I'm trying to decide between the Fusion and the Alpha lines. I'm doing a 7.1 system, and would theoretically do the Minion/Alchemy for the four surrounds and the Zephyr/Tempest for the LR. (The Alpha MTM for the center--no choice there.) The question is that I only have a Denon 2112 to drive them. I know the Alphas are not quite as efficient as the Fusions. Should I be concerned that I don't have enough power to drive the Alphas? I'm more about natural sound quality/clarity than loud, so the flatter frequency response of the Alphas is appealing. Will the Denon drive them?
How loud do you listen to movies? These speakers are very efficient and do not need much power to drive them. Depending on your seating arrangement and oh loud you want to go, I would say that you will probably be satisfied with what you get out of your receiver, but if you heard them with an amp for movies you would probably notice more dynamic headroom. Just really depends on what you like. The good news is, amps are relatively inexpensive and easy to add if you have pre-outs on your receiver.
I like to shake the walls from time to time, but not super loud. Is there any reason I wouldn't want to go with the Alphas then (other than price)? My understanding is they're a hair more refined. I've been reading about how they're considered slightly more of a full range speaker than the Fusions. That doesn't strike me as a bad thing. If I go with the Minions for surround and Zephyr for LR, would I be better off not running a sub at all?
For music it would be up to personal taste if you wanted a sub (do you like pipe organ music?). Movies soundtracks have much lower frequencies than those typically found in music, and you would still need a sub to be able to hear those.
Thanks Iron. This is for a 7.1 system that will be used pretty exclusively for movies. I actually already have a sub that I really like, but I suspect it may start to seem a bit feeble once I have the Zephyrs or Tempests in place for the mains. Then it might be time to build a sub! One thing at a time though. I'm going to start with a pair of Minions or Alchemys to get my feet wet. Assuming success, the rest will come later in stages.