[pgastone]

Hello,

for those who may I have read my recent post on the the Trend TA-10, I am trying to put together the best system I can while keeping the costs down as low as I can.

I would be very interested in hearing suggestions for a tube integrated to mate with my Druids- I spoke to Sean at Zu and he suggested the Almarro a205 or a Dared 845 as very good matches.

Truth is I was hoping to find something with a remote (yes, I am that lazy) but it isn't make or break if the quality of the (no remote) integrated warrants it.....

So, I have short listed the Almarro and the Dared....on my own I looked into the Cayin a50t and was favorably impressed after a recent audition (see below).  I also saw that Dared now has a 2a3 SET at a very competitive price.

Any thoughts on these or others that might be a good fit would be very much appreciated....

Some thoughts on the Cayin: really very impressive build and sound for $1300; I demoed it at showroon where it was hooked up with $14k Sonus Fabers- very good though I did feel that the Cayin at times did sound a little grainy....on the one hand, there is something to be said for an integrated that can hold its own in this kind of set-up and on the other it may be a little unfair to expect not to find fault within the context and level of the much more expensive Faber's. Did sound good though....

(Btw, back in the day home trial and demo's were fairly common- when I asked this dealer if I could try it at home I was flatly told that it was not possible; only alternative was for me to buy it and if I was not satisfied to return and pay a 20% restocking fee....argument was that the Cayins are selling like hotcakes and so no demo's and substantial restocking fee- I don't know but feel that if I am going to buy new I should get a chance to try it- if not I might as well hunt down a used one....anyway, this is a whole other topic). 

[macrojack]

Many Zu owners are deriving great satisfaction from the Red Wine Audio Signature 30. It isn't tubes but it might fool you into thinking it is. There is a 30 day free home trial and RWA has a circle on this forum where you can learn a lot about how others have liked their Red Wine.

[Srajan Ebaen]

I woulda said Melody SP3II or Onix SP3 until I saw that av123.com is out of them and I'm not sure Melody's US importer has brought Melody's original unit in because Mark Schifter sold it. That's a great little 38wpc p/p integrated either way - but no remote. The Sig 30 is another no-brainer and can be ordered with remote. I definitely second macrojack's reco on that count. You might pop David Kan on my site an e-mail. He owns various Dareds and more than than TA-10 so he can tell you exactly how they compare on a number of speakers he's got.

[pacifico]

That's weird, I had a post saying there was plenty of good press on the almarro form sixmoons, but now it's gone along with another post. At anyrate, please PM me if you're interested in getting a modded one. i now a very reputable dealer from AC.

If you want the onix, go to underwood hifi, they have a few available at a very good price. Almost bought one but I wanted the Cayin A70T instead. you can roll all types of tubes in and out of this amp. good luck. 

[PaulFolbrecht]

I had a Dared 2A3 integrated I used with my Druids.  It was a GREAT match.

They say that little thing does 8W/ch, which is unheard of for 2A3s.  Then I switched to a Consonance 2A3 SET and have found that it doesn't seem to have enough drive.  Only had 10m with it so far, and am out of town now, but i hope I was wrong.

[macrojack]

I tried an ASL Orchid with my Druids. It's a 2A3 with about 3.6 watt output. It sounded very nice but did not have enough poop to make my Druids dance. Same really for the Clari-T. It worked but seemed a bit underpowered. Word has it that the Atmasphere S-30 is a near ideal amp for Druids and I have heard through the Grapevine that Ralph Karsten himself uses Druids in his system. It must be a good match. I really liked the Onix SP-3 with them but when I moved up to Def Pros, I needed pre-outs for my biamping so switched to the RWA Sig 30. Still say that is THE BEST choice. But I still have my SP-3. I just haven't been able to bring myself to sell it.

[TONEPUB]

I have used a pair of 2A3 bottleheads with the Druids with great results!

One of my reviewers has used everything from a Yamamoto 45 amp
all the way to a 200wpc integrated. They are very easy speakers to
drive!  Thanks to the efficiency, you can drive em with darn near anything.

Good luck on the search...

[PaulFolbrecht]

I have used a pair of 2A3 bottleheads with the Druids with great results!

One of my reviewers has used everything from a Yamamoto 45 amp
all the way to a 200wpc integrated. They are very easy speakers to
drive!  Thanks to the efficiency, you can drive em with darn near anything.

Good luck on the search...

Before I tried the 2A3 Consonance, I would have agreed with that completely, and hopefully still do.  This amp does not have the drive of the 8W Dared, and is not as good a match.

This was/is a bummer for me, as I am going to build a pair of Welborne 45s that I planned to use with the Druids (well, I planned to sell the Druids, then changed my mind).

Of course, not all 2A3s are equal, and I hope that's what's going on here.  However, weight would seem to indicate that the Consonance has quite adequate iron for the job.  Still, perhaps the Welbornes - which are absolutely build like TANKS - will have drive due to its hugely overbuilt power supply that the other amp cannot match.

On paper, 2W ought indeed to be PLENTY for 101dB/W speakers with no network as well. 

Wish I had that Dared back right now.  You see, I listen to this, my 2nd system, in the car-hole (garage) whilst at the workbench, and was about to start the Welborne kits (my airplane project is on hold to build amps).  If I can't listen... I can't build... and then the new amps will never get done... and I can't listen... and so forth...

[TONEPUB]

Paul, good luck on the quest!  All of the Welbourne stuff is great,
so I bet you will have good luck with that combination...

If you weren't a dyed in the wool tube guy, I would suggest the
Pass Labs First Watt F3.  It is a single ended class A solid state
power amp with 15 watts per channel.  Just a hair less "reach out
and touch it" from the SET stuff, but super quiet, very dynamic
and the closest thing to SET without the tubes I've ever heard.

It will blow the windows out with your Druids.

If you are intrigued, download our current issue...

Either way good luck!

[PaulFolbrecht]

UPDATE: I was mostly wrong.  I am back from London and listened to the amp for a few hours.  The Consonance 2A3 does just fine with SPLs (around 3M) to the low 90s (I never listen louder than this).  I must've been really driving it last week when I tested it and didn't have the SPL meter for reference.

Also, I'd just brought it in (sitting on my porch on 10d weather all day) and that probably did not help.  I let it warm up for an hour or so but it likely was not close to ideal operating temp in that little test.

So, I'm happy - it does quite a respectable job on the Druids.  Will work out just fine till my Welborne 45s are built.  (Nearly finished the Bottlehead S.E.X. I'm building as a primer today.)

Cheers. 

[PaulFolbrecht]

Oh, Jeff - I haven't seriously heard an F3 (would love to) but have a lot of respect for Mr. Pass' other creations.

For me, what has come closest to SET is the RW Sig 30.  Damn close, that.