Should I get a new amp?

It sound like the speakers need a lot of current, not voltage (watts)and with that you are pretty much left with SS, very powerful tube amps (and heavy and expensive), or a hybrid tub amp like the Music Reference or the Moscode amps.

I'll second the 100 wpc notion for tube amps... or in that area.

Watts is watts BUT power supplies aren't all made equally.

That's where many transformer based tube amps differ. Manley, Dodd, McIntosh, Cary, VTL, Prima Luna, Quicksilver, CJ, etc... all use 'em. Spend a little or spend a lot. your pick. Older models weill be more traditional sounding... bigger, fatter, wetter ... rich and warm.

The flavor of the tube amp will ususally folow the tube types being employed. Changing either the splitter/driver tubes and/or the output tubes will 'alter' the sound.

I can run a pair of 3way towers, 87db, 4ohm, speakers which drop to 2ohms at times with my 120 wpc Dodd mono blocks... easily. Without cranking up the volume. In a 14x21x8 room... in a smaller room of 10x12x8 I don't even think of a sub. in the larger room one could come in handy.

your room and preffs will determine if you need well more than 100wpc.

Find a good tube vendor too. That'll help immensely. Possibly not too much with price, but with quality of the tubes you may wish to try.

tube pre?
Like with anything in audio... you can spend as much as you wish there, just like with the amp (s). Some well reviewed pres run right at a grand or so preowned.

When I got back into this deal I found the sound I liked the best was in fact provided by tubes... so far anyhow. All tubes power train... digital front ends. but there sure is some thing to say for a tube preamp and a nice SS amp... which would be my suggestion to begin with given your speakers. As I feel that energetic top end could well be eased up with simply that... a decent tube preamp and a nice SS amp. VTL makes a 2 point something or other that's pretty nice pre. Later on if you don't want it or wish to move on up, selling it shouldn't be too difficult.

there's tons out there, and only yourself can ultimately be the judge. Maybe stick with something wherein the company is still in business first though.

repairs & upkeep?
biasing. If a bias model is the choice. Self biased? Well, then just turning it on and off. tubes last a good long time if new or New old stock... NOS. A good lloonnggg time... years in fact.

Havve fun.

I have owned JM Labs , 926's .
While they will sound good with SS . Tubes will sound better in my opinion .

I started out , like you , with SS and kept looking for satisfaction . I didn't find it until I tried tubes . I am now all tubes and enjoying the music . I will never go back .

If I were you I would try a tubed integrated amp that is self/auto biasing . It will show you what tubes
are about , be very easy to operate and maintain and be more affordable than seperates . As mentioned above , the power supply makes a difference .

I would suggest a Primaluna Prologue 2 . It is within your budget , built well , self/auto biasing , able to use many different types of tubes and will be easy to sell if you want to . It does not have HT pass through but it is not that difficult to match the sound levels .

I've always said , if you want to see what tubes can do , then do tubes . If you go half way you will only get half of what tubes are about . I tried a tubed pre with a SS amp and it was not what I was seeking . Just my opinion .

Good luck .

Saki70: Thanks for the feedback. You're actually the second person to recommend the Primaluna Prologue 2, but my concern is that it's relatively moderate power rating contradicts what many others have said in this thread suggesting that I need a minimum of 100wpc tube power to push these speakers based on the wide impedance swings.

Since I'm new to tubes, I guess I just need a little clarification.

Thanks,

-Ben

Ben, I'm not sure what kind of current (the ability to drive and handle low impedances and impedance shifts)the Primaluna's can provide, but those speakers definetly need some real current, other wise I don't think your bass will be balanced with the rest of the spectrum. You may have stated previously, but what do the folks at JM Labs say? These speakers seem to have some of the same "tube" friendly issues as let's say something like Thiels - excellent speakers, but hard to match well with tubes. What was your budget?