Dr Morbius
Member
- Joined
- Jun 14, 2016
- Messages
- 81
Here are my 4 HH Scott amps driving a pair of Cornscala's. Only 1 at a time, of course..
What type of amps do you use? Tube? Solid State? Both? Hybrid?
- Thread starter Mike
- Start date
TopCat
New member
My preferred setup uses a pair of Pass Labs 60.8's. I found that using Analysis Plus Silver Apex from source to speakers gives me the exact sound I want. I do occasionally listen to my MA-352 hybrid through Kimber when I want a more mellow sound, which isn't often!
Kingrex
Active member
I have tried a few. CJ Premier 140, Rogue, Audion 845, Altec 1570B, Atmasphere Class D, Dartzeel NHB108.
It finally took a small shop builder to blow the socks off me to hopefully settle on an endgame amp.
Back up a little. I was introduced to Jazdoc years ago by Joe P (RIP). Joe needed an electrician to wire Jazdocs room. And so it began my Electrical dive into powering audio systems. Anyhow, Jazfocs system struck me. I never again heard the chest of a sax player. Or their lips working the reed. I always thought it was the Daedalus speakers.
Cut to the PNWAF this year. Scott with Found Music, the designer and builder of the amp Jazdoc uses was visiting and brought amps for people to listen too. I was one of them. About 4 or 5 songs in and I was confident what was playing in my room exceeded every display I heard at the audio show. All of them reguardless of price. I bought the amps that night at dinner. I should have my pair in about 5 weeks. In the interim I sold my Dartzeel.
FWIW this amp does not sound SS or class D. It sounds tube. But OMG, its absolute magic. The details, life, natural preaence are unmatched by anything I have ever heard.
I don't know what it is about modern electronics today. Tube and SS have sort of blended into a very similar sound. Hard to tell them apart. The Found Music Blade amp is more like a large bottle amp pusing horns. A very different type of detail. Another selling point is its 55 watts using 2 x KT88. Yea yea, you don't like a KT88. If I have to toss the power tubes every 3000 hours, Im only out $250 for both monoblocks. The mercury vapor rectifier and driver are about $40 each and last 10,000 hours.
FWIW, Scott of Found Music has influenced my electrical work. Because of him, when I strip and rebuild a panelboard before sale, I polish the surface to surface contacts to a mirror finish. Something he does to every lead in his amps. Its a detail that matters.
So long story short, I am back to tubes and confident I wont ever have to change again. I feel done. Time to focus more on tuning the room with double drywall, multi glaze windows, floor supports etc.
Rex
It finally took a small shop builder to blow the socks off me to hopefully settle on an endgame amp.
Back up a little. I was introduced to Jazdoc years ago by Joe P (RIP). Joe needed an electrician to wire Jazdocs room. And so it began my Electrical dive into powering audio systems. Anyhow, Jazfocs system struck me. I never again heard the chest of a sax player. Or their lips working the reed. I always thought it was the Daedalus speakers.
Cut to the PNWAF this year. Scott with Found Music, the designer and builder of the amp Jazdoc uses was visiting and brought amps for people to listen too. I was one of them. About 4 or 5 songs in and I was confident what was playing in my room exceeded every display I heard at the audio show. All of them reguardless of price. I bought the amps that night at dinner. I should have my pair in about 5 weeks. In the interim I sold my Dartzeel.
FWIW this amp does not sound SS or class D. It sounds tube. But OMG, its absolute magic. The details, life, natural preaence are unmatched by anything I have ever heard.
I don't know what it is about modern electronics today. Tube and SS have sort of blended into a very similar sound. Hard to tell them apart. The Found Music Blade amp is more like a large bottle amp pusing horns. A very different type of detail. Another selling point is its 55 watts using 2 x KT88. Yea yea, you don't like a KT88. If I have to toss the power tubes every 3000 hours, Im only out $250 for both monoblocks. The mercury vapor rectifier and driver are about $40 each and last 10,000 hours.
FWIW, Scott of Found Music has influenced my electrical work. Because of him, when I strip and rebuild a panelboard before sale, I polish the surface to surface contacts to a mirror finish. Something he does to every lead in his amps. Its a detail that matters.
So long story short, I am back to tubes and confident I wont ever have to change again. I feel done. Time to focus more on tuning the room with double drywall, multi glaze windows, floor supports etc.
Rex
HifiHandyman
Member
Currently using Classe Delta MONO amps with a HifiRose RA180 integrated GanFet class D for backup. Love the Classe amps. These replaced a Parasound JC5 and sound more natural and more detailed at the same time.
puroagave
Active member
sounds interesting, post some pics of it.
CPP
Active member
Agree and a URL to actually go read about the specs
Kingrex
Active member
About - Found Music
My pair are a few weeks out. He wants to burn the new Monolith transformers in for about 500 hours.
My pair are a few weeks out. He wants to burn the new Monolith transformers in for about 500 hours.
Porsche
Active member
Burmester 911mk3, solid state, class a/b
Kingrex
Active member
FWIW, each 55 watt monoblock is around 70 lbs. Massive amounts of Monolith iron. Heavy stainless case. They are larger than you think.
JCS123
Active member
I voted solid state, because that's what my power amps are (tube preamp).
Showroom Dummies
New member
Nord One NCx500DM MKII Dual Mono Stereo Power Amplifier - Nord Acoustics Ltd
Class d, dual mono.
Best amps I've had.
Class d, dual mono.
Best amps I've had.
While I use both tube and SS, I do not rotate them in an out of the system, per se. If meaning, in the poll that one of the amps is physically inserted or removed from the system prior to listening to music.
I have them both connected and switch between the two by turning one or the other on during a listening session.
I have them both connected and switch between the two by turning one or the other on during a listening session.
ozzy
Member
I now have the Michi 8 amps. Solid State.
ozzy
ozzy
Bones13
Active member
McIntosh MC60s + vinyl growing up (my dads system)
Various SS into DIY 3 way speakers at college and early years (Harmon Kardon + Yamaha)
Early attempts at a system (Quicksilver monos + Monitor Audio speakers)
DIY years (AudioNoteKits EL34 amp then various Pass Labs DIY amps into Zu speakers)
DIY ended with a nice pair of M2x monoblocks swapped with McIntosh MC60safter repairs.
One MC60 blew up, shortly after my local repair guy died, and Mr DeWick retired.
All these tube annd class A amps were heavy, and my back was complaining. As well I was needing long XLR interconnects between pre and amps due to hum issues. I looked into SS again, and ended up with the Atma-Sphere Class D monoblocks, as they accept balanced XLR inputs, are very small and light, and they were voiced by an experienced tube guy. Not as bloomy as the prior tube gear, but not edgy as some current gear. Very close to the vintage SS gear. My current favorites.
Various SS into DIY 3 way speakers at college and early years (Harmon Kardon + Yamaha)
Early attempts at a system (Quicksilver monos + Monitor Audio speakers)
DIY years (AudioNoteKits EL34 amp then various Pass Labs DIY amps into Zu speakers)
DIY ended with a nice pair of M2x monoblocks swapped with McIntosh MC60safter repairs.
One MC60 blew up, shortly after my local repair guy died, and Mr DeWick retired.
All these tube annd class A amps were heavy, and my back was complaining. As well I was needing long XLR interconnects between pre and amps due to hum issues. I looked into SS again, and ended up with the Atma-Sphere Class D monoblocks, as they accept balanced XLR inputs, are very small and light, and they were voiced by an experienced tube guy. Not as bloomy as the prior tube gear, but not edgy as some current gear. Very close to the vintage SS gear. My current favorites.
jbtrio
Member
I use both, rotate them every couple of months
Dr Morbius
Member
- Joined
- Jun 14, 2016
- Messages
- 81
Not really, but fairly close.
Porsche
Active member
I moved from Burmester 911 to the 218's
Feanor
Member
(Don't think I've posted on this thread previously ...)
I've never had a tube power amp though I've had a couple of tube preamps. Presently for the latter I'm using a Sonic Frontiers Line 1 with 'SE+' upgrades by Parts ConneXion and, at this moment, Golden Lion tubes in the gain stage -- very nice but not especially "tubey".
I've had a fair number of power amps over 50+ years which have all been solid state; that has included several class D amps starting over 20 years ago. Nowadays it's a Purifi 1E400A-based stereo amp from VTV with VTV i/o buffers with Sparkos SS3602 op amps. It's my best amp so far, beating out my last class A/B which was a Pass Labs X150.5.
I've never had a tube power amp though I've had a couple of tube preamps. Presently for the latter I'm using a Sonic Frontiers Line 1 with 'SE+' upgrades by Parts ConneXion and, at this moment, Golden Lion tubes in the gain stage -- very nice but not especially "tubey".
I've had a fair number of power amps over 50+ years which have all been solid state; that has included several class D amps starting over 20 years ago. Nowadays it's a Purifi 1E400A-based stereo amp from VTV with VTV i/o buffers with Sparkos SS3602 op amps. It's my best amp so far, beating out my last class A/B which was a Pass Labs X150.5.