Calling Aerial 20T owners

I did try to "do my homework". I spoke to Aerial before committing to buy, another owner had them in the same size room with 2x SW12, and previous owner was using ARC VTM-200. I know they are not tube friendly, but I don't need the lowest bass and thought I could get away with BAT especially if I don't listen loud. I will try solid state just to see what they are capable of, not sure what I will do next regardless of the outcome.

I know I still have lots of work to do in order to optimize the positioning, will see if I can dial them to the sound I prefer but then Aerial will not sound like Sonus Faber for one...

I've heard them sound great with big mcintosh amps. I think it was actually the 1.2Kwatt amps that I heard ( :

I would use a bigger SS amp with these.

I'm using Mc with my Aerials after trying Krell, Marantz, and MF. I had the HF issue as well. I think it had as much to do with the source at is did with the amp. The McIntosh fixed the problem and they make beautiful music now that I can sit and listen to for hours. Never could do that before. Of course try first. The laid back sound of Mc is not to everyone's taste. I think the 20Ts are going to take some power. I briefly hooked up my Cary 120S to my Aerials and while they sounded fine the umph just wasnt' going to be there and I didn't want to push the Cary.

I remember thinking the same thing about the Bass when I decided to buy mine. At the time I had a 200 watt SS amp which I knew would be under powered but deep bass has never really been my thing. When I got them they still sounded great but I kept picking things out that I didn't like. The drivers didn't integrate as well as I thought they should, the bass was low and "there" but not as defined as it should have been, and the sound stage rarely if ever got outside of the speakers which caused too many sounds to be localized on the speaker (as a former Avalon owner I hate that). Then I got some really well powered monoblocks (350 wpc) and the sound really improved. The bass tightened up, and everything was just so much more together. But the soundstaging really didn't improve much and the speakers didn't disappear. Then when I went to my current set up it all snapped into place. No integration issues, soundstage is wide and deep, and they just totally disappear. The more laid back amps have a sound that is a good fit as my monoblocks were highly resolving which was a bit too much of a good thing. Depending on the power of the Pass amps I think that will at least tell you if your problem is related to an equipment mismatch as opposed to a room issue. If it's not a room issue I would encourage you to go the route I have or similar as they really are awesome. Anyway I hope sharing my experiences will help you.

Disclaimer :I an a dealer for both companies ... I run my 20 Ts to great success with the Conrad Johnson Lp 1P 140 monoblocs. I have heard the 20Ts with many ss amps and there are some wonderful combinations to be sure . That said , I wouldnt trade this combination .