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In Reply to: RE: No, Not Really !! posted by tube wrangler on October 09, 2009 at 00:08:07
It lost energy like a Yugo with a fuel system leak?! That's not what I and my friends have heard. Of course with TVCs, they're particular about system synergy and specifics like output impedance driving them, cap or direct coupled, input impedance, etc.
Donald North
Two different worlds here.If you've got an active preamp driving it and you have excess gain from an extra stage in your amp, then you'll not notice the attenuator losses.
What I've found is that taking that 3rd stage out of an amplifier and replacing it with a single one of high gain, doesn't yield quite the total gain of most 3 or 4 stage amps, but that is a moot point because those amps can't compare in overall fidelity to music and what some refer to as "jump factor"-- rhythm, pace and accurate event timing.
The simple two-stage amp simply walks all over amps with more active stages.
If you then merely add the 3rd stage back-- say, into an active preamp, then you're back to the same topology-- too many active stages.
So, if you're going to run the simple 2-stage amp and use a passive attenuator for a volume control, you will definately notice losses which occur in that attenuator.
I've noticed that, and since I'm not willing to go back to too many amp or preamp stages, I have built an attenuator that really rocks-- has almost unmeasurable signal losses or signal changes in character.
This approach has produced a system that excels in dynamics, correct rhythm, pace and event timing, and fine introspection into music's many attitudes, player's intentions and intents during a musical performance.
Today, the difference is just too great. I could never go back.
---Dennis---
Edits: 10/09/09
Dennis,It seems to me that there could be scope for trying a suitable pentode to drive the 2A3 in your amp, as per the original L-W. (I know that was actually a tetrode but you know what I mean.)
You might hopefully get the improved performance that others have discovered from such an arrangement. Maybe you could offer such a topology as an alternative to those who prefer the sound?
Edits: 10/12/09
Hi Ray,
Having just spent three full days listening to Dennis' amps at a show, (as I have done these last four years at RMAF) any change as you suggest would likely be a degrade.
They are superbly balanced, superb sounding, totally honest amps, just as they exist !! It is probably the best sounding low powered amp ever available as a manufactured product. At least, this is my own opinion, from all my own listening experiences in various systems.
Jeff Medwin
People's tastes differ and there are those who say they really like pentode drivers. I'm not suggesting it necessarily as an improvement, just an alternative that might be interesting to try.
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