Silbatone preamplifier

dr k

VIP/Donor
Aug 4, 2016
218
102
260
California
Last edited:

bonzo75

Member Sponsor
Feb 26, 2014
22,443
13,473
2,710
London
So here is a very interesting company out of South Korea. They make some of the most expensive and innovative tube preamp, amp, and DACs. If I won the lottery, I'd go for there TOL line/phono preamp, the C-100. BTW, it's only $100K. My second choice would be the L-101.
http://www.silbatoneacoustics.com/refpre.html

Third choice would be the C-102.
http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/0202/silbatone.htm

Anyone have one?

No but go every year to Munich to spend time in their room.
 

bonzo75

Member Sponsor
Feb 26, 2014
22,443
13,473
2,710
London
So how do their room sound?

Apart from 2016 it's been the best which is why i go every year to sit there and listen to some music. But large part are the big western electric horns these electronics drive, and the restored idlers by Schick and Schroeder
 

dr k

VIP/Donor
Aug 4, 2016
218
102
260
California
Apart from 2016 it's been the best which is why i go every year to sit there and listen to some music. But large part are the big western electric horns these electronics drive, and the restored idlers by Schick and Schroeder

Great to hear! Did it sound better than your system? A properly setup Apogee speaker is some of the best sound I've ever heard. But a properly setup Apogee is rare.
 

bonzo75

Member Sponsor
Feb 26, 2014
22,443
13,473
2,710
London
Great to hear! Did it sound better than your system? A properly setup Apogee speaker is some of the best sound I've ever heard. But a properly setup Apogee is rare.

Hi I don't have speakers now, plan to get apogee or horns when I get a new place. But to your question, yes a properly set up apogee is rare, best I have heard are Apogee grands in Holland, there is an excellent Duetta system in NY, a Scintilla system in Liechenstein. I have not heard the Full Range system close to you in Texas.

Does the Western Electric system exceed the Grands system? In some ways yes, in some ways no. Silbatone also has their own horns in that room, some models that cost 150 or 200k. Can these be bettered? Yes. Ideal system will retain the naturalness of of the WE sound with some crossovers from the modern high end sound, in of course a smaller size. Unfortunately this is best done by DIY horns, which means it is not an easy answer as you need to look around for someone under the radar who has designed a good DIY horn. And there are many c*ap ones.
 
Last edited:

awsmone

Well-Known Member
Apr 6, 2014
1,616
513
435
Canberra Australia
So here is a very interesting company out of South Korea. They make some of the most expensive and innovative tube preamp, amp, and DACs. If I won the lottery, I'd go for there TOL line/phono preamp, the C-100.;) BTW, it's only $100K. My second choice would be the L-101.
http://www.silbatoneacoustics.com/refpre.html

Third choice would be the C-102.
http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/0202/silbatone.htm

Anyone have one?

Yes I have heard the Silbatone phono and pre and amps

Wonderful musical, detailed but in the aid of the music

Excellent timbre

Yes they are expensive but very advanced designs with magnificent build quality above esoteric

Their boosted 300b technology is fascinating and works
 

bonzo75

Member Sponsor
Feb 26, 2014
22,443
13,473
2,710
London
What is boosted 300b tech? At Munich they play 300b and 300a, each valve costing around 10k USD
 

awsmone

Well-Known Member
Apr 6, 2014
1,616
513
435
Canberra Australia
They make two types of valve amps
Straight 45 or 300b

And a hybrid version which runs mosfets as a current source in parallel which boosts the current drive

A bit like current dumping

I heard these driving very difficult speaker loads and was very impressive

Means u can have a 300b which can drive difficult loads
 

853guy

Active Member
Aug 14, 2013
1,161
10
38
awsmonw said:
What is boosted 300b tech? At Munich they play 300b and 300a, each valve costing around 10k USD
They make two types of valve amps
Straight 45 or 300b

And a hybrid version which runs mosfets as a current source in parallel which boosts the current drive

A bit like current dumping

I heard these driving very difficult speaker loads and was very impressive

Means u can have a 300b which can drive difficult loads

Hello gents,

In Munich they bi-amped the Mirrorphonics: the RP-300 Mk II for the mids and highs and a pair of RP30W hybrid monos for the two field-coil 4181a 18” drivers in W-cabs.

853guy
 

gian60

Well-Known Member
Apr 17, 2016
2,503
1,943
343
I was interesting in integrated amp Reference 300 2 years ago and i asked price
They did price usd 75.000,then plus shipping,VAT and duty i stop to think about it
 

dr k

VIP/Donor
Aug 4, 2016
218
102
260
California
Yes I have heard the Silbatone phono and pre and amps

Wonderful musical, detailed but in the aid of the music

Excellent timbre

Yes they are expensive but very advanced designs with magnificent build quality above esoteric

Their boosted 300b technology is fascinating and works

I'm jealous. Unfortunately I know of no one in the US who has Silbatone electronics.
 

dr k

VIP/Donor
Aug 4, 2016
218
102
260
California
Hi I don't have speakers now, plan to get apogee or horns when I get a new place. But to your question, yes a properly set up apogee is rare, best I have heard are Apogee grands in Holland, there is an excellent Duetta system in NY, a Scintilla system in Liechenstein. I have not heard the Full Range system close to you in Texas.

Does the Western Electric system exceed the Grands system? In some ways yes, in some ways no. Silbatone also has their own horns in that room, some models that cost 150 or 200k. Can these be bettered? Yes. Ideal system will retain the naturalness of of the WE sound with some crossovers from the modern high end sound, in of course a smaller size. Unfortunately this is best done by DIY horns, which means it is not an easy answer as you need to look around for someone under the radar who has designed a good DIY horn. And there are many c*ap ones.

The best I've ever heard Apogee sound was the Duetta set up by the late Jason Bloom with Meitner solid state mono blocks and analogue turn table. It was over 30 years ago but still fresh in my aural memory. I've also heard the Full Range and Caliper and owned the Centaur Major and Stage, but have not heard Scintilla or Grand.
 

dr k

VIP/Donor
Aug 4, 2016
218
102
260
California
I was interesting in integrated amp Reference 300 2 years ago and i asked price
They did price usd 75.000,then plus shipping,VAT and duty i stop to think about it

Kondo and Wavac territory. Hate to see what they're asking now.
 

About us

  • What’s Best Forum is THE forum for high end audio, product reviews, advice and sharing experiences on the best of everything else. This is THE place where audiophiles and audio companies discuss vintage, contemporary and new audio products, music servers, music streamers, computer audio, digital-to-analog converters, turntables, phono stages, cartridges, reel-to-reel tape machines, speakers, headphones and tube and solid-state amplification. Founded in 2010 What’s Best Forum invites intelligent and courteous people of all interests and backgrounds to describe and discuss the best of everything. From beginners to life-long hobbyists to industry professionals, we enjoy learning about new things and meeting new people, and participating in spirited debates.

Quick Navigation

User Menu

Steve Williams
Site Founder | Site Owner | Administrator
Ron Resnick
Site Co-Owner | Administrator
Julian (The Fixer)
Website Build | Marketing Managersing