Power needed
7.5–120 W
per channel, into 8 ohms
To hit 95 dB peaks at 3 m from a pair of Polk S60, you need at least 7.5 W a channel. Anything from about 15 W to 120 W a channel is comfortable; past that, more watts stop buying you anything.
Show the working
- 95 dB target at the seat
- +4.8 dB for 3.0 m of distance
- -3 dB for a stereo pair
- -88.0 dB effective sensitivity
- 2 dB allowed for optimistic published sensitivity
- Published sensitivity 90 dB, used as 88.0 dB per watt.
Arcam A5 with the Polk S60
Good match
8 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power rises usefully into 4 ohms (50 W to 75 W).
Full Arcam A5 specs
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Clear this amp
223 integrated amplifiers suit the Polk S60
Also show the 1 we do not recommend
1
Excellent match
10 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (75 W to 150 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
2
Excellent match
9 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (60 W to 110 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
3
Excellent match
11 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (100 W to 200 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
4
Excellent match
11 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (100 W to 200 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
5
Excellent match
10 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (75 W to 150 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
6
Excellent match
10 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (75 W to 150 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
7
Excellent match
12 dB of headroom, far more than needed. No harm in it.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (125 W to 250 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
8
Excellent match
9 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (55 W to 105 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
9
Excellent match
8 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (50 W to 100 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
10
Excellent match
10 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (76 W to 135 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
11
Good match
10 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power rises usefully into 4 ohms (80 W to 120 W).
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
12
Good match
10 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power rises usefully into 4 ohms (70 W to 110 W).
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
13
Excellent match
9 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (60 W to 120 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Sensible value pick against these speakers.
14
Good match
9 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power rises usefully into 4 ohms (60 W to 100 W).
Sensible value pick against these speakers.
15
Excellent match
9 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (60 W to 120 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Sensible value pick against these speakers.
16
Excellent match
9 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (55 W to 105 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
17
Good match
8 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power rises usefully into 4 ohms (50 W to 75 W).
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
18
Good match
10 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power rises usefully into 4 ohms (80 W to 120 W).
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
19
Good match
9 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power rises usefully into 4 ohms (60 W to 90 W).
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
20
Excellent match
13 dB of headroom, far more than needed. No harm in it.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (135 W to 250 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
Showing the best 20 of 223. Narrow it with the price range below, or a different budget split.
57 power amplifiers that would also drive them
Listed separately because they are not a complete system: a power amplifier has no volume control and no inputs to speak of, so you need a preamplifier or a streaming preamp as well. Worth it if you already own one, or if you want to buy the two halves separately.
1
Good match
10 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power rises usefully into 4 ohms (70 W to 125 W).
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
2
Good match
13 dB of headroom, far more than needed. No harm in it.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
Power rises usefully into 4 ohms (150 W to 225 W).
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
3
Good match
13 dB of headroom, far more than needed. No harm in it.
Rated down to 6 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
No 4 ohm power rating on file, so we cannot judge current delivery.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
4
Good match
10 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
No 4 ohm power rating on file, so we cannot judge current delivery.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
5
Workable with care
11 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
This amplifier does not publish a minimum impedance. An 8 ohm speaker is a safe bet even so.
Power nearly doubles into 4 ohms (100 W to 200 W) - a stiff supply that copes with hard loads.
Balanced against the price of the speakers.
6
Good match
11 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Rated down to 4 ohms, comfortable with an 8 ohm speaker.
No 4 ohm power rating on file, so we cannot judge current delivery.
Costs more than the speakers - worth it only if you plan to upgrade them later.
7
Good match
10 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Has a 8 ohm tap, which is exactly what this 8 ohm speaker wants. Taps: 4 / 8 / 16 ohm.
A valve amplifier makes the same power on each tap, so what matters is sensitivity - and at 88.0 dB this speaker is efficient enough that 70 W is comfortable.
Far more expensive than the speakers. Spend it on speakers first.
8
Good match
11 dB of headroom over what this speaker needs - peaks stay clean.
Has a 8 ohm tap, which is exactly what this 8 ohm speaker wants. Taps: 4 / 8 ohm.
A valve amplifier makes the same power on each tap, so what matters is sensitivity - and at 88.0 dB this speaker is efficient enough that 100 W is comfortable.
Far more expensive than the speakers. Spend it on speakers first.
Were these amplifier recommendations useful?
It helps us tune the matching, and we read every comment.
Thanks. Anything you would add?
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Thanks — noted.
Sensitivity and impedance figures are the manufacturer's own. We read sensitivity as dB at 2.83 V/1 m and take 2 dB off it, because published figures run high. Treat the result as a well-founded starting point, not a measurement. Full Polk S60 specs.