Quote:A set amp and a p/p; more has changed than just power.
Not exactly. The manner in which those watts are delivered (SET vs. Push/Pull) contribute to a sound signature, but when it comes to driving speakers and the resulting volume, the power output of the amp IS what matters most. This is of course stated with the assumption we are talking about Decware amps and not some other overstated/undelivered amp manufacturer.
If I had a set of 86dB speakers that I wanted to drive with headroom at 80-85 SPL, I am agreeing with @4Krow and not going the Torii route. I can say this with confidence as I once owned a Torii Jr., and then a Torii MK4, and now a ZMA. Now Vandersteen is using a generic recommendation starting at 40 watts, and Decware certainly outperforms the competition when it comes to stated watts vs. actual performance, but I would be looking to the ZMA for that set of speakers.
Quote:At your listening levels you are using 1 watt, 25 watts should be plenty of headroom.
Wattage ratings with Decware amps is not linear. The majority of the volume will be delivered from that first watt. However, the volume difference from every watt thereafter is far more subtle. When I compare my 2 watt Zen to my bridged Rachel (12 watts), the volume output is not 6X that of the 2 watt Zen. The difference between the 25-watt Torii Mk4 is not that far from the 40 watt ZMA despite there being a 15 watt rating difference in their output specifications.