What are the benefits of running tube amp pair in mono config?

[JSQT]

Something that was brought up to me recently was the idea of getting a second Luxman MQ-88uSE to run in a bridged mono configuration. I do like the idea of having 2 Luxman tube amps in my system, but they are pretty hard to find, and relatively expensive for what may be little benefit.

Can anyone share the objective & subjective benefits of such an idea?

Thanks!

 

[Mr Peabody]

You can't beat monoblocks for channel separation.

I had Conrad Johnson MV60's converted to mono, my goal was to increase power. The factory said I would also gain a slight improvement in damping factor.

If you didn't need the extra power the expense is probably not worth what other gains would result. IMO

I had both amps in my stand without cages, so all the glowing tubes was quite a sight. I'll always remember my younger brother who couldn't quite understand me going from Krell to CJ saying, "I don't know why you didn't keep your system you had instead of this Frankenstein stuff". LOL

 

[JSQT]

I had both amps in my stand without cages, so all the glowing tubes was quite a sight. I'll always remember my younger brother who couldn't quite understand me going from Krell to CJ saying, "I don't know why you didn't keep your system you had instead of this Frankenstein stuff". LOL

I have to admit, the "cool factor" of having 2 open Luxman MQ-88uSEs on either side of my console, with the preamp in the middle is pretty compelling. Definitely not the reason to get another one but man would it look great

I do have plenty of power with the 25 WPC stereo Luxman, so it would be more of an improvement in channel separation and noise floor I guess. Those Luxman 88s are really something special, I don't know what fairy dust they sprinkle in there to get that triode push-pull magic out of those 4 KT88s. Dick Olsher's review at Absolute Sound sheds some light on this:

"[FONT=&quot]This Lux was designed from the ground up as a push-pull triode amp. In the 1950s, the push toward greater power and higher efficiency, coupled with the availability of new power tubes such as the EL34, KT88, and 6550, ousted filamentary triode designs from mass market applications. Here each KT88 is wired as a triode by having the screen grid connected to the plate via a current-limiting resistor. Some have referred to such a connection as a fake triode. Not so—transfer characteristics don’t lie. A triode-connected KT88 measures and acts like a triode, and most importantly, sounds like a triode."[/FONT]