Ss surprises in my tube world

mep

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Sometimes good things come out of bad situations. The last time my Jadis Defy 7 MKII suffered a tube failure, I had to press my back-up SS amp into service while I was waiting for a new bank of 3 matched KT-88 tubes from Kevin Deal to arrive. The funny thing is, the back-up amp hasn’t left my system for more than a night as the Jadis just can’t come off the bench and stay in the starting line-up anymore. And if the Jadis was the better sounding amp, it would be back full-time in my system. I find all of this slightly embarrassing. Giving up my Jadis for an old SS amp is kind of like getting caught by your buddies out on the town on a date with a fat girl.


And no one is more surprised than me, and I’m surprised on many different levels. I swore off SS amps back in the 1980s after I heard how much better the midrange was through an ST-70 vice the juiced up Hafler DH-220 I was using at the time. Since the ST-70, there has been a long list of tube amps that I have owned: ARC D-76, D-76A, D-70 MKII, D-79A, and the VT-100 MKII. I have owned the Quicksilver V4s and a pair of the Quicksilver MS-190s with triode boards. I still have my Jadis Defy 7 MKII. I am no stranger to tube amps.

During the time that I have owned the above mentioned tube amps, I have had numerous SS amps grace my system and I was always happy to pack them back up and take them back to the guy who wanted me to hear them. There is one I would love to have back and take another listen to, and that is the Symphonic Line amp. I heard that amp in my system before I bought the Definitive Technology BP-7000SC speakers I now own. I had previously bought an older McIntosh SS amp to use as a backup for when my tube amp went down (and make no mistake, your tube amps will go down at some point). The few times I pressed the McIntosh into service, I couldn’t stand it and the point of having it as a backup amp became pointless so I sold it.

I have mentioned this before, but my backup SS amp is the *lowly* Phase Linear 400 Series 2. Not only is this a SS amp, it’s an old SS amp. The original PL 400 was designed by Bob Carver. I believe the Series 2 was made after Carver left Phase Linear and the Series 2 incorporated some design changes that made it more stable and sound better. I think there was even a further design change when Pioneer bought Phase Linear and the last of the 400 Series 2 amps rolled off the production line. I don’t know which version of the Series 2 that I have, I just know I have the *right* one.

Now I know some of you have owned the PL-400 before and scoff at it (and do tell whether it was the original or Series 2). And I know there are plenty more of you that haven’t heard it and will still scoff at it because it’s old, cheap, and just can’t be any good. I can’t speak for what the original 400 sounded like; I can only talk about what my Series 2 sounds like. If you have owned or spent considerable time with a Series 2 and you want me to tell me it’s a bad sounding amp, I will just smile.

My system has never sounded better since I have been using the PL 400 Series 2 amp. This amp is a marriage made in heaven with my speakers. Even though my speakers have a high sensitivity and some weird impedance (*compatible* with 8 ohms says the specs. What the hell does that mean?) and should be a perfect match with a tube amp, this SS amp just crushes other tube amps with these speakers. My speakers love the power and current drive from this amp. My last SS amp I owned was the Pass Labs X-250 which never sounded worth a crap on my speakers and so I sold it. I think now the bad sound was caused by a mismatch between my tube preamp’s output impedance and the input impedance of the X-250. The X-250 weighs around 100 lbs and puts out 250 watts that sounded like 20 watts at my house. PL 400 Series 2 puts out almost as much power as the X-250 and weighs less than half.

And none of the above would matter if the damn thing didn’t sound so good. And it does. I think it’s time I got off the amplifier merry-go-round because with my speakers, I have the right amplifier. All of my sources have never sounded better. I can’t believe how much time I spend listening to digital music now. Great digital recordings don’t sound like great digital recordings. They just sound like great recordings. And I didn’t know I would ever say that. I never knew how good my digital rig was until I put this amp into my system. And I have to give some props to the E-MU 0404 DAC. This cheap DAC sounds incredible. When you factor in that you can buy one for around $200, it’s crazy good.

When I think about the fact that I can probably buy two PL 400 Series 2 amps on the used market for less than the cost of a new set of tubes for my Jadis Defy 7 MKII, it kind of puts things into perspective. I guess there is some irony that I’m driving the PL with a tube preamp that I have over $5k invested in.

When I ask myself why everything suddenly sounds the best it ever has, there is only one answer. So now I’m happy that my Jadis blew an output tube. Otherwise, the PL would still be sitting on a shelf in my workshop room and I wouldn’t know how good my system could really sound. And trust me, if all you heard was my Jadis, you would most probably think the system sounded very good.
 

RogerD

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May 23, 2010
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Hi Mark,

I think that's a trend as the price of NOS tubes continues to escalate. I like the speed and dynamics of my SS amps.

Have you tried running your Ampex 350's through your tape monitor switch on your preamp(if it has one)? I listened to mine through my Accuphase preamp with CD's and I get the best of both worlds.

I have my Vac 140's and they sit as my SS amps have qualities that the VAC's don't.

How's the RFI/EMI tweaks working? try adding a ferrite from leadertech on to your PC's. I think you will be surprised at the difference they make.

I use the CS28B1500 as they fit my NBS PC's perfectly. I order them from Mouser electronics and ship 1st class mail. The best 22 bucks I have spent in a while.

http://leadertechinc.com/PDFs/ferrites/CS28B1642.pdf
 

mep

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Roger-The output of my 350s are feeding one of the line inputs on my preamp so I don't see how I could do what you suggested.
 

RogerD

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Roger-The output of my 350s are feeding one of the line inputs on my preamp so I don't see how I could do what you suggested.

That's fine.

With my Accuphase I have the 350's connected to a pair of tape outputs and inputs. I have my source set at my DAC and then switch the Tape in. The DAC signal will then route through the Ampex record side and through the preamp tape section. I have the Ampex record level matched to my preamp level so I can switch back and forth and compare the Accuphase preamp to the Ampex signal.

Anyway maybe the Accuphase is unique in this regard.

You have a tube preamp so it's not the same as I have, the Accuphase is SS so it's just a way for me to get a tube circuit into the loop.
 

Bruce B

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I've had numerous tube units. The best pre was the CAT Ultimate and the best amp was an ARC VT-130. I had sworn off SS until I heard the Pass Labs XA series. I wouldn't use any other now.
 

Phelonious Ponk

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Congratulations, Mark. If it sounds better, that's all that matters. Are you not using the Yamaha preamp anymore?

Great digital recordings don’t sound like great digital recordings. They just sound like great recordings.

That's the way they sound to me. As a computer source user, it's an interesting exercise to put the entire collection on shuffle and listen to the radical differences between recordings. The big differences are not between digital and analog, but between good and bad. Good digital and the best analog recordings sound very similar. But a leap from either to a poorly mastered modern pop recording, a bad transfer to digital of an old analog, or simply a bad recording can be jarring.

Tim
 

mep

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Tim-I'm using my Counterpoint SA-5.1 at this time and it sounds so good, I haven't had the nagging itch to put the C2a back in. The dust hasn't settled on that battle yet and the Yamaha will get another chance.

Mark
 

Phelonious Ponk

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Tim-I'm using my Counterpoint SA-5.1 at this time and it sounds so good, I haven't had the nagging itch to put the C2a back in. The dust hasn't settled on that battle yet and the Yamaha will get another chance.

Mark

Well, good to have options. I sure wouldn't let that Yamaha go. It's a great little preamp.


Tim
 

mep

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Tim-The guy that sold it to me begged me to sell it back to him. He was willing to pay me what I paid plus the shipping both ways. I refused. This preamp isn't going anywhere. Even if I come to the final conclusion that the 5.1 is much the better (which is yet to be determined), I'm keeping the C2a because it sure is nice to have something that good waiting in reserve.

Mark
 

microstrip

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I've had numerous tube units. The best pre was the CAT Ultimate and the best amp was an ARC VT-130. I had sworn off SS until I heard the Pass Labs XA series. I wouldn't use any other now.

Both great equipment. But you could not connect one to the other as the VT130 was only XLR. :(

I owned the VT130 larger cousins - the VT150's - and I still think that coupled to Quad ESL63s they made the best reproduction of a soprano voice I have ever listened to.

Did you try the CAT Ultimate driving the Pass Labs XA's?
 

mep

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Both great equipment. But you could not connect one to the other as the VT130 was only XLR. :(

I owned the VT130 larger cousins - the VT150's - and I still think that coupled to Quad ESL63s they made the best reproduction of a soprano voice I have ever listened to.

Did you try the CAT Ultimate driving the Pass Labs XA's?

Probably any good amp lashed up to the ESL-63 speakers would make a soprano voice sound great. The ESL-63 speakers are all about the midrange. No bottom end and a very limited loudness level before they come apart, but beautiful when kept within their comfort window. And with RCA to XLR adapters, you could have hooked up the CAT preamp to the VT-130 amps.
 

Phelonious Ponk

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Tim-The guy that sold it to me begged me to sell it back to him. He was willing to pay me what I paid plus the shipping both ways. I refused. This preamp isn't going anywhere. Even if I come to the final conclusion that the 5.1 is much the better (which is yet to be determined), I'm keeping the C2a because it sure is nice to have something that good waiting in reserve.

Mark

A back-up plan is always a good thing.

Tim
 

mep

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A back-up plan is always a good thing.

Tim

Specially when you use tubes. By the way, the C2a is a slim profile preamp, but it is very wide and very deep. It's also heavy. The finish on them turns that purple color that Class A components tend to do over time because of the heat. I think it is a lovely color.
 

JackD201

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Prince Purple or Deep Purple Purple? ;)
 

microstrip

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Probably any good amp lashed up to the ESL-63 speakers would make a soprano voice sound great. The ESL-63 speakers are all about the midrange. No bottom end and a very limited loudness level before they come apart, but beautiful when kept within their comfort window. And with RCA to XLR adapters, you could have hooked up the CAT preamp to the VT-130 amps.

Although many good amplifiers could sound good on the ESL63 (and I used many , defy 7 included ...) the VT150 was really something special, almost as good as the Futterman OTL3.

BTW, most ARC amplifiers having only XLR inputs lack the inverter in the input and can not be used with RCA - XLR adapters. The VT130 and the VT150 belong to that group.
 

flez007

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?...During the time that I have owned the above mentioned tube amps, I have had numerous SS amps grace my system and I was always happy to pack them back up and take them back to the guy who wanted me to hear them. There is one I would love to have back and take another listen to, and that is the Symphonic Line amp. I heard that amp in my system before I bought the Definitive Technology BP-7000SC speakers I now own......

I just bought one (RG14 edition)... It sounds good to me...
 

mep

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I bet it does sound good! I hope you are happy with it.
 

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