Budget starter amp for Tekton FE167 speakers

jk@home · « **on:** 15 Mar 2009, 01:14 pm »

I just purchased a pair of used Tekton monitors, to try the single driver flavor for the first time (haven’t received them yet). They're going in a smallish room, almost nearfield, complimented with a Rythmik subwoofer.

http://trade.audioasylum.com/ca/listing/Speakers-Monitor/Tekton/6-quot-Fostex-FE167/custom-fiddleback-maple-speakers/21227

Looking to replace a CI passive pre/Aragon 8002 combo, with a budget integrated hi-eff. amp. Thinking I need no more than 5 watts for the Tektons. Will the digital T-amps work OK with these speakers, or do I need to save up for a SET?

The new Virtue integrated T-amps look interesting, since they come with a sub out. And the price is right

http://store.virtueaudio.com/product-p/vrtu-ia-ap11-1.htm

jrebman · « **Reply #1 on:** 15 Mar 2009, 01:51 pm »

JK,

One man's opinion, but based on owning many SD speakers and using them with all kinds of amps, these speakers will really sound their best and show off their full potential with a tube amp.

Pacicific Valve has a nice little el84 integrated with headphone output for less than $400 that would work really great with these. Don't know what your budget or source is, but there are quite a few small, affordable 5-10 watt tube amps in the $300 - $600 price range that should make these speakers very happy.

Depending on your personal tastes and such, the t-amps like the vertue, etc. may sound a bit aggressive, especially on the high end. On the plus side, bass and dynamics will most likely be better.

General rule of thumb: tone, sweetness, and clean upper end -- tube amp; slam, bass authority and control, SS.

Again, just a general recommendation to which there will of course be exceptions on both sides. I've not heard the vertue amp myself, so it may be one.

Good luck,

Jim

jk@home · « **Reply #2 on:** 15 Mar 2009, 02:45 pm »

Thanks, my budget could handle the Pacific Valve, looks interesting, will check it out. I know I can drive the FRs with the Aragon, but eventually want to move it into another system.

So it's one of those situations where, budget wise, I can afford a $200 product now, $600 three months from now. I want to give the Tektons a fair shake, and have read something about amps with low damping factor? (like tubes) work better with single driver speakers.

This system is my home/office music only "cheapskate" rig. My source into the passive pre is a Channel Island VDA-2 DAC w/ the upgraded power supply, using a Behringer DEQ upstream not only as an eq, but source selector for a Squeezebox SB3, Moto cable box (music choice) and OPPO for SACD.

acresm22 · « **Reply #3 on:** 16 Mar 2009, 03:53 am »

Another amp to consider is the Glow Amp One. Do a search here on AC...lots of favorable feedback here and elsewhere. I agree with jrebman, a nice lil tube amp will make the Tektons sing. The Glow is inexpensive to begin with, but you can also find them used on Agon now and then for cheaper still.

jk@home · « **Reply #4 on:** 16 Mar 2009, 11:18 am »

Now that's a nice looking unit!

Mariusz · « **Reply #5 on:** 16 Mar 2009, 12:16 pm »

It sounds as good as it looks too.
If USB DAC quality is high on your list,
You might want to look into newer offering from Glow.
I personally haven't heard the new amp yet but reports indicate great improvements in DAC quality and overall performance.
As far as amplification is concern - it should be more then adequate for your speakers and application.

Mariusz

mcgsxr · « **Reply #6 on:** 16 Mar 2009, 12:41 pm »

Having played around with Tripath and Hybrid Digital amps of various kinds, and in various states of modification and ultimately landing on SEP tubes, I can highly recommend playing with digital amps.

I would keep your eyes peeled for a Trends, or a Big Joe, or a used Red Wine Audio Clari-T for the coming months. If you find that combo entrancing, then saving up for an SEP or SET would be a good path, and you could likely flip any of the digital amps for a small (if any) loss on your investment.

The one complication wtih digital amps will be how you integrate the sub - many cannot support speaker level connections with plate amps, FYI.

jk@home · « **Reply #7 on:** 16 Mar 2009, 01:09 pm »

That was plan A, to pick up a new or used T-amp now, and save for a tuber later. One of the reasons I was attracted to the Virtue T-amp was that it includes a summed mono full range sub output. That would be perfect for my Rythmik sub. I'm using the Rythmik PEQ servo amp, so I could use the controls on the sub amp to blend into the Tektons, without the use of a crossover upstream.

People must hold on to their T-amps, used ones are hard to find. Think about it, a Squeezebox + T-amp + bookshelves would be perfect for any room in the house.

Virtue did have some B stocks on the gon, but the cheaper ones are already sold.

strider · « **Reply #8 on:** 16 Mar 2009, 02:20 pm »

I've found the combo of single driver FE127 speakers and a Trends TA10.1 to be pretty enjoyable, especially when you factor in cost. Very resolving, quick, much better bass output then I expected going into it. As the volume gets higher and/or the music gets more complex, the soundstage tends to collapse a bit. I've read posts that have chalked it up to the amp, some say it's a characteristic of single driver speakers in general, I'm not sure yet. Next stop is a single ended tube amp for me, so at least we're thinking the same.

Another thing to consider is the system upstream from the amp. "Very resolving" can turn into a brutal explication of system weaknesses.

Recently I've been fooling around with some low end support, currently trying out an old Velodyne sub that I used to use for an HT set up. Haven't found a way to integrate it that I'm completely satisfied with yet, but the results are promising enough that I haven't given up.

jrebman · « **Reply #9 on:** 16 Mar 2009, 03:16 pm »

JK, All god advice here but given that all of your sources tend twoards an edgy presentation (in stock form) I'd just caution against making any generalizations about SD speakers until you try them with an SE tube amp, especially speakers using the lower price Fostex drivers.

I didn't specifically mention the new Glow amp 1 because a) I haven't heard any real feedback on it from anybody I know, and b) because I thought it was above your price range.

To reiterate, I don't think you can go wrong with anything mentioned so far, but in time I think you will find that SD speakers of the Fostex variety and digital sources will want some tubes in the system at some point. And also don't forget that these things take hundreds of hours to really settle down and smooth out.

-- Jim

bacobits1 · « **Reply #10 on:** 16 Mar 2009, 04:02 pm »

If I had those speakers I would seriously consider one of the Melody/Onix offerings used, an integrated Onix SP3 MKII of which there are a few on Agon right now in the price category cheaper than the new Glow amp. Not SET but would perform very nicely.

D

jrebman · « **Reply #11 on:** 16 Mar 2009, 04:07 pm »

Or even a used Sophia Baby, which while still PP, runs fully in Class A, which does make a bi diff. IMO.

chadh · « **Reply #12 on:** 16 Mar 2009, 04:23 pm »

How about something from Boris (of Vista Audio)? This one is available on Audiogon. I have no affiliation with the seller.

http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?ampstube&1242321976

Chad

chrisby · « **Reply #13 on:** 16 Mar 2009, 05:26 pm »

My $.02 (Cdn

), and random thoughts

Some more so than others, FR drivers can significantly change character depending on the quality of source & material as well as amps. Think of every component between your source's output (jacks) and the speaker cone as a tone control of sorts.

The "7" series of FE drivers are a bit more tolerant in terms of "optimum" enclosure design (no such thing, actually?), and certainly more forgiving of the signature of electronics than the "6" series version of the same driver.

You can't ignore the room in which the system will be operating, and your musical tastes and listening habits, when assessing the power levels and type of amp that might best suite your needs. In a smallish room ( <200 sq ft), and at moderate levels ( < 90dB SPL), 3-4 watts power can be quite satisfying with the FE167E, and there are any number of either tube or digital amps that can fit the bill.

I've yet to hear an EL84 amp (from SE triode connected to pentode P/P) that I didn't like, but some are certainly more delicious than others. For a DIY, the RH84, or El Cheapo design are hard to beat. For a kit or ready made product, the Decware kits or pre-assembled, or Glow amp should definitely be on anybody's short list. I've yet to hear the latest version of the Glow, but if it lives up to the claimed improvements in the USB/DAC input, it would be a no-brainer AFAIC. For those with deeper pockets, the combination of Eddie Vaughn's Carina and Fostex is very, very nice.

For a bit more power on a budget any of the 40Hz amp kits, or for an assembled product, consider something like the Kingrex T20.

jk@home · « **Reply #14 on:** 16 Mar 2009, 05:53 pm »

Thanks for all the great advice, folks. I have read about the looong break-in of these drivers, but didn't ask the seller how many hours he had on them. From his description, they may have never had the hours on them yet. Anyway, I'm going to treat them as new, and do the pink noise/outa phase /under a blanket thing with the Aragon for the first week or so.

These speakers (plus the sub) are replacing old Thiel CS3s, and Maggie MMGs, both which were too big for this room. If I can at least get the imaging I got from the old Thiels, I'll be happy.

And I know this is heresy but...worst case scenario, I can always use that Behringer eq to make things bearable

The Thiels were ear bleeding without it.

cryoparts · « **Reply #15 on:** 16 Mar 2009, 06:13 pm »

I don't know the seller, but here is a Vista amp on AudogoN:

http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?ampstube&1242321976&/Vista-Audio-PCL-82-SET-amplifi

Peace,

Lee

lavaorange · « **Reply #16 on:** 16 Mar 2009, 07:19 pm »

Lots of great options out there. Another suggestion is the KingRex T20 Tripath amp and KingRex PSU; known for its great Tubelike sound. 6Moons did a great review back in 2007 on this.

SET Man · « **Reply #17 on:** 17 Mar 2009, 04:39 am »

Hey!

If you want my opinion.... Personally I would stay away from any T-amp or D-amp and look for a good used tube amps. Call me biased on this if you will

I've never heard (most not in my own system I have to admit but they all seem to have that sonic signature) any of those T-amp or D-amp that I think I could live with.

There is something special about Single Driver and SET. But a decent true SET amp can be costly. So, for now maybe you could look for a nice used push-pull or even paralleled SE amp.

A nice PP EL84 will be sweet

Well, that is my opinion. BTW... I used the same Fostex FE167E drivers in my homemade SD speaker.... OK there is a helper supertweeter too

Good luck

Take care,
Buddy

jk@home · « **Reply #18 on:** 17 Mar 2009, 10:46 am »

Knowing me, I probably add a super tweet too, just cause I can

It would be interesting to try aiming it at different directions in the room.

Here's a newbie question for you. Will the low wattage tube amps drive the FR speaker, super tweeter and the high level inputs of a sub, all from the same high level outputs? What does that do to the perceived ohms that the amp sees.

jrebman · « **Reply #19 on:** 17 Mar 2009, 02:48 pm »

JK,

No problem -- the sub amp input is high impedance and so is basically invisible to the amp. If you get a tweeter with reasonably close efficiency and don't have to pad it down, it should also impact the impedance negligeably, but if you do have to, use an L-pad. a simple, first order capacitor filter on the tweet is best.

In other words, I wouldn't worry about it.

-- Jim