JBL L80T's and what power amp...

[2sixR]

recently acquired some L80T speakers with T3 crossovers... looking for a few used power amp recommendations that would work well with these speakers... figure $500 or so, wish I could go higher but I'm spending more on this audio system than the wife would like... what is the minimum watts per channel I should be looking at...

second question - can I use my NAD C320BEE integrated amp as a preamp, or is it better to have a separate preamp matched up with a power amp... thanks in advance for any help.

[bigstereo]

I have L100t3's. To my ears they were at their best at all volume levels when driven by a McIntosh MC2300 (300wpc). They do sound great however, at lower volume with less horsepower behind them such as provided by the 160 wpc Sansui G9000 I am playing them with now.

You can never have too much amplifier, imo. So that being said, my advice to you would be to get the biggest amp you can afford. Yes you can use the NAD as a preamp if it has pre-outs.

Welcome to Lansing Heritage!

[BMWCCA]

I'm running mine (L80T with T3 crossovers) with a Crown PS400. For your budget you could have two and bridge both of them. Personally I don't think they need anywhere near that power level to sound fine but, when used properly, more power certainly won't hurt.

[pathfindermwd]

I have the L100T with T3 crossovers, and a modified T crossover that can be bi-amped. The L100T is a pretty efficient speaker. It is renowned for it's ability to play at lower volume levels without falling on it's face, and that is so true. It is a great low level listening speaker because of that. It is also very loud when turned up, perhaps too loud sometimes . I run mine with a NAD 150 WPC Integrated Amp, or a Adcom 555. If you want to play them very loud, get as much power as you can. But if you only want moderate sound levels, any decent amp should be fine, IMO. FWIW, woofer pop is a common problem I have found with the L100T (when bass and volume are turned up), and it is not cured by more power, or bi-amping, not sure about the 10" woofer of the L80T. Mine will do it whether it is powered by a singe 150 WPC amp, or two 200 WPC amps in bi-amped mode. My advice to you is that 150 WPC should work perfectly fine, and more power will not add much, but it won't hurt anything either....aside from maybe your hearing . Enjoy!