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Re: Tube amps, what I have found

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In Reply to: Tube amps posted by Seano on June 07, 2000 at 13:24:06:

I use SET amps and a sub. With the MMG's this is what I have found with unmodified MMG's. 4.6w can drive them fine, but they do have a loudness limit. 9.2w did fine for my needs which appear to be like yours. Hows that for the low end of the power range ? Without a sub I found that 20w Triode tube amp did the trick nice, but I like more bass than they can put out. I have also used Adcom SS 60w and 100w amps. Any of the above tube amps sounded better Always ! If interested here is a link to the page were I bought my gear. Has a very good info section on it.
Tazsmonn
Minneapolis

SAS Audio Labs

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20 watts of tubes can be fine andy evans 02:55:37 06/08/00 (4)
I completely agree with Tazsmonn that it is the QUALITY of the amp not the SIZE that counts. Maggies are so transparent that what comes out is what goes in. You actually hear the amp, the different types of tube substitutions etc. I've heard my SMGa's through ss (too dry and one-dimensional, though tight if you like tight), through a big 100w CJ Premier 4 tube amp, and currently through a tiny Leak Stereo 20 with EL84's rated about 12 wpc. The CJ was nice, controlled, holographic and had particularly accurate instrument placing and natural tone to instruments (that's where ss was most lacking). With the Leak I get less control, less accurate soundstage, but the tone of instruments is better still - more natural and more "in the room". I happen to like the EL84 tube, and it sounds wonderful with Maggies. As you progressively use better sounding tubes still - 2a3, 6b4G, 300B - the Maggies give you progressively better sound. The midrange gets better and better, and you can almost touch the instruments. Voice and piano are uncanny, and sound practically real. The whole mythology about Maggies (give 'em wellie, connect them to a power station) is blinding listeners to advanced degrees of aural pleasure that come from connecting the best tubes known to man to one of the best speakers known to man. Now, that's the route to explore if you want shivers down your spine.
Andy
- Re: 20 watts of tubes can be fine paco 04:09:36 06/08/00 (3)
  do you know what is the maximum wattage obtainable with each of the
  tubes you mention?:
  EL84
  2a3
  6b4G
  300B
  i'm thinking of trying my 1.6 with tubes (i've got 7308 tubes
  just in my preamp), but they are 86db/4oh, which is difficult
  to drive!!
  thanks in advance
  best, paco
  - Tube power ratings andy evans 08:36:37 06/08/00 (2)
    The output power in Push-Pull (2 tubes in the output stage):
    6V6, 2a3: approx 10 watts per channel
    EL84, 6b4G: approx 12 watts per channel,
    300B, EL34 in triode: approx 15 watts per channel
    This is from memory - I could quote actual values if I looked up the data sheets. It depends how the tubes are run in the design, mainly on the anode voltage, e.g. both the 300B and the 6b4G can be run 'hotter' to give more output, though tubes last longer at lower voltages. For SET (single ended triode) designs you would get roughly half the above figures (normally one tube in output but can use two in parallel). If you ran four instead of two output tubes in push-pull, you would get corrspondingly more output. This is rarely done with the 2a3 and 300B because the tubes themselves are expensive, but is much more common with EL84, which are cheap. You will get a lot more info on the tubes and SET pages of the asylum.
    - Re: Tube power ratings paco 10:22:53 06/08/00 (1)
      unfortunately, 15w for my 1.6 in a rather big room, and hearing
      to wagner and the like seems to me impossible!
      what would you think of these?:
      http://www.centasound.com/sales/gsm260.html
      best, paco
      - Re: Tube power ratings andy evans 14:50:52 06/08/00 (0)
        
        In Reply to: Re: Tube power ratings posted by paco on June 08, 2000 at 10:22:53:
        
        Nice looking amps!Titanium yet! Ultralinear is cool - My EL84 amp is ultralinear. Not quite sure If I like the EL34/6550 enough to go that way. I had a big CJ Prem 4 with EL34s, and good though it was, I didn't fall in love with the Svetlana EL34s (the fat bottle GE 6ac7s however, were nice but not cheap) and I rather like the intimate sound of the Leak Stereo 20. Perverse maybe, but it's immediate and does something for me. I appreciate that your room is larger than mine and you speakers are a tad bigger too. You could try to dem a Push Pull 300B design - maybe that would just do it.... There are some other esoteric tube choices, of course, with higher ratings

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