Spica TC-50 and amp advice

I've owned several pairs of the TC-50s and was a Spica dealer for years. The amps, (in your price range used) I had excellent luck with were:

Forte 1A
Sonographe (conrad johnson design) SA250
Classe Seventy
Classe Ten
Aragon 4004MKII

Those speakers are one of my favorites. They are an extremely musical midrange speaker. Actually, when you listen for awhile, you will really not miss the lows or highs...the mids are so good. Look to proven amp designs...Ayre, Audio Research, Conrad Johnson, etc. Use Anti-Cables for connections and you'll be happy.

one of the best small speakers ever made. the tc50 bill play incredibly well with the nad325 and the onkyo 9555. they are not fussy, so any quality integrated in your range will do just fine.

Jaybo is right, "they are not fussy, so any quality integrated in your range will do just fine". Don't spend more than $350. A used integrated like Onkyo 9555 will be my first choice. You'll probably get very close result weather you spend $350 or $500.

It's amazing the different ampifiers used with the Spica TC 50's. I have had my best luck with a Dynaco ST 70 with Sound Valves input board. There are numerous other mods
done to it as well including a new power transformer, B+ power supply improvements. I'm also using a VanAlstine Super PAS 3si preamp and a Oppo 980 with Scott Nixon Tube DAC. I have a pair of TC60's also. I tried several solid state amps and they all sounded good but not as good as my
trusted Dyna. I have had many friends over and they were all impressed with the level of sound I had achieved.
I have tried to replace the Spicas with speakers that cost up to $5000 and the Spicas still remain. My room is 13 x 14 feet also. My first killer system was a pair of Spica TC 50's with the PS Audio IV a Spica Sub and SOTA TT with JS Technology Air Bearing Tonearm with a Sumiko Talisman S
LO cartridge. I embarassed a friends system that cost nearly $40k during the mid 80's. Vinyl was still king and I was enjoying it serving our country. Twenty Five years later I am on my 5th pair of TC50's and First pair of TC60's. I say tubes first and make sure the the power supply is designed properly. Good Luck and happy listening.

Nearly everyone missed that you have a PS Audio IV preamp which is still quite viable with separate power supply. There are several very good choices to include the Hafler 120, the best sounding Hafler amp. The Dynacos are great also.

This speaker is fairly simple to crossover upgrade and will sound much better with improved imaging, detail, quickness and extended bottom. They also need good stands.

I set up a system for my girlfriend based on TC-50s, but using "old" Linn electronics. Sounds great.

Experiment with cables. Silver tend to have a more lifted top end with the PS. Copper tends to be smoother and will sound rolled off under some circumstances. You can even run a long cable run with the PS Audio. One last thing use it in the passive mode and if you are into vinyl download a manual or contact PS Audio to see if they have one lying around. Change those resistors in the Phono mode to the appropiate ones for your tonearm and cartridge. You will get a plesant surprise.

Thank you to all who commented. It looks like I have a little research to do.

Has anyone ever paired Sumo Nine or Hafler DH-220 with a pair of Spica TC-50s?

If so what were your thoughts on the combination?

Thanks

I gave my spicas to my sister with a onix 21 inter. It was a killer setup. I wish I had not. With a used lp12. Heaven

I've owned the TC-50s (and 60s and Angelus) on many occasions and found one of the best synergistic fits to be the venerable B&K ST 140. One zigs where the other zags and the result is better than either on its own. Really, any of the older B&K amps would be a great choice as they all had that warm mosfet sound. Great thing about it you can often find a ST-140 for around $150-200. Best of luck to you in your search.

Hi coffee2 and Texas42

Thanks for the input. I'm contempating the Spica TC-50 speakers still. I did see some B&K ST-140 amps on sale here but I'm really attached to my Sumo Nine and Hafler DH-220. Now I have to find proper stands for the Spcia TC-50s. I have these Pangea surround sound speaker stands that might not provide enough support for them. I'm kicking myself for not keeping a pair of Standesign speaker stands I had. They would have been perfect for the Spica TC-50s.