That's all very true plus they shouldn't be used into typical speakers! The latter point is very important.There are a lot of terrible sounding SETs and SE s out there.And a few really good sounding ones.
You also need to be aware that the quoted power outputs are far from being accurate .Well maybe at 10% distortion.A 300B SET for example is more like 4 or 5 watts not 9 watts.
The other consideration is that they have high output impedance so will not reproduce a flat frequency response into typical speakers.
A 300B SET for example is more like 4 or 5 watts not 9 watts.
The lifetime warranty on Decware is impressive - do you know how that works in the UK though as I can't seem to find any dealers? Not knocking it, just wondering.
My Border Patrol 300B SET is 8w . . . . . unless you think Gary Dews was a bit optimistic in his wattage but I doubt it? Anyway it drives my Spendor 100 and 200 speakers very nicely.
If you are thinking of going down single ended valve amp route, listen to the TRON Atlantic integrated 300B. Sounds excellent, would work very well with your LVs, is made and supported in the UK, and you could offset the cost by selling your preamp.
Makes senseI had a Zen UFO for a while. Buying a Decware basically means importing it yourself, i.e. you buy it from their website, it is shipped from the USA and slowly wings its way to you. Mine spent two or three weeks stuck with the Bottom Inspectors at Heathrow, I had a lot of hassle getting it released as at that point it had gone off the books of the first courier but hadn’t quite made it to Royal Mail or whoever did the final leg. I never had any cause to use the warranty, but my guess would be that Decware would give advice and send parts for you to do any service yourself. They really are as simple as an amp can possibly be with just a handful of high quality components and point to point wiring, so anyone who can solder neatly and understand simple advice could fix one. Really nothing to fear, this is very serviceable hi-fi.
How is anyone supposed to know what is too expensive if you still haven't said what your budget is?
All I'm seeing so far is you looking for affirmation on the decware so just buy it.
OK so a mid range decware (they range from $1000 - $5500) is around $2,500 add on import costs and you are looking at around £2,500
In that case I'd snap up the Border Patrol SE300B that is on ebay at the moment, for £2.5k you won't find better.
Well the UFO recommended to me by Steve is 900 dollars for 2 Watts, or buy two of them for 6 Watts. Yes that Border Patrol SE300B looks like a good deal but, I certainly wouldn't be confident with the phrase "you won't find better" - Decware could be its equal or even better. Isn't Border Patrol yet another US brand?