[kgiesselman]

I found this forum, and I am enjoying the read.  No noob questions at the moment.

Granite Audio 864SR tube amps driving Merlin Master VSMs. Eversolo DMP-A6 Master Edition Gen2 streamer.  Wife sold all my vinyl. Sad but moving forward.

[Blackmore]

Welcome to AudioCircle. 

[mresseguie]

Welcome to AC (such as it is).

Your Granite Audio amp is new to me. Care to talk about it? Any idea how it might compare to a similar Aric Audio amplifier?

[JackD]

Michael

I've owned a pair of Granite Audio 861 monoblock amps for about 20 years now. They are still boxed up and in climate controlled storage since we moved from Florida to South Carolina.  I'm not sure Don Hogland is still building amps anymore in Arizona. The closest amp to them that Aric builds would be the Super KT.  I've got a Transcend on order but I don't expect to see it until the end of the year.

[mresseguie]

Hi, Jack!

That’s interesting. I’m not sure how I missed this information nor how I managed to miss any reference to the brand in the past. Oh, well. One cannot know everything about audio.

I’m going to try a few different amps this year in the hope that I will find a new amp to pair with my new Daedalus Audio Muse speakers. I wish it were possible to audition Aric’s Super KT amp without first buying it, but I know it’s not. I’ve already contacted him about the idea of redesigning the Super KT into two mono blocks in order to redistribute the weight.

[JackD]

I don't know that Don ever advertised a whole lot and was more known for his silver cables than his gear.  His main business was as a cabinet maker and for a time he even made cabinets for Vandersteen speakers.  Granite Audio was a hobby that turned into a sideline business.  While they may still be doing upgrades I don't think they've released a new model in over a decade.  If you want to try a new tube amp you might want to look into Erhard Audio in Montana.  Holger makes first rate tube gear priced considerabley under the prices of Aric's.  Nick and I both own one of his Elvis KT-88 amps that weighs in at about 45lbs. He has a pair of KT-120 based monoblocks that are 31lbs a piece for $5250.

https://www.erhard-audio.com/