Thanks for explaining. I would have guessed you had another set of amps to service the woofers, providing punch and weight. I hope your current amps deliver plenty. Happy listening!
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I just noticed PSA is running a refurbished sale- amongst other things FR10s offered for $7500!
Job, Iām not planning to do any bi-amping at this time. I donāt think Iāll need to add subwoofers either. The FR10s put out lots of punchy bass with my current set-up.
FYI, no returns based on as received cosmetic condition. A better purchase option for those in the Boulder region that may get their eyes on the merchandise.
Yes, that makes perfect sense. Goes to prove how important it is to read the fine print.
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I just noticed that PSA is currently offering an expanded trade-in of up to $4k on buying a new FR10.
Just to be sure: my post meant no harm. Iām sure you know exactly what youāre doing and me expressing my expectation was not meant to influence you (or anybody else) in any way. Wishing you well and joy in this hobby!
FR10 owner here, also running BHK pre and M1200s.
Is anyone able to contrast the M 1200s and the The Atma-Sphere Class D monoblocks? If so thanks in advance.
Job, thanks for the note. No harm taken - and I didnāt mean to be critical of your questions if my comments came across that way. I just wanted to be sure that readers of this discussion didnāt assume that the FR10 automatically needed bi-ammping or subwoofers. I might try bi-wiring at some point, though, if I can scrape together enough cash to buy another pair of Cardas speaker cables.
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softlight64, thatās a good question. I have the BHK preamp but have never even heard the M1200s. I do have a pair of M700s, though, and I was able to compare those monoblocks to the Atma-Sphere Class D GaNFET monoblocks. I still think the M700s are great amps, and I havenāt sold them or traded them in at this point. They are my 2-channel back-up amps now, and I may eventually use them for the main left and right channels in my 5.1 home theater system.
Comparing the A-S monos to the M700s, the difference in watts per channel hasnāt shown up as a problem for the A-S in driving either the FR10s or my Thiel 2.2 speakers. (This might be a problem with harder-to-drive speakers, where the M700 or M1200 might have an advantage.) Where the A-S GaNFET sounds superior to the M700 (IMO) is in high-frequency transparency, smoothness, and soundstaging. The soundstage with the A-S is deeper, wider, and more layered. There is more air around singers and instruments. Iāve been especially surprised that I can hear more detail in the recordings I listen to - and they just sound more vivid and real. Iāve been able to clearly hear lyrics in some songs that Iāve never heard with that level of clarity before. But the clarity and transparency are not harsh or edgy, so they donāt produce listening fatigue.
From what Iāve heard from folks who own the M1200 monos, they are great amps and are more capable than the M700s. I didnāt seriously consider them as a replacement for my M700s because I didnāt want to mess with another set of tubes and I was intrigued by what the new GaNFET amps have to offer. So far, Iām quite happy with the A-S monoblocks.
I hope these comments are of help to you.
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Very helpful indeed, thanks so much! Iām thinking of getting the Atma-Sphere Class D GaNFETs to try out.
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None of my business, but, I wouldnāt worry about the speaker cables you use for the bass if you bi-amp. Use anything better than bell wire. Youād be surprised that a lot of pro installations just use heavy gauge wire for the bass. Often, IMO, when people say they really rate some expensive wire they actually are just preferring the altered balance between bass and the rest. Just go ahead and try different inexpensive cables. Some lightweight wire might produce slightly less bass and tilt the balance such that more higher frequency detail is heard, which may or may not be preferable to what they had before. My 2P worth.
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Thanks for the input regarding cables for bi-amping. However, I do not plan to use two different amps to power my FR10s. Several people on the forum have suggested that true bi-wiring (not bi-amping) has some performance advantages over the use of jumper cables to connect the four input terminals on each Aspen speaker. To bi-wire in this way would require the purchase of another pair of identical speaker cables (or at least cables with similar characteristics to the other speaker cables currently being used). For now though, I plan to continue to use jumper cables from Cardas Audio that are a good match for my Cardas speaker cables.
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And the most important thing? Enjoy music on your FR10ās
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You can still bi-wire using different cables. For example if you have bananas on the output of the amp you can get banana splitters, or maybe spades or bare wire for the additional cable. I have heavy bass cables, medium midrange and light silver coated cables for treble.
danofesherintheuk, I understand the bi-wire strategy you are recommending, but it is not without potential limitations in sound quality. A week ago, we had a detailed discussion on this forum regarding bi-wiring strategies. I quoted specific recommendations from Richard Vandersteen, the renowned speaker designer who has been putting bi-wire input terminals on his speakers for many years. (These recommendations are in the FAQ section of the Vandersteen Audio website.) Hereās what Vandersteen has to say about the use of different cables when bi-wiring:
āAll the cables in a bi-wire set must be the same. There is often great temptation to use a wire known for good bass response on the woofer inputs and a different wire known for good treble response on the midrange/tweeter inputs. This will cause the different sonic characteristics of the two wires in the middle frequencies to interfere with the proper blending of the woofer and midrange driver through the crossover point. The consistency of the sound will be severely affected as the different sounding woofer and midrange drivers conflict with each other in the frequency range where our ears are most sensitive to sonic anomalies. The disappointing result is a vague image, a lack of transparency through the midrange and lower treble and a loss of detail and clarity.ā
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Maybe just buy yourself some Magico speakers then you wonāt have to fret about anything.
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I know there will always be something new to fret about if I keep reading this forum. 
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I do agree with this, one better cable and good jumpers versus a good cable and a lesser cable
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Except a hernia or a bad back from moving them around.