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SET Amp recommendations?

Simon said:
I love the obsessive wiring in some Japanese equipment. Look at this old Shindo 300B mono amp. It must have taken ages to do this so beautifully. When there was a pair, such as with this mono amp, they were identical. This attention to detail bodes well for overall outcome. Would you spend the time if the design was naff.

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Simon
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It is just beautiful, very 1950s Leak or Quad-like, an artisan quality from a sadly lost era. Like these vintage amps it will still be serviceable in half a century’s time when all our current Chinese IC and surface-mount crap has been polluting landfill for 30 years or so. I have huge respect for the Japanese audiophile mindset, I suspect I belong there more than here to be honest! They really know what they are doing.
 
eastone said:
Glad to see you're still using the Kora - I thought it had a glorious sound. But it was very EL84 - clear and with a bell-like, chiming quality.

I'd have thought you'd be better off looking for a similarly powered EL34 integrated which might offer you the extra warmth your after.
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Thanks eastone,
Your suggestion on EL34 is pretty much in line with my current thoughts.
A nice integrated would also allow me to ditch my preamp and also raise the budget a tad.

On active crossovers, I'm not ready for that one just yet although it was recommended by many on the Martin Logan owners website for my SL3's.

On FET and other SS based amps, I did try Lyngdorf class D and Arcam class G and various other SS and whilst great with bass did not quite meet the need for warmth in upper frequencies.

On specific amp suggestions, thanks for those - now researching.
Any other warm tube based recommendations welcome....could go to £1.5k at a push for something special
 
On the EL34 tip, I was very impressed with the Eastern Electric M520 which can be had for less than £1K second hand. It allows you to tune the sound with 3 settings for negative feedback that all alter the sound in subtle but noticeable ways. It can also be used as a power amp if you needed to add some gain.

I know you've ruled out SS, but since you don't mention Class A amps I think you really owe it to yourself to borrow a Sugden A21a for a listen (the series 2 version). It's a truly euphonic sound and a noted match for Proacs. If its 25 watts are enough for your needs you might be in for a pleasant surprise. There is also a power amp variant which is very happy with a valve pre.
 
That is a thing of beauty, Simon.

I would put my hat in the ring for a simple, low-complexity, low power SET into the right speakers (i.e; efficient). Case in point is Tony's Decware Zen (http://www.decware.com/newsite/SE84CKC.html). I owned a pair of these some years back before the "UFO" transformer upgrade existed along with pair of Decware Radials which I still have (http://www.decware.com/cgi-bin/yabb22/YaBB.pl?num=1279652029) Leaving efficiency aside for a moment....they also ran into a pair of Quad ESL 57 with slightly less success.

Speaking for the Zens they have Sound staging to die for when properly matched to drivers and I absolutely loved them. Which is why I snapped up Tony's last week. ;-)

Worth noting a similar point made elsewhere in this thread and echo'd by Steve @ Decware: "If the 1st watt sucks, why continue?"

Steve
 
eastone said:
On the EL34 tip, I was very impressed with the Eastern Electric M520 which can be had for less than £1K second hand. It allows you to tune the sound with 3 settings for negative feedback that all alter the sound in subtle but noticeable ways. It can also be used as a power amp if you needed to add some gain.

I know you've ruled out SS, but since you don't mention Class A amps I think you really owe it to yourself to borrow a Sugden A21a for a listen (the series 2 version). It's a truly euphonic sound and a noted match for Proacs. If its 25 watts are enough for your needs you might be in for a pleasant surprise. There is also a power amp variant which is very happy with a valve pre.
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I have tried an older Sugden A21a power amp (black with gold lettering) and out of the SS amps I really liked it, so class A is clearly a preference for me.
I was tempted to try another one but I think I go straight to tubes.

The EE M520...will do some digging on that one...thanks for recommendation.

I was also tempted by the previously suggested Audion Sterling 20th Anniversary EL34 (rated at 12W and for 89db) but they are quite expensive....
 
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thebiglebowski said:
Trying to run the ProAc tweeters off a 2 Watt amp is crazy.
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Agree, 2W is too low...
The Proac tweeters are rated at 89db I believe and with no woofer to drive, what power level is reasonable to run at low-mid volumes on a small/med room?
For example the Audion EL34 at 12W?
 
malcesine said:
Thanks for everyone's feedback - it seems there is no support for pairing my Proac tweeters with an SET amp.
I (wrongly?) thought that driving the tweeter on its own would work quite well with very low power valve amplification.

Moving away from Biamping is simply not possible for a number of setup reasons in my system.

With my amp choice I am not looking to tame very aggressive highs, they actually sound very good - musical, detailed, but just occasionally slightly clinical and not quite as lush as I would ideally like.

I don't mind getting it wrong and having to change amp again.
Ultimately I am looking to get the warmest (even coloured!) sound I can from those tweeters.

Perhaps a pure class A tube setup would be a better fit?
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Sorry if this is late in the game, but this sounds like a source problem not an amp problem.

Biamping with two non-identical or at least very similar Amps is a real nerdforest and fools game. Why have the signal going through to your speakers drivers through radically different circuits? It almost never works even when the gain is matched. As earlier mentioned the impedence on your proacs tweeters won't present an easy load to any SET amp.... I can think of at least five reasons why this is a bad idea.

What strikes me though is that if you're saying you like the presentation but sometimes the top end is a bit jarring on your system..... Look at upgrading the source. That's what I would do.
 
yuckyamson said:
What strikes me though is that if you're saying you like the presentation but sometimes the top end is a bit jarring on your system..... Look at upgrading the source.
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Could be the source but also the amplification or even the speakers.
 
G T Audio said:
I sincerely hope people interested to know about SET amplifiers do a lot more research than just reading this thread...
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I did a lot of research - with my ears !! - listening to many different types of amps and systems as you know.
Various people and members systems, dealers, borrows, etc. So i did the research and spent my own hard earned dosh.
Those who know me, know i would not buy something out of charity - it delivers the goods or it doesn't.
 
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