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Amp pairing with Tannoy Turnberry?

Hi all!

Going to be picking up a pair of Tannoy Turnberry speakers in the near future, and was looking at some various options for integrated amplifiers. There are a couple on my radar and was wondering if anyone who owns the speakers has any insight. 

1. Primaluna EVO 300 or 400 - torn on whether the extra $ warrants going for the 400 over the 300. I had a Primaluna + Tannoy pairing some years ago and loved it, so immediately thought of this one.

2. NAT audio single HPS v2 - this is at the very top end of what I could consider budget wise. I have heard this amp, but not with the tannoys. It sounds incredible to me, but I'm not sure if it would play nice with the Turnberry speakers and don't have the ability to test one at home. 

From what I've hard of the NAT, I'm thinking it may be the better option, but maybe there is a better solid state in the price range I'm looking at. Ideally, I'd like to stay in the 5-6k range, but willing to stretch a little bit more for something I will be happy with for the forseeable future. 

Thanks for any insight.

128x128mmcgill829
lalitk's avatar
lalitk
5,099 posts
 

@charles1dad 

I agree with your assessment but like you said, there are lot of variables that can influence end user choices not to mention room acoustics which are often overlooked. I have driven my Canterbury’s with a 300B - 8W amp. Did I hear and enjoyed the mid-range magic 300B known far, you bet I did.  But beyond that, I felt they just couldn’t drive my Canterbury’s with authority. The 15” woofer kept begging for more power and control. IME, an amp with power to spare (headroom) is always a wise choice. 

NAT maybe exceptional due to its outboard power supply. We all know a well appointed power supply can be a biggest differentiator between a great sounding amp and a mediocre one. I am always open to learning from other Tannoy owners, there are so many options that I have yet to experience so my antenna goes up anytime Tannoy’s are in the conversation :-)

charles1dad's avatar
charles1dad
10,236 posts
 

@lalitk 

I can see the GM 70 NAT amplifier being a more suitable choice compared to a 300b SET. 50 watts class A versus 8 watts certainly provides greater margin and reserves. The OP hasn’t listed his room size, usual listening levels or music genres listened to. I recognize that we are engaging in open forum speculation and “what ifs”. But it’s fun.😊

Charles

pehare's avatar
pehare
831 posts
 

now for something completely different....I'm using the new Atma-Sphere class D monos with my Stirling GR's and think it could be something you might like.  My listening session last night was memorable I'm not sure anything could better it except other distortion flavors which might be preferable in some cases.  These amps have none that I can detect.  

avanti1960
1,411 posts
 

Tannoys match very well with Zesto Audio amplification.  

map
22 posts
 

I’m using a Benchmark AHB2 with my Turnberries. Results with a Pass XA30.5 were not wonderful. McIntosh MC275 was OK. I think they need power, if you listen to orchestral, prog, etc. This is in a 20’x15’ room, on long wall, sitting about 12 feet away, toed in almost 45 degrees. No complaints with AHB2 (and HPA4). 

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