bierfeldt wrote:

I think personal taste is the key to all of this. My taste and your taste could vary pretty wildly. In all cases, try and listen to the amp in your home. If that isn't possible, try and listen with your speakers. I like a neutral to slightly forward sound profile and matched with those speakers, that is what I am trying to deliver. That being said, you might like something a bit more forward or laid back. The only way to tell is to listen.

I would look at the following -

PrimaLuna Prologue - $2199 and an oustanding value in tube amplification
Mystere ia21 - $2099 which is a Euro Gem that is a steal at this price

Both are available from Upscale Audio and the owner of that retailer, Kevin Deal, is an owner in PrimaLuna. He knows his stuff when it comes to tube gear.

For solid state with those speaker I like the Rega Elex R at $1695. I know well below your budget but it is great sounding. The Elicit R is nicer but is above your budget.

The other one I really like is above your budget at $2950, the Ayre Acoustics AX-7e. I am a HUGE fan of Ayre's sound profile and with an efficient speaker like those Focal's this would be the best sounding combo IMO.

You can also look at Musical Fidelity and Parasound. In both cases I think these will deliver a forward sound profile which would not align to my taste, but again, you may prefer it. These will be a bit forward compared to Marantz. The MF M5si is great sounding with good features at $2K and the Parasound Halo Integrated is very highly regarded but I personally think the other amps above will sound better.

Thanks. Can I ask why the Ayre is so highly regarded? Its like 60 WPC. I looked at the Prologue and wasn't sure its low (though tube) wattage would be enough.

bierfeldt wrote:

Are you feeling that you don't get enough volume from the Focals with the Marantz? Or do you feel like it lack's control? How big is your room? Those are smallish speakers and are really suited for a small to medium room and may struggle to move enough air to deliver room filling sound in a large space.

Power is not always the measure of a great amp. The Focal speakers are efficient with a reported 92dB SPL and a measured 90dB SPL in the Stereophile review. They shouldn't need 100w of power to open up and sound great. They need an amp that has control over the speakers and delivers clean, clear sound.

If these were Kef LS50s or Revel Perfroma3 M105s I would say power is absolutely a concern but you shouldn't face the type of issues. 100w of power for those much less efficient speakers is almost necessary except in relatively small listening spaces.

When I say power isn't everything, the 2016 Amplified of the Year in this publication was the First Watt J2 which delivers 25w into 8 ohms and 12w into 4 ohms. It only works with very efficient, easy to drive speakers but it sound is to die for with the right pairing. But you are limited to ultra efficient, easy to drive speakers from companies like Zu and DeVore.

The point is, the measure of a great amp is in its ability to deliver great, clean sound with high resolution, not how loud it can play. With 20w of power, a speaker with a 92dB SPL rating can deliver 98dB of volume at 10', with 30w of power it goes up to 100dB. You would experience hearing damage with 3 hours of exposure to volume at this level. Trim 2 dB off if the real rating is closer to 90dB instead of 92dB. Unless you turn it up to 11 all the time, power is probably not your issue.

Ayre makes great equipment. They use a relatively unique design for there circuitry that uses zero feedback and is stupidly quiet. You will here reviewers say that Ayre has the "blackest possible black's" in its sound profile in the sense that when an absence of sound is called for in a recording, sound is completely absent. Additionally, I find there is a smoothness in the sound profile from Ayre where you don't get a single hard edge yet you don't feel like you are missing any detail. Resolution is extraordinary. Again, this is my preference as they deliver the exact sound profile I really like. You may feel completely differently.

I saw you had another post. The Cronus Magnum is a nice amp. I personally like Rogue equipment. I have an Ayre K-5xeMP preamp paired with a Rogue Hydra power amp driving Revel Performa3 M105s in my main system. If you really want a lot of power from tubes, that is a good choice. Incidentally, I am a big fan of Ayre and Rogue.

You could also look at the Rogue Audio Sphinx with a plan to simply scrap the stock tubes and get a pair of Cryo Treated Mullards, Brimars or Ciftes. It would inch up your expense from between $200 to $280 but the base amp is way under your budget so that shouldn't be an issue. The Mullards will be warmer than the stock tubes while maintaining detail while the Cifte's will add top end sparkle and deliver a more forward sound. The Brimar's are just more detailed.

In my Hydra, I currently have a pair of Cifte's because my old room was overdamped. I moved and now the system sounds a bit bright and I am planning to roll in a pair of Mullard's. You would run stock tubes for about a month and decide if you want to go warmer or brighter. If you want neither and just a bit more detail, you could roll in Brimars.

Thanks. They get plenty loud. The problem is mid bass. I have to get up to around 90db for that mid bass to come in. Hard to do in an apartment. I'm looking for an amp that grips that speaker and controls it, even where the inpedance drops.

caphill wrote:

Your Focal 807v speakers are pretty efficient. The Rega Elicit-r would sound really good on them. it is $3k though as long as you are willing to up your budget a bit. I would highly recommend the Rega Elicit-r.
The Primaluna suggested above is a good one too.
In addition to the Rega Elicit-r and the Primaluna, I would consider the following integrated amps :
* Rotel RA-1572 ($1700) or RA-1592 ($2500).
* Parasound Halo Integrated ($2500).
* Musical Fidelity M5i ($2k) or M3si ($1500).
* Rogue Audio Sphinx.

These should be more than capable to give justice to your speakers.

So the wattage these carry I'm guessing is not indicative of the grip they have? I'm curious as to why these amps and your experience with them.

bierfeldt wrote:

if volume is not an issue, I stand by my initial recco. Absolute amount of power is not your problem, it is quality of power that matters. I would add in the Rogue Audio Sphinx as the tube rolling option is super appealing.

Thanks, I had my eyes on the Cronus 2. Yammy is still an option and cheaper.
Thanks!