[stevecuss]

Friends,

Has anyone ever tried a Carvin power amp for home use? They claim the T100 (50 watts per channel, a quad of 6L6 or EL34s) is commonly used for home stereo, but I can't find any reviews.

Here is the amp: http://www.carvinaudio.com/products/ts100

I'm dipping my toes into the tube world and considering the Carvin as it offers a lot of watts for the buck, but I don't know how to evaluate tube amp quality. Any thoughts greatly appreciated.

Here's my plan:

I have a 9 yr old Arcam AVR350 that I would run as the "front end" of the system.
- Arcam internal amp would drive center speaker for TV and DVD watching.
- Tube power amp would drive my GR Research N2x monitors for music
- powered sub to give the monitors some oomph. 
- music is Cd and iTunes streaming, run through a tube DAC currently.

I like the Arcam, but as a guitarist, I believe that driving the tone with tubes would add some dimension.

Alternately, I am acquiring a Baldwin 54A organ amp with some vintage el84 tubes and have thought about converting it to a stereo amp. I built my own guitar tube amp once, so I can solder, but I'm rusty and would need to find a design I can work with. 

Anyway, bottom line is I'm seeking info on the Carvin, but I'll take any thoughts on the above project

thanks much

[mresseguie]

Hello, Steve.

I'd never heard of Carvin or its TS100 amp till now. I checked the website - $595 - for a tube amp is darned cheap. I wonder how it sounds.

I didn't see any reviews either, but there have been discussions about the amp, but they date back 5+ years.

Perhaps someone else here has some knowledge of the amp.

Michael

[FullRangeMan]

I have complete missing this topic, Carvin is a old manufacturer from guitar and bass world since 1946, so before MacIntosh without the hype from that.

The rated 100W power STM are 50W per channel.
At this extreme hi power for only 2 tubes per channel probably it use UltraLinear circuit, at 26lbs/11kg per the whole amp it use small power and output transformers, it also dont use point to point hard wire, but PCB.
So dont expect a lot of sound quality or tonal beauty(harmonics).

The tone controls(presence) at 6kHz is useless to hifi, each channel have a volume pots it allow drive the amp direct from the CD player.
I glad to see two power on switches something complete disregard by the hifi tube amps manufacturers even at ultra expensive amps, it is the proper way to soft activate a cold tube.
They suggest only 30 seconds, I would wait 10 minutes to press switch 2 to extend tubes life.

This amp have great sound value per $, I prefer it than the highly marketed McIntosh 275.

[stevecuss]

Thanks Fullrange, this is helpful analysis. I've wondered about the PC board and light transformers. I built a Marshall Plexi guitar amp once and learned what a big deal heavy iron is.

It is certainly hard to beat the Carvin for price, but I may also explore an old Marshall stereo amp - it is way heavier and dual mono. 

Either way, I'll be comparing it to my Arcam AVR350 receiver, so while it doesn't have to beat the best of home tube, it has to beat one of the better solid state AVR options....

[stevecuss]

I found a good price on a used Carvin TS100 and spent some time yesterday dialing it in. Playing music through it now. It is 50 watts per side rather than the 120 watts per side that my Arcam claims. I need to crank the Arcam volume up more now (The Arcam receiver is now acting as a digital pre amp.)

I tend to be suspicious of confirmation bias but all the same, the Carvin definitely adds a tangible difference to the sound. It sends a much more robust bass than the Arcam did. I had to turn my powered sub down by about 25% because the Carvin was sending quite a bit more bass through my monitors.

I also noticed that the whole presentation was smoother - no harsh highs, and a wonderful fullness to the sound. Then the drummer on the track I was listening to hit the bell of the ride cymbal and that stood me up - sounded like it was right in the room. I'm a fan.

I've played through tube amps for most of my guitar playing life - they add a dimension that is hard to define, but is noticeable. I think this experience has converted me to tube amps for home application as well.

thanks everyone for the feedback. I don't know how this Carvin power amp compares to a legit home audio tube amp, but compared to my Arcam AVR, it adds what I'm looking for

[FullRangeMan]

Congrats

[bsacco]

I too own a Carvin Stereo 100 tube amp and use it for listening to music.

I had questions regarding modifications to this unit to make it more "Audiophile"?

I mean, are their simple mods, medium mods or heavy mods worth doing?

Also, tube selection? EL34s or can you run different power tubes in this unit?

I'm assuming the preamp tubes are 12AX7s?

Could you replace the iron in this unit for a bigger transformer for better sound?

Obviously, I'm not a tube tech, but I was wondering because like the previous guy on this forum I discovered this amp sounded better than my SS amp when listening to music,

Best, bob

[VinceT]

I had an old Carvin PA system. Decent mid tier affordable robust and dependable live sound equipment.

Depends what your goals are, guitar amps typically are not designed for audiophile quality music reproduction.

[opnly bafld]

I had questions regarding modifications to this unit to make it more "Audiophile"?

I mean, are their simple mods, medium mods or heavy mods worth doing?

Could you replace the iron in this unit for a bigger transformer for better sound?

There are some things you can do to change the sound, making it more "audiophile" or as I assume you mean improve the sound that is much more difficult.
Changing OPTs requires making some adjustments to the circuit.

If you like it just enjoy it, if you want something more I would suggest replacing it.