Plowing is certainly faster, but that was not the question. The question was not "what's the fastest way to remove snow?" it was "Looking for anyone with experience with [Puma 80" or 84"] blowers and what size tractor you are using it on."
I can't help with the 80" or 84" blower. I can tell you I'm running a Puma 64" on a 2001 NH TC33D with HST (33HP, 26.9 PTO - at least that's what it was 18 years ago when it was new. Who knows what it's putting out now.) It runs the Puma 64" just fine. Is it the fastest way to clear snow? No. When we want fast, my neighbor plows the driveway. When the banks get too deep, or the snow is too deep or heavy to plow efficiently, I take care of it with my snow blower. Given my experience with the Puma 64, I would not hesitate to run a Puma 72". It just happens that a fiend had the 64 for sale used for $500 in good condition.
Provnost's recommendation for the
Puma 64" is 18-25 HP I'd agree with that. It's a bit on the small side for what my tractor can handle.
For the Puma 72 they recommend 20 -30 PTO HP
For the
Puma 80" they recommend 25-40 PTO HP
For the
Puma 84", they recommend 40-75 PTO HP (quite a step up in recommended HP from the 80 to the 84).
Frankly, I'd bet the manufacturer knows what they are talking about when they make their ratings.
I also know that not all snowblowers are created equal. Some are very good at making efficient use of HP. Others are great at chopping up hard-packed, icy, melted and refrozen plow berms. Others excel at throwing snow huge distances (great if you are clearing a big parking lot, often unnecessary if you are clearing a driveway). The various designs all take different HP and/or require different ground speeds to drive the same width blower in a given snow condition.