Hi, to answer your question, while the Ambrose products ARE top tier and custom made, this product would be less costly.
The original 10W Ambrose was $10K
The A30, 30W Class A mono blocks are $15K/pr (+$ for exotic hardwood).
The 845 DS mono blocks were released as Cost No Object exotic concept pieces at $50K/pr. They were 845, 32W/CH, pure Class A, SE.
I am now considering a 30W-50W integrated that would possibly be SE, but more likely P-P. The 845's used in the Line Magnetic 518iA output about 22W. Judging by the size of output transformers, I am surprised at the specs, but only because I know how big the power and output transformers were, that were used in our 845DS monos. Then again, we ran the plates at 1200V and drove them into hard Class A to get 32W of power.
The limitation for an integrated of course, is size and weight. I LOVE the sound of our A30 SE monos. These use, surprisingly enough, parallel EL34 pure pentodes, run in pure Class A, Single Ended (not P-P) with zero feedback. These transformers are BIG and HEAVY! Each mono block weighs about 45 lb. It MAY be feasible to do this in an integrated with a few design changes. I would have to look at it.
In order to keep costs within reason, I would also simplify the aesthetics and instead of Billet AL and dove-tail joined domestic hardwoods, handcrafted and oil-finished, I would go with a more conventional steel enclosure. The BEST SOUND would be 20W - 30W of pure Class A, using the same parallel EL34 circuit. I would need to look hard at cost and finished weight of such a product. My guess is that it would be hard to do this with the same high quality, hand-wound transformers and parts quality as we use in the Ambrose products, and not be over $7500 min. This is why I ask about pricing.
The other option is a P-P circuit, using EL34's or KTxx series tubes. Here, 50W would be much easier attainable, at Class A, because the size of the P-P transformers is much smaller. I have ideas of how to design such an amp in ways that have never been done before and it could be exceptional. I know that before designing the Ambrose series of amps in conjunction with Jack Elliano of Electraprint (credit to unique circuit topology and production of custom transformers to Jack), I listened to a number of exceptional P-P amps alongside the SE design that we took to market and I always came back to the SE design.
My quandary has always been this:
SETs sound great! They don't produce much power however and this requires efficient speakers.
P-P amps have power, but don't typically sound as good as SET amps and also don't have the punch and power of SS designs.
SS designs have punch and power, but lack the refinement, sense of space and 'magic' that I hear from SET designs.
So, when I heard how good a 10W version of the initial 'Ambrose' amp sounded, I asked Jack about winding transformers for more power. Well, we proved a way to achieve 20W and then 30W (after a hurdle was overcome in design). At the 30W point, I felt that we had a Single Ended design with enough power to drive more than just horns and ultra-efficient conventional speakers or Lowther/full range drivers.
I have heard many great horn and Lowther/full range driver designs, but many leave me feeling that something is lacking in one respect or the other. I feel that a good amp should sound great AND be able to drive a reasonable range of speakers.
So, there it is. I consider 20W to be a minimum, 30W even better. This can be done with Single Ended designs, but the quality of the transformer is CRITICAL and core mass/size is going to be BIG! P-P is the next option, but it has to pass the listening test for me and I have not proven my ideas here yet.
To sum up, I am looking at it. Any tube integrated that we do, be it Single Ended or P-P would likely be $7500+, to satisfy the power and sonic needs that I want to pursue. If it were to be finished and designed to the level of our Ambrose amps, the cost would be higher.
Please let me know your thoughts as this will tell me if I want to go down this road or not.
Thank you,
Dan Wright