75 WPC, is borderline 'just enough' power unless you have speakers with a sensitivity above say, 92db. Though, with small speakers, at least, higher sensitivity tends to castrate the bass and one really needs to compensate creatively. I see this a lot now with people trying to implement mid bass modules and such, with trying to get that resonant mid/sub bass punch that hooked them on this hobby in the first place, and most likely via large, full range speakers, with 100 or more watts RMS/ch on hand.
I've had a bit of a go with the differences between small speakers and large, over the past decade. Years ago, I had discovered that for whole room use in an avg living room sized setup, 15" woofers was my absolute minimum. Right now I am using some ridiculously powerful 12" 2-ways for desktop speakers, and two 12" subs. It's overkill, and tends to solve a lot of problems because of it. Not for everyone, but I was tired of pussy-footing around with all the efficiency nerds methods.
I have small speakers that I enjoy but they are immediate nearfield, or nothing. They really shine there. By "immediate," I mean like almost being headphones, or, no more than 3 ft. away from my ears. This is the only way I can get satisfaction from small speakers and lower powered amps.
For whole room use, 100 WPC is the starting point if someone listens at 80db or louder, and the further one resides ahead of that distortion/clipping knee, the better. Nothing worse for me than having an amp that's 'just enough' and having the dang thing almost pegged on near full all the time, or even past the halfway point.
Overbearing spouse. . . I'd have a killer car or office, garage or even a tool shed setup where I could scratch my audio itch, one way or the other.
