[pansixt]

My dilemma, or question is ST70 with a T-8 or ST70 with a Fet Valve Hybrid Preamp?

What do you think Dean or Frank? Or anyone. How would the Fet Valve Hybrid Pre-
work with an ST70 (or with the Ultimate 70 upgrade) as opposed to a T-8?

James

[I.Greyhound Fan]

I would go with the FET Valve Preamp.  I have an Ultra II Preamp and did an in home comparison and reivew of the 3 FET Valve gear.  The FV Preamp is in a whole different league than the Ultra II which IMO is much better than the T-8.  The FV has better bass, detail, transparency and just sounds smoother.

I would consider going with a FET Valve 400R amp and the T-8!

[Lefty052347]

I would recommend the U70 upgrade and the T-8.  The difference between the an ST70 and U70 is greater than the T-8 and FET Valve. 

I am currently using a Ultra II in combination with an Ultravalve.

Regards,
Dean

[simon wagstaff]

Don't know about the ST-70 but I love my U-70. If it has enough power it will be a very satisfying amplifier.

[pansixt]

I would recommend the U70 upgrade and the T-8.  The difference between the an ST70 and U70 is greater than the T-8 and FET Valve. 

I am currently using a Ultra II in combination with an Ultravalve.

Regards,
Dean

That has been the original plan for some time. And more affordable for me right now. But then I heard the 400R and FET Valve Pre in Denver and it got me thinking.
Thanks Dean.

James

[trebejo]

If you don't have a problem with the heat from the tubes, then I would encourage you to try the upgrade from the ST70 to the U70, since the latter is a really really nice amp.

[Brett Buck]

What do you think Dean or Frank? Or anyone. How would the Fet Valve Hybrid Pre-
work with an ST70 (or with the Ultimate 70 upgrade) as opposed to a T-8?

   If you are going to run a stock St-70 a great preamp will help but will not be correcting the biggest problem. I grew up listening to a stock ST-70, it's mellow and all, but you want and need the Ultimate 70. Its not an "upgrade" in the normal sense of the word, it's a new amplifier using ST-70 parts and arguably the best tube amp available at any cost. Unless you are trying to build a hi-fi for the Superdome, it has more than enough power with any rationally efficient speaker.

    Don't worry about the construction, you can get Frank and Co to build it but I put mine together with no problems in a long evening. I took far more time stripping and cleaning up the old chassis than I did assembling the new bits.

   Of course, a T8+U70 is a tremendous jump up, to, and the cost is not at all prohibitive by hifi standards.

    Brett

[pansixt]

Thanks to all for the input. I am working on the cocoon packaging to send my amp to
Franks for the U-70 build.

I am sure I will be going with the T-8, although they may still have the AvaStar demo
model for sale. Just another thought.

Thanks Again everyone,

James

[Devil Doc]

So how's it coming, Frank? We gettin' closer?

Doc

[Lefty052347]

Doc,
Yes.

[Devil Doc]

Taciturn Minnesotans. I thought it was just us New Englanders. Anyway, Lefty was funnin' me. It's on its way. Exactly when they said it would be. Now that's service. Oooo-Rah!!!

Doc

[Devil Doc]

It has arrived and a day early,too. Unfortunately it's my wedding anniversary. So, I can't spend too much time listening. I hooked it up, though and listened to Jerry Jeff's Ultimate Collection CD with cold tubes. All I can say is that I hear a lot more detail than I realized was here. For instance, on Mr. Bojangles the drummer plays the bell on his cymbal. I used to think it was with the tip of his stick. It's obvious, now, that it's being played with the barrel of the stick. There's other things. I can play my system much louder with out grinding my teeth. Well, i got to go pay attention to the Ol' Lady. But before I go I'd like to say, and I know Frank doesn't like his fans to get carried away, but If you don't at least audition his stuff, you got to be out of your mind.

Doc.

[pansixt]

That's great to hear Doc.
About the anniversary and the T-8 review. Give us more input when you get time.
Every time I re-configure my system, I preview with The Byrds Sweetheart of the Rodeo vinyl. It's a thirty plus year tradition. But the Jerry Jeff sounds enticing also.

Hopefully, my Dyna amp arrived in Woodbury by now and will soon undergo the U-70 Rebuild.

Dean, if you catch this, let me know any progress on my ST-70/Ultimate 70.
Thanks,
James

[avahifi]

James,

We received your st-70 in good condition.  Actually the chassis and cover look great.

Frank will bench check the amp prior to the upgrade as the first step in the process.

Regards,
Dean

[trebejo]

Hopefully, my Dyna amp arrived in Woodbury by now and will soon undergo the U-70 Rebuild.

Oooh, somebody is gonna get a very nice aaaamp... 

[simon wagstaff]

Yepper!

[pansixt]

Thanks Ya'll. Don't want to hijack the thread. Dean, Frank, PM Me.
Back to the thread.
DOC Help me out here with a T-8 Review.

[Devil Doc]

I'm no good at reviews, but I will say it's smoother, more detailed and just plain better sounding than the 20 yr old PS Audio 6.0 that it replaced. I did audition, in my home, a pre-amp that will go unnamed, but it cost more than twice as much, inverted polarity (hint) and didn't sound as good, to my ears. With the addition of the T-8+ and my Insight+250, I really feel I've finally reached the point where I would have to spend a ton more money to achieve very little improvement. BTW, It gives new life to my phono-pre, giving the entire analog system much better defined bass. I thought I needed to upgrade it, but now I'm not so sure.
I can't see how you could go wrong by purchasing one. I doubt you'll send it back.

I can't wait to check out the headphone amp that's included and was wondering if it had enough power to drive the 600 ohm cans I'm considering acquiring.


Doc

Edited to add: AVA equpment is much more attractive in person. The Photos on the site don't do them justice.