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No, left pure SS a while ago and there is a good reason

Posted by morricab (S) on August 12, 2014 at 03:52:39

In Reply to: Has anyone gone from a DHT-SET to a SS system and stayed there? posted by Frihed89 on August 11, 2014 at 14:11:57:

SS amps, the way most are designed CANNOT deliver proper sound...the way nature intended ;-).

This also largely applies to push/pull amps in general, whether SS or tube. The problem is exacerbated when negative feedback is used (read Crowhurst for an explanation of why).

If you look at the NATURE of the distortion amplifiers generate and you look at what the ear/brain expects to hear there is a clear mismatch between the design of the SS with feedback design and what are considered to be "benign" harmonic distortion.

Reading the work of Cheever, Crowhurst and others one begins to understand this more clearly and it really explains how in the world it is even POSSIBLE that a more highly distorted amp can in any way sound better than one with seemingly negligible distortion. The fact that we can indeed prefer something with much more distortion doesn't mean we are crazy...there is really something behind it and if you are willing to read some of the research behind you will understand.

I have tried on a couple of occasions to at least try a pure SS push/pull amp (BAT VK200) and a pure tube push/pull amp (VAC 30/30). Both are among the better examples of their particular breed as both are constructed without any overall negative feedback (the VAC actually has adjustable feedback...very instructive of the damage that can be done). In both cases they just didn't measure up to my single ended units and they were sold off. They lacked that natural ease and flow one gets with live music and tonally they were slightly "off" although the VAC was very close most of the time.

I also have not had the greatest experience with non-triode push/pull tube amps. Often they sound even mushier than what people claim for SETs or they sound very "analytical" in the way one would hate for an SS amp to sound. Very few sound truly musical. I think many of these give tubes a bad name and I can easily see why many would prefer an excellent solid state amp over them (I could easily see myself preferring the BAT or an Ayre over many of the KT88 or EL34 crowd type amps).

I have had good experience with hybrid amps; both push/pull and single ended. In fact, the amps that I have found to be the most "right" are HYBRID single ended designs. Those from KR Audio for example or my current amp the NAT Symbiosis SE. Tonally and dynamically they outperform pretty much any SS amp you care to name and they have that single ended feeling as well. However, they are notably less bloomy and distorted in the bass (especially the NAT which acutally uses a big MOSFET in the output).

What this means is that it is not inherent that SS makes unreal sound it is just bad design. Mr. Pass has figured this out with his Fist Watt series that has converted many tube lovers. My own NAT also uses a single ended (and even single device) output without feedback to give a quite natural and uncolored sound.

I think the real reason people don't go down this road is cost. My NAT is 140 lbs. and big percentage of that is power supply weight. Huge power transformers and 4 chokes adds up. To get the most out requires a tightly regulated circuit. For a full tube amp it requires superb output transformers. This means that if corners are cut there then the amp will never live up to its potential and will likely come out flawed in some way. With a high feedback amp, parts are not critical because everything is being dominated by the effects of the feedback.

The biggest problem with SET amps is finding really good ones because the requirements for parts quality is so high. That is because without feedback and needing a great output transformer...everything matters in the design to affect the sound. If the things are properly addressed then the cost is usually very high. Cheap examples from China dilute the experience (although there are now good ones from China as well) and lead people on a lower budget astray and maybe they go back to other technologies in their disappointment.

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