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Mike,I think it's a good idea to keep the bass units driven with solid state and with an 94.5 dB, you'd probably need only around 15-20W amp for the rest of the speaker.There should be plenty of tube amp options available.Good luck.Hugh
Give a listen to the AVA Ultra Valve tube amp. It sounds great, has had great reviews, puts out a strong 35wpc and it has a 30 day money back guaranty and excellent customer service. The price was recently lowered as well.http://www.avahifi.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=250&Itemid=235http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/audio-by-van-alstine-ultravalve-power-amplifier-salk-sound-songtower-qwt-loudspeaker-tas-204/http://www.tonepublications.com/review/ava-ultravalve-vacuum-tube-amplifier/
What's your budget????With your setup, I'd try a good tube amp. I would imagine that the good ones aren't cheap, though. If money is a concern, I would think that a decent SS amp (100 watts or less) would be less costly than a really good 25 - 50 watt amp. You should be able to pick one up for less than a grand. For a tube amp, twice that. I also have your bass modules and I'm waiting on a pair of 98 dB speakers, but I won't consider changing out my 300wpc SS amp for budget reasons. I'm assuming you really enjoy your setup and plan to keep it for a while. Go for the best (that means spend more than you can afford).
Tubes work their magic best in exactly this kind of setup. Whichever you choose, find out the input impedance of the amp and plug it into the calculator near the bottom of this page:http://www.carstereo.com/help/Articles.cfm?id=1After you put in the tube amp's input impedance, play around with capacitor values till you get a rolloff around 150hz. Then put a capacitor of that value calculated between your preamp and your tube amp. Since the value of the cap will be very small, you can splurge on something of excellent quality. This will remove the bass before it gets to the amp, so the amp will never see a bass load, which means you can use an even lower powered and less expensive amp. Personally I like EL84 and EL34 based amps, unless you are willing to splurge for an SET.
If the zout of the amp is =<1/10th the load impendance i would recommend any amp (tube/solid state),beware of tube amps with high zout they sound s***.
Mike, just curious, have you tried the Buffer paired with the 801A yet ? You will not need much power to drive the Wedgies to the levels you are looking for.My speakers are between 91-92 db and my 50wpc rated JD302CRC was more than enough. II only set my bias current to .035A and Michael Allen told methe plates are run at 460V, so that's actually only about 32 wpc, I never had to push the amp in my 18' x 12' room.As you know, I'm now playing with much less power , still no issuesjay
You can trial that AVA tube amp for 30 days.
That would work if (1) I had enough money to buy 3 or 4 different amps, compare them then keep the one I liked best and return the others and (2) I didn't feel that would be taking advantage of the companies I didn't choose. Buying them one at a time, returning each one then rebuying the one I liked best would also be taking advantage. If the companies had demo programs where they loaned out an amp (with a refundable deposit to insure the amp's return) with the full understanding up front that it would be returned then I would do that since I wouldn't be taking advantage of anybody.Mike
Jay,I have not paired the buffer with the 801A. All the inputs on the 801A go through the preamp. It does not have the HT by-pass that the later model 801's have. Also, when I first got it I talked to Michael about getting it upgraded he told me that even with the HT by-pass circuit, the signal still went through the preamp. This would defeat the purpose of the buffer.If it could be modified in such a way as to separate the preamp from the power amp so that I could use just the power amp section and not have to go through the preamp, like the NAD C372, I would go that route at least for now while I saved up in case I found something I liked better.Mike
If the companies had demo programs where they loaned out an amp (with a refundable deposit to insure the amp's return) with the full understanding up front that it would be returned then I would do that since I wouldn't be taking advantage of anybody.
Reminds me of that quotation in Clear and Present Danger with Harrison Ford: -We'd like to rent the helicopter.-It's not for rent, but you can buy it. -How much is that?-Two million dollars.-Ok, my pilot and I will just need to take it for a test drive.-Sure I'll just need a deposit.-How much is that?-Two million dollars.If an amp is $2k and you put a $500 deposit on it, what motivation is there to return it? Many of them would be stolen with little the vendor can do it about it. You can try them with a deposit, it's just the deposit is the same as the selling price. IMO, float them on some credit cards, return the ones you don't want, and pay the month of interest for the peace of mind you'll have from making the right choice.
Buy used. Listen. If you like it, great. If not, sell.Repeat.Buy smart and you will lose little, if anything. Just a lil time and effort on the buy and sell.You'll have fun along the way, and will be getting stuff that is "better" than your new gear budget allows. Especially in the current slow environment in which I see some incredible used deals. No guarantees in audio, but you get to try it in your own setup, at your own leisure. Some upfront research will narrow the field and better your odds at stumbling upon a synergistic gem at a great price.I've been doing exactly this for over 20 years. Not only has it allowed me to sample a greater volume of gear vs buying new, it has allowed me to play in a pricier sandbox. And I can do so without losing my shirt on the resell. When one buys new and pays near list, it's hard to shed a loser and incur the 30 to 50% loss!! Buying used means one is less committed to the gear for financial reasons, and it's easier to pivot into good sound.
IMO, float them on some credit cards, return the ones you don't want, and pay the month of interest for the peace of mind you'll have from making the right choice.