speaker wire!

Wyred 4 sound hits your budget and your wpc requirement.  They are class D.  Could go integrated, monoblocks or dual mono.  I have the dual mono version st500 mk II. I like it a lot.  Runs cool (good for your small room) sounds towards warm side.  The music room on agon usualluly has some used ones available.  I also found some sx1000 (not the “r”) on my local Craigslist for $940.  Happy to help with the transaction if you decide to go that route.  Pm me if you do.  

Benchmark AHB2, Bryston, Saunders, Nord, XTZ Edge...

Any thoughts on Saga, Schiit’s passive/active preamp? It seems like a good cheap option for something that’s pretty transparent. I'm already creeping toward the high end of my budget, for the speakers, amp, and preamp, so if getting this will give me most of what $1000 would give me, I see no point in spending more.
http://www.schiit.com/products/saga

I think you did well with the McCormack DNA 0.5. Check out Brown Audio Labs for a tube preamp. Also Quicksilver. I believe both offer new models at $1000. Other might appear used under that figure.
Good luck!

Soix, I live in the boonies and never heard a McCormack.  But in years of reading A'gon I have never heard anything but praise for them, not one negative thing..

Somethings in Audio are built to a price point . Some are built to what the sucker will pay .

@soix Thank you for that. Let it be said that I have the option of selling the Lyr2 + a pair of headphones for ~$1000, of which some (or all) could go to a proper preamp. I'm not really using that piece of gear any more, and have been planning to part ways with it for a while.

That’s a great price for that amp. It also has the virtues of being bulletproof, the designer still supports it and answers questions on the phone, and you can upgrade it later if you want even more. I’ve had my 0.5 Rev A for 20 years. You won’t be disappointed.

Frankly, you'll probably get a a lot more out of this amp and your speakers by eventually upgrading to a better preamp.  Here's a quote from the 6moons review of the Tyr using it as a preamp...

"Clearly the core target audience are headfiers. Those who also run speaker systems are well advised to give the Lyr a go. But I'd not recommend that preamp buyers pursue the Lyr as primary target."

So while the Tyr may serve the purpose for now, you can look forward to potentially significantly better performance down the road with a better preamp as funds allow.  Preamps have a huge impact on ultimate system performance.   Anyway...

OK all, counteroffer at $600 for the McCormack DNA 0.5. It looks like a really solid piece of gear, and I'm itching to go the power amp route. Make it a deal?

Id look at a Sunfire stereo 300. Great amp with gobs of power. Or a Vincent sp331

Another option is something from Van Alstine.  The Synergy 200 comes in under $1,000.

https://avahifi.com/collections/power-amplifiers/products/synergy-200-amplifier

@soundsrealaudio The room’s going to be small (~150-200 square feet) with my seating about 8 feet from the speakers.

@stereo5
@akg_ca
Any thoughts on the power amp @soix recommended?
https://www.hifiengine.com/manual_library/mccormack/dna-05.shtml
As I said, I am willing to stretch the budget up to $1000, which I feel could give me a very respectable used amp.

@soix that amp looks pretty good. I just made an offer for it. Thanks for the pointer!

I don't see it the same way you do. 87 db. is not all that bad. I have speakers that are 87 db efficient and have driven them with 845 single ended tube amps. 28 watts. 
The speakers look good. I would look for a good sounding tube amp KT 88's would give you about 40 watts of what could be great sound. 

This all depends on how far back from the speakers you are going to be sitting and how big the room. 

Look for a used Anthem I225 Integrated amp . Should be well under a $1000. 
It will drive those speakers very well. Phono, headphones and 225 watts into 8 ohms, 310 into 4 ohms. 

N

If I remember correctly from your previous thread you have a fairly small room that these are going to go into, correct?  You're not going to need monster power to drive them to loud listening levels, even with their middling sensitivity. 

If you like Schiit gear, the Vidar is worth a look.  The Nord Acoustics amps mentioned above are also a great choice.  They use Hypex nCore modules, which are considered to be some of the best amp modules on the market right now.  They're also used by ATI and by NAD.  

Pro amps can be an excellent value also.  I have a Crown XLS1502 driving my Infinity Intermezzos.  It's clean, runs cold, and has more power output than I'll ever need.  

"stereo5 -- Don’t expect much for 500.00"

Regrettably, There are some cold hard facts here:

(A) +1 (emphasis added) in full agreement with STEREO5’s post above.... full stop.

(B) Without prejudice to (A) above....Everything in this hobby is built to its pricepoint = you only get what you pay for. Hence, at your stated pricepoint strata, there is negligible to nil audio performance differentiation between them all. Your choice is distilled down to just "pick one of ’em" from the available pool of contenders and pretenders .

(C) on a more positive note....

IMO you are forced to go for used if you want to step up to at least mid-fi  eqyipent . I'd suggest looking at a used NAD C370 integrated amp at that Pricepoint strata.

Best of luck.

There's a nice McCormack DNA 0.5 Deluxe available here now for 750 bucks.  Great amp conservatively rated at 100 wpc into 8 Ohms and doubles into 4 Ohms so should be fine for your speakers.  Best of luck. 

Don't expect much for 500.00

Thank you all for your suggestions. I neglected a crucial part of the recommendations: my budget for the amp is going to be under $1000. I’d like to keep it under $500 if possible. Unfortunately, that rules out quite a few of your suggestions.

It appears that the Lyr can in fact be used as a preamp with a power amp for passive speakers. With this in place, I’ll be able to flavor the sound by tube rolling, of which I have a couple different pairs to choose from. I don’t feel I need a power amp that does much than give the current a clean transparent boost.

I’ve been giving serious thought to using a studio monitor power amp like the Yamaha P2500, as was suggested in another thread. It would be an unusual setup, but it just might work. The Bryston amps also look like a good used option.

REGA OSIRIS integrated amp work for you? It's a powerhouse .

http://www.rega.co.uk/osiris.html

https://www.techradar.com/reviews/audio-visual/hi-fi-and-audio/amplifiers/rega-isis-and-osiris-66135...

http://audiofi.net/2012/08/rega-osiris-punching-heavy/

A BIG McIntosh.

Sanders Sound Magtech amp.  Done/.

I don't see a preamp out on the Lyr, so I don't think so.
B