I think the OP isn’t a seasoned audiophile for a couple of reasons:
* if you see an amp that is 9 watts or something on the low watts side, you know this amp will need high efficient speakers in the 100db range. Nobody drives an amp at its maximum volume, so you really have much lower watts than 9 to play with.
* usually the specs section indicates if the watts are class A or A/AB. This in itself is very important. I have read many of this reviewers reviews and he usually states what class watts it provides. * you either match your amp to your existing speakers or you match your speakers to your amps specs. If you have 87db speakers, which aren’t that efficient, I would look at amps in the range of 200 watts or more. If I already had a 9 watt set amp, I would buy 100db efficient speakers. System synergy!
* you need to also look at specs from a reputable reviewer or manufacturer especially if you are looking for efficient speakers. For example, if you read in the latest stereophile recommended components section, they found out that the tekton speaker was rated in the middle 90’s efficiency from the manufacturer whereas the stereophile review tested them at mid-high 80’s efficiency, this is a huge difference. This usually happens in the cheaper line of products. It wouldn’t matter much if you were going to drive them with a 200 watt amp, but if I had a smaller set amp, I’d be upset.
* $15k isn’t that expensive for a quality amp, whether it’s a class A 2 watt amp or a 300 watt class a/ab amp, there is much more to an amp than its watts
* if you see an amp that is 9 watts or something on the low watts side, you know this amp will need high efficient speakers in the 100db range. Nobody drives an amp at its maximum volume, so you really have much lower watts than 9 to play with.
* usually the specs section indicates if the watts are class A or A/AB. This in itself is very important. I have read many of this reviewers reviews and he usually states what class watts it provides. * you either match your amp to your existing speakers or you match your speakers to your amps specs. If you have 87db speakers, which aren’t that efficient, I would look at amps in the range of 200 watts or more. If I already had a 9 watt set amp, I would buy 100db efficient speakers. System synergy!
* you need to also look at specs from a reputable reviewer or manufacturer especially if you are looking for efficient speakers. For example, if you read in the latest stereophile recommended components section, they found out that the tekton speaker was rated in the middle 90’s efficiency from the manufacturer whereas the stereophile review tested them at mid-high 80’s efficiency, this is a huge difference. This usually happens in the cheaper line of products. It wouldn’t matter much if you were going to drive them with a 200 watt amp, but if I had a smaller set amp, I’d be upset.
* $15k isn’t that expensive for a quality amp, whether it’s a class A 2 watt amp or a 300 watt class a/ab amp, there is much more to an amp than its watts