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power for Tannoys?

Rockmeister

pfm Member
Tannoy Cheviots from the new Legacy range possibly.
Current amp, Luxman 505, 125 wpc of very clean and neutral (opinions opinions ;)) sounding amp.

I would ofc keep it and try it as option 1, but I was musing on other solutions because:
I have long thought that valves and Tannoys worked well, but I also happen to find that most of the 'valve sound' comes from the pre amp side of things. Maybe that's just me but anyway.
It occurs that I might find a good tannoy driving system with a valve preamp and some class D mono power amps. I won't need massive power but class D amps can be sensible prices, and I could therefore afford some very decent components in front of them.
An MC phono stage is required (or MM +SUT).
Is that possible? Any experience / ideas?

Budget? Well if, as I suspect the 505 is too clean sounding, my other path would be to go for class A SS, and then Luxmans 590 AX would be a no brainer. That'd cost me around £5000 with the 505 traded in I'd guess so there or less would be about right. Quad sounds interesting but I couldn't make much sense on their website.

(ps. This is another fantasy! Please don't link to for sale adds etc, I'm theorising here, for the present).
 
I heard another member’s big Tannoys powered by Luxman class A and it was a beautiful match. They also worked very nicely with a Devialet plugged in.
 
Yes I think class A would be a sure fire safe method to drive them well, and just wanted to see if a valve pre/class d power was even electronically possible as some new experiment.
 
I have rubber surround 12” MGs (somewhere between paper surround Golds and HPDs) in Chatsworth cabs.

I’ve settled on a First Watt M2 with a Concordant valve pre. I preferred this set-up by a decent margin to a Radford-derived all-valve integrated (though I could have happily lived with it). I’ve used this valve pre / SS power format for ages now and no longer have the itch for power valves in my system. Investing in some excellent NOS signal valves has made all the difference.

If you just want to play before spending a lot of money I’d suggest getting a serviced quad 306 and a suitable valve pre. If you like that you can investigate ‘proper’ class A power amps. I really rate the First Watt kit. A noticeable step up over Sugden and Quad IME - and can be had cheap if you don’t mind a DIY version (mine has cost me about £600, the production version retails for £3.5K). The F6 might be a good bet if you’re used to all that clean power. The M2 is a little more laid back.

If you’re ever in Edinburgh you’re welcome to have a listen.
 
I have rubber surround 12” MGs (somewhere between paper surround Golds and HPDs) in Chatsworth cabs.

I’ve settled on a First Watt M2 with a Concordant valve pre. I preferred this set-up by a decent margin to a Radford-derived all-valve integrated (though I could have happily lived with it). I’ve used this valve pre / SS power format for ages now and no longer have the itch for power valves in my system. Investing in some excellent NOS signal valves has made all the difference.

If you just want to play before spending a lot of money I’d suggest getting a serviced quad 306 and a suitable valve pre. If you like that you can investigate ‘proper’ class A power amps. I really rate the First Watt kit. A noticeable step up over Sugden and Quad IME - and can be had cheap if you don’t mind a DIY version (mine has cost me about £600, the production version retails for £3.5K).

If you’re ever in Edinburgh you’re welcome to have a listen.
Kind offer thank you. I wnt to read about first watt...I had of them but not listened. The design details are beyond my level of knowledge but they do sound like something that should be heard, and at that price, much less than the Luxman, or an Accuphase!
 
Tannoy Cheviots from the new Legacy range possibly.
Current amp, Luxman 505, 125 wpc of very clean and neutral (opinions opinions ;)) sounding amp.

I would ofc keep it and try it as option 1, but I was musing on other solutions because:
I have long thought that valves and Tannoys worked well, but I also happen to find that most of the 'valve sound' comes from the pre amp side of things. Maybe that's just me but anyway.
It occurs that I might find a good tannoy driving system with a valve preamp and some class D mono power amps. I won't need massive power but class D amps can be sensible prices, and I could therefore afford some very decent components in front of them.
An MC phono stage is required (or MM +SUT).
Is that possible? Any experience / ideas?

Budget? Well if, as I suspect the 505 is too clean sounding, my other path would be to go for class A SS, and then Luxmans 590 AX would be a no brainer. That'd cost me around £5000 with the 505 traded in I'd guess so there or less would be about right. Quad sounds interesting but I couldn't make much sense on their website.

(ps. This is another fantasy! Please don't link to for sale adds etc, I'm theorising here, for the present).

I reckon as you say that it is just you!:)

There is no specific sound to a class A amp BTW... They can sound anything from clinical to warm just as any other class can...
 
Probably is :)
as to sound I am inexperienced re class A SS amps. Never owned one and heard just a couple (Lux and Accuphase) both of which had a similar something 'organic' about them but anyway.
Is it poss to run the output from a valve pre into class D power amp(s) ?
I mean electronic matching/safety etc all ok?
 
Probably is :)
as to sound I am inexperienced re class A SS amps. Never owned one and heard just a couple (Lux and Accuphase) both of which had a similar something 'organic' about them but anyway.
Is it poss to run the output from a valve pre into class D power amp(s) ?
I mean electronic matching/safety etc all ok?

The class of a power amp has zero influence on what you can drive it with. Hence generally yes you can drive a class D power amp with a valve pre.
 
Trying to remember if I pared my Chatsworths with my Luxman 505 but it was a period of much hifi ****ety and swapping at the time. Wish I still owned them both. Great speakers and amp.
 
I used to use Quad 405's in the mid 70s to power most Large Tannoy Speakers.
Luxman amps in the mid 70s into the 80s were a little bit to smooth for me.
Fantastic build quality but just a little to polite for me
 
Tell the kids of today about the fantastic home build Tannoy speaker kits and car speakers You could buy in the mid 70s.
They don't have a clue.:(
 
Trying to remember if I pared my Chatsworths with my Luxman 505 but it was a period of much hifi ****ety and swapping at the time. Wish I still owned them both. Great speakers and amp.
The poor speakers, they must have thought they’d been taken to a swingers club. Why can’t people be faithful to one speaker for life?
 
great thread , and i can imagine ref 3 with some class d would sound amazing . a21se would give a very fast , dynamic sound which would be most compelling

i am sure the various gato offerings would be good too . as you know from the other thread i have used a good many amps now with the tannoy legacy and currently getting superb results with a bel canto pre and some ice power monoblocks which were rather good value . the thrax i mentioned i think would be too much money

i would stick with your luxman 505 , i am sure it will sound sublime . there are so many good deals on the cheviot especially s/h that it gives plenty of scope for different amps
 


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