The Most Powerful Tube Amplifier Ever Built

ok, again..., posted on November 6, 2009 at 19:02:11
LineArrayNut Audiophile Posts: 1921 Location: Tenn. Joined: December 10, 2002	they're conservatively rated at 200 watts each 1.5% THD, more like 340 at 4% THD wide bandwidth approaching 20 to 20 at rated power, 40 to 18 at peak and ran for 30 years straight - try that with sand, lol! I like the loudness button!

Here's a post from the same thread..., posted on November 3, 2009 at 11:28:24

Tom
Audiophile

Posts: 1503
Location: Arizona Desert
Joined: February 27, 2000
Contributor
Since: March 16, 2002

that describes an amp that just "might be" the "most powerful" (Class A anyway).....

(I wouldn't enter the same room with this thing without weating a fire suit.
)

Evil-E · 67 weeks ago
A little place in North Hollywood made a nice Class-A tube amp back in in the 1970's that used two Eimac 1000Z tubes and would easily top 1.5KW rms output!
Of course it had a plate transformer that weighed 200 lbs, a 2nd
transformer (for the filaments) that added another 40 lbs to the total..
..I think they were called Kenton Audio Laboratory..and the amp was
dubbed "The Theater Reference Amp". We had a pair of them at KPFK-FM studios in the listening room..driving a pair of stadium-series (double 15" drivers) Klipsche Horns. Sounded great!

NOS design - wonderful, posted on November 3, 2009 at 09:10:02
Bill Way Audiophile Posts: 841 Location: New York, NY Joined: June 22, 2001 Contributor Since: September 2, 2002	'Bout time someone dug out some of those NOS designs! WW There is NO substitute for the live performance.

RE: The Most Powerful Tube Amplifier Ever Built, posted on November 2, 2009 at 21:02:27
hahax@verizon.net Audiophile Posts: 815 Location: New Jersey Joined: March 22, 2006	Melos built triode mono blocks advertised at 400 watts(4 output tubes) but were actually capable of much more. Early models were well over 700 watts.

It's single ended folks ;^), posted on November 2, 2009 at 17:18:18

diamondsouled
Audiophile

Posts: 608
Location: The Great White North
Joined: May 2, 2007

Cheers

Lar

http://www.nataudio.com/products/Magma/Magma.htm

http://www.nataudio.com/products/Magma/Magma.htm

Even single ended..., posted on November 2, 2009 at 17:29:02

Jim Dowdy
Manufacturer

Posts: 1168
Location: western North Carolina
Joined: July 22, 2000

Josh was well beyond 200 SE Watts at VSAC 2003:

http://www.nutshellhifi.com/VSAC2003-2.html

RE: Even single ended..., posted on November 3, 2009 at 09:32:02
thermionic addictions Audiophile Posts: 433 Joined: June 16, 2006	I had no idea anyone had built an amp with the GM100's. I know Jim de Kort experimented with them some but as far as I know, never went much farther. I was tempted to buy a pair of them a few years ago but never did. Cool amp, how did it sound? Cal

RE: Even single ended..., posted on November 3, 2009 at 18:35:56

Ed Sawyer
Audiophile

Posts: 2158
Joined: November 3, 2000

it sounded pretty good, the whole experience was pretty much over the top. There wasn't much in the room to compare with it, but one just basked in the glow and didn't worry about it. ;-)

the amp that was the start of this thread is a poser amp for sure.

the real he-man Eimac 450TL amps to reckon with were those that Orey built back a while ago. Never saw them but the stories were outrageous! 450TL driving a push-pull pair of 450TLs (per channel)... completely insane!

LOL

-Ed

I never laughed so hard in my life..., posted on November 4, 2009 at 13:23:12
Ivan303 Audiophile Posts: 15825 Location: San Francisco Joined: February 26, 2001	as when Orey told of the PP 450TL amp which went "China syndrome" through the floor of the trailer he was living in when one of the output transformers decided to arc over and cause a plasma fire.

Made my day...."China syndrome", I can just picture it! LOL !8-))....(nt.), posted on November 4, 2009 at 13:40:28
twystd Audiophile Posts: 1663 Location: Austin,Texas Joined: December 9, 2000	.

RE: Even single ended..., posted on November 4, 2009 at 12:53:04
thermionic addictions Audiophile Posts: 433 Joined: June 16, 2006	Hi Ed That's cool, I guess Ill have to attend one of these shows sometime. Sounds like fun. Cal

Holy freakin moly!, posted on November 2, 2009 at 19:06:30
diamondsouled Audiophile Posts: 608 Location: The Great White North Joined: May 2, 2007	;^)

Not true..., posted on November 2, 2009 at 15:22:06

SET tube

As example, during 60s, 70s, chinese made hundreds of models of tube audio amps > 200 watts...
see the link below, click the "China Circuits"

China Cirucits

How soon they forget.... MC3500 ? and several others (nt), posted on November 2, 2009 at 14:40:22
Door Nail Audiophile Posts: 700 Joined: August 27, 2005	nt

Only 350 watts?, posted on November 2, 2009 at 14:51:25
E-Stat Audiophile Posts: 9838 Location: Central boonies Joined: May 12, 2000 Contributor Since: April 5, 2002	That's the output of my mid-range VTL MB-450s. OTOH, A Wotan monoblock weighs 250lb, uses twenty-four 6550/KT-88 outputs and produces over a kilowatt. rw

These can't be close to old PA systems?, posted on November 2, 2009 at 14:13:29
FenderLover Audiophile Posts: 3309 Joined: July 31, 2007 Contributor Since: May 17, 2009	Like ones at Yankee Stadium? Can they?

Not even close, posted on November 2, 2009 at 13:56:58

Donald North
Manufacturer

Posts: 910
Joined: February 8, 2001

Here's a high power brute: Shoreline 800

Donald North

Shoreline amplifiers

No kidding...:), posted on November 2, 2009 at 14:04:00
PakProtector Audiophile Posts: 9949 Joined: May 14, 2002	Consider the Altec 260; PP 813 for one. Now in the Eimac-final territory, one could do nutsy power with a pair of 304TL. I'm thinking 300W would be quite easy in AB1...:) cheers, Douglas Friend, I would not hurt thee for the world...but thou art standing where I am about to shoot.

Any AM Radio Station!, posted on November 2, 2009 at 13:08:48
gusser Audiophile Posts: 841 Location: So. California Joined: September 6, 2006	Any AM radio station that is using high level modulation has an audio amplifier that is roughly the power of the station RF output. High level AM modulation uses an audio amplifier to modulate the DC to the RF final.

RE: Any AM Radio Station!, posted on November 3, 2009 at 13:05:10
Michael Samra Dealer Posts: 13112 Location: saginaw michigan Joined: January 30, 2005 Contributor Since: June 24, 2005	Guesser The audio output power is usually 50% of the RF output as thats all thats needed with dual side band and carrier. Thats the way all of my AM transmitters are running but then I am using plate modulation. If the power supply waveform isn't pretty,neither is the sound in most cases.

Only with a pure sinewave., posted on November 3, 2009 at 13:17:58
gusser Audiophile Posts: 841 Location: So. California Joined: September 6, 2006	Real audio including including speech can on paper require more audio power than RF drive but practically speaking equal power is enough.

Complete marketing BS!, posted on November 2, 2009 at 12:56:50
Allen Wright Manufacturer Posts: 4729 Location: Schaffhausen Joined: January 31, 2002	There are any number of amplifiers on the current hifi market with more output power than these things. VTL just to name one brand. Regards, Allen

RE: The Most Powerful Tube Amplifier Ever Built, posted on November 2, 2009 at 12:41:10

Tom Bavis
Audiophile

Posts: 397
Location: Upstate NY
Joined: May 25, 2007

I've worked on 1000, 10,000, 50,000W tube amplifiers... but they were RF, not audio. How about the one on my website below? (by the way - "honker" refers to the claimed frequency response... sufficient for "Now hear this - Man your battle stations...)

Big honker

RE: The Most Powerful Tube Amplifier Ever Built, posted on November 2, 2009 at 12:35:40
LinuxGuru Audiophile Posts: 108 Joined: November 11, 2008	I have seen in Russian radio magazine 1200W tube amplifier with GU81M output stage and 3.5kV B+ voltage. Output transformer size is 26x36 sm. Fillament current for each GU81M is 11.5A. A real MONSTER !

RE: The Most Powerful Tube Amplifier Ever Built, posted on November 2, 2009 at 12:12:41

Doc B.
Manufacturer

Posts: 5755
Location: Pacific Northwest
Joined: October 6, 1999
Contributor
Since: July 1, 1999

Maybe SET, but certainly not tube amps in general. I've had 250W class B PP amps and IIRC Paul Weitzel's big monsters were 400W each. Here's a 1000W project -

http://www.chambonino.com/construct/const9.html

RE: The Most Powerful Tube Amplifier Ever Built, posted on November 2, 2009 at 22:05:49

becketma@yahoo.com
Audiophile

Posts: 958
Location: Sunny Tucson AZ
Joined: May 21, 2007

I've got a triode, 8877 that will do 2K out, 24 hours a day. Its RF tho.

A few years ago, I bought a BIGGER! plate xformer for it--seem to remember it being 8KV. Something about just 4KV that gives me pause. I never installed the xformer. But, its OK, cause the thing is simply a thing of beauty to look at.

Best
Bob
"He (R.M. Nixon) was a foul caricature of himself, a man with no soul, no inner convictions, with the integrity of a hyena, and the style of a poison toad." H. S. Thompson

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