Watts and power

@listening99, Ralph (@atmasphere) clearly interpreted your initial posts as referring to powering two speakers per channel simultaneously (i.e., a total of four speakers). However it now seems apparent that you would only be powering one Tekton speaker per channel with the amp, and nothing else. So Ralph’s comments do not apply, and the response by @audiozenology is applicable and correct.

I would add to Audiozenology’s comments, though, that in addition to the potential issue he cited involving mains noise a possible concern relates to the very high gain of your amp (35 db, per the measurements in the link he provided). If the Tektons are significantly more sensitive than your present speakers you might find yourself having to operate your volume control at undesirably low settings. Although your description of the present speakers as "horn loaded" (and therefore presumably very sensitive) suggests that both potential issues (mains noise and volume control settings) are unlikely to be problems, assuming they are not problems now.

Good luck with the new speakers. Regards,
-- Al

P.S. to my previous post: The SPL calculator I linked to assumes box-type dynamic speakers, as opposed to planars (i.e., Maggies or electrostatics) or "line source" speakers. In those cases the calculator will typically underestimate the SPLs that can be produced at a given distance for a given input power, by several db at typical listening distances. SPLs produced by planar or line source speakers fall off less rapidly as listening distance increases than in the case of box-type dynamic speakers.

Regards,
-- Al

The main usefulness of amplifier power ratings, IMO, is that they can make it possible to determine a reasonable approximation of how much volume (i.e., sound pressure level, or SPL) can be produced by a given amp/speaker combination at a given distance. In doing so they can make it possible to **rule out** candidates for purchase that would not be suitable in that respect, relative to the particular listener’s preferences.

Here is a calculator which can be used for that purpose:

https://myhometheater.homestead.com/splcalculator.html

In using that calculator an attempt should be made to find actual measurements of the sensitivity of the particular speakers, rather than published specifications which are often optimistic by a few db. If Stereophile has reviewed the particular speaker the measurements section of the review will provide a good indication of that.

In using that calculator it should also be kept in mind that speaker sensitivities are most often specified based on an input of 2.83 volts, rather than 1 watt. 2.83 volts into 8 ohms corresponds to 1 watt, but 2.83 volts into 4 ohms corresponds to 2 watts. So in the case of a 4 ohm speaker the response to an input of 1 watt will usually be at least 3 db less than the published specification.

Regarding output current specs for amplifiers, such as 60 amps, 100 amps, or other such outlandishly high figures, those are among the most useless of specs. As explained in the following thread what they usually represent is how much current the amp can supply into a dead short (i.e., zero ohms) for an unspecified tiny fraction of a second. And as indicated by Atmasphere in that thread they might even correspond in many cases to the output of the amplifier’s power supply under such conditions, rather than to the output of the amplifier itself:

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/current-limit-onset-definition

Atmasphere has also explained in other threads that one reason some very low powered amps may sound more dynamic and powerful than their power ratings would seem to suggest is related to how the distortion they produce varies as a function of output power. In particular, single-ended triode (SET) tube amps, which often have power ratings in the vicinity of 8 watts or even less, can sound much more powerful than that because our hearing mechanisms use certain harmonic distortion components as loudness cues, and the distortion produced by SET amps varies from being vanishingly small at low power levels to being very considerable as their maximum power capability is approached. The result being a subjective perception of greater dynamics and more power than the ratings would suggest.

Generally speaking, though, once candidates that can be determined to be unsuitable matches have been ruled out (such as by determining that the pairing would not be capable of producing acceptably high SPLs) the best way to determine a preference is usually by some combination of listening, trying to determine what kind of amplification the speaker manufacturer prefers, and researching what owners have found to be suitable amplification for the particular speakers.

Regards,
-- Al