2. amps-preamps
  3. 124838-19008

Why is an XA30.5 a bad match for Revel Ultima Salon II speakers?

I actually own Revel M106 speakers right now, but some day, I intend to replace them with full range speakers like the Wilson Sophia II or Revel Salon II.

People say you need a lot of power to drive the Salons. The M106 and Salon II have almost the same sensitivity, and the XA30.5 can play the M106 louder than I prefer to listen (FYI I have a Velodyne powered sub). I guess my ears are pretty sensitive to loud volumes.

Does having all the mass of driving full range woofers into the 20hz range increase or complicate the workload on the amp significantly?

What is it about these speakers and many others that would demand a larger amp even at moderate volumes? My XA30.5 is supposed to be good for about 190W into 4 ohms, but nobody, including Pass Labs, seems to recommend an amp of that size for the Revel Salon II.

If I were to buy the Salons but had no amp budget, would I be better off trading for a more powerful but somewhat lesser quality amp than the XA30.5 such as a Parasound?
sboje

Showing 2 responses by stewart0722

stewart0722
184 posts
 
I had Revel Studio 2s, and originally drove them in a fairly large room
with a ARC VSI60 and on most material, it sounded fine......but
when dynamics showed themselves, it ran out of gas quickly.......
so I can emphatically say 60 watts of tubes aren't enough into that
4ohm load, with mediocre efficiency......I then went to Pass X350.5
and never had an issue..........but I eventually swapped the Studios
for Magnepan 3.7s, which are also 4 ohm with mediocre efficiency,
and they wanted even more than the X350.5, so I went to Bryston 7BSST2s with great results 900W into 4ohm......I now still have those speakers with Bryston 28BSST2's, nearly 2KW into 4 ohm and the Maggies just sing........I would never consider Revel again against these speakers, but I liked them while I had them........
stewart0722
184 posts
 
My bass desires are very well served by the 3.7s alone.........

It's a matter of placement......I go a little closer to the side walls and
about 18" from the front wall and the room is loaded very nicely
in the mid 30s hz range......

If I want more bass, I just need 20.7s.  Subwoofers do NOT integrate
with Magnepans, people just say they do to make themselves feel better about going down that road......I don't think that even Magnepan's own bass panels really integrate that well with the 3.7s at least by my standards....., that's based on me trying two of them I bought for an office system.......

Having said that, if you compared 3.7s with the Magnepan's of old in the lower regions, all of your concerns instantly disappear.......


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