[gabreu]

Hello fellow members,

I own a pair of Monitor Audio GS60 speakers and am considering buying an Audio Research VS60 power amp.

I'd like to ask your opinion on whether you believe this will be a good match or if there could be any potential problems (for instance, amp not having enough power to drive the speakers, etc...).
The speakers nominal impedance is 6 Ohm and the amp has 4 and 8 Ohm outputs. I guess this won't be an issue, anyway which output do you recommend I'd use?

The Amp and Speakers specs are as follows:

Audio Research VS60
-------------------
Power output: 50 watts per channel continuous from 20Hz to 20kHz. 1kHz total harmonic distortion typically 1% at 50 watts, below .05% at 1 watt.
Frequency response: (-3dB points at 1 watt) 1.0Hz to 70 kHz.
Input sensitivity: 1.0V RMS Single-ended for rated output. (26dB gain into 8 ohms.)
Input impedance: 100K ohms Single-ended.
Output taps: 8 ohms, 4 ohms
Hum & noise: Less than 0.2mV RMS - 100dB beow rated output (IHF weighted, input shorted).
Power supply energy storage: Approximately 166 joules.
Power requirements: 105-125VAC 60 Hz (210-250VAC 50Hz) 320 watts at rated output, 500 watts maximum, 200 watts at "idle".
Tube complement : (2 matched pairs) 6550C power output, (3) 6H30 input and driver
Other: Remote start: 12VDC at 17mA
Output polarity: Non-Inverting.


Monitor Audio GS60
------------------
Frequency Response: 28 Hz - 43 KHz
Sensitivity (1W@1M): 90 dB
Nominal Impedance: 6 Ohms
Maximum S.P.L
(Per pair in room): 112.5 dBA
Power Handling (RMS): 200 W
Recommended Amplifier Requirements (RMS): 60 - 200 W
Bass Alignment: Sealed Mid-Range Enclosure. Dual Chamber Bass Reflex with Differential Tuning (HiVe®II Technology)
Tweeter Crossover Frequency: 2.7 KHz
Bass Crossover Frequency: 150 Hz
Drive Unit Complement:
2 x 6” RST®II bass driver
1 x 6” RST®II mid driver
1 x 1” (25 mm) gold dome C-CAM® tweeter


As for the rest of the components in my system:
- Arcam C-31 Pre-Amp
- Arcam CD-33 CD Player
- Michell Orbe Turntable



Am I prone to running into trouble or is this a safe bet?
I've had an Audio Research Classic 60 running on my system and enjoyed it very much.

Your opinion is highly appreciated!

Thanks & Regards to all,

Gonçalo

[dean999]

hi

from the specs provided the amp provides 50wpc & the gs60 requires a minimum of 60wpc. you need a more powerful amp, ideally someting at 150wpc. i use a lexicon cx7 in biamped mode(720 wpc) to drive my ma pl300s. it is good to have large power reserves as this gives the sound solidity/realism even at low volumes. a weak power amp will make the sound tinny at all volumes.


hope this helps.

regards
dean

[indus]

I know that all watts aren't equal, and that its better to have a good quality lower power amplifier, but on paper it doesn't seem like your amp will do the speakers justice.

Your speakers are a serious piece of kit. I've got the gs20 and am running them on 120w/channel amplifier.

[motile rod 2]

You don't need a more powerful amp at all. The vs60 has more than enough power to drive big sensitive speakers like the gs60's. MA speakers generally work very well with valve amps as they tend to be quite sensitive and are a good match tonally for the warm ARC amp.

I'd disagree that the amp isn't doing then speakers justice. A 3 grand power amp and a 2 grand pair of speakers sounds like a fairly balanced pairing. If anything's unbalanced, I'd say the speakers don't do the amp justice but it's certainly not a mismatch. Driving the gs20's with a midrange av amp, albeit a powerful one, is much more of a mismatch. The gs20's and gs60's really need high quality stereo amps to sound the way they should, and as they're so sensitive, they don't need powerful amps.

It does depend on the size of the room though, in a very large room you may find the combination of the two lacking a bit of bass drive at high volumes.