[finsup]

With what did you drive your Butlers?  Tube pre?  SS pre? No pre?  I am curious about what worked* and did not work in your system.   For those of you who feed it a tubed pre and switched it out with something else, did you find it had a little too much bloom, a little too much color?  And if anyone out there did not use a pre, how was your system configured?

Thank you.
--Michael
*Caveat implied that this is all relative to your system and your ears.

[Phil]

Michael,
I use one Butler 2250 (that is, not as monoblocks).  Right now, I'm using the cdp directly driving the Butler (the cdp has a tubed output stage).  That seems to me the most transparent and has the greatest finesse.

I also use a Supratek Chardonnay at times, although I think it is going in the closet, which is a triode tubed preamp.  Also very nice, and does add a very small bit of tube bloom.  It also seems to add a bit to the dynamics but I'm used to the direct drive now and it seems more natural to me.  Really both are great -- just a matter of taste.  I have always liked passive preamps too, so I probably lean toward the greatest transparency possible.  Having said that, the Chardonnay is very transparent too.

The Butler is a great "little" amp.  They really don't have tube bloom, to my ears at any rate.  It is more like they are warm instead of bloomy, if that makes sense.

Phil

[lonewolfny42]

I own a pair of Butler 2250's, and have used many preamps with them.....most I own, some I borrowed....

Modwright
Audio Research
Juicy Music
BENT NOH
Philly Audio
Mapletree Audio
SAS Audio

All really worked well with the Butler's.....of those, I do prefer the Modwright, Mapletree, and SAS Audio.....but.....I've also used no preamp at all....straight in with a CDP.
I never found that a tube preamp added "to much color or bloom" with the Butler's....just a little extra.

[Carlman]

I found the Butler to have a sort of 'delicate' sounding power.  It is powerful, and has some bloom but isn't 'in your face' at all.  It's fairly neutral but has its own sound. 
The only pre I remember hearing it on was my TacT and it sounded very good.  I replaced it with a McIntosh MC402, which has even more power.

-C

[satfrat]

Hi, I have 2 Butler 3150's in  6.1 system and am using a Sunfire Theater Grand 4 processor. Frankly I can't see where anyone gets "warm" out of these amps. ll I've ever gotten is dynamic but maybe it's my system or just me.   My source is computer and my system's heavily conditioned which to some ears could cause the music to sound bright. I prefer the word dynamic and besides, I've owned Yamaha receivers so I know BRIGHT. I use 4 Odyssey Lorelei loudspeakers and 2 Usher X-616 centers and I would also describe my system's characteristics as deep, very very deep with a spacious soundfield. And that's saying a lot for a 11' x 17' room. I was 1 of the first to sing the praises of the Butler tube hybrid amps 3 years ago and nothing has changed for me since then. Then again I don't have deep pockets so nothing is about to change for me anytime soon.


Robin

[Carlman]

Frankly I can't see where anyone gets "warm" out of these amps. ll

I didn't see anyone say they were... if anything people were saying there was limited bloom and they were more neutral.  I think the Butler is one of the best values in amps today.  It took a $6,k amp to oust it.

-C

[satfrat]

Frankly I can't see where anyone gets "warm" out of these amps. ll

I didn't see anyone say they were... if anything people were saying there was limited bloom and they were more neutral.  I think the Butler is one of the best values in amps today.  It took a $6,k amp to oust it.

-C

Phil wrote:

The Butler is a great "little" amp.  They really don't have tube bloom, to my ears at any rate.  It is more like they are warm instead of bloomy, if that makes sense.

[Carlman]

well dang... warm instead of 'bloomy'... I misread that... not sure what that means, though.  I could say the sound of a Butler has a 'warmth' to it, though if trying to convey a more natural presentation compared to a 'sterile' one... but not warmth in a mid-bass distortion kind of way.

[ajzepp]

I've been dying to find my Butler 5150 a suitable preamp since I picked it up, but have just stuck with my Outlaw 950 thus far due to finances. I'm 90% sure that I'm going to go with the Van Alstine Transcendence 8 and Frank's Ultra DAC here soon. Even with the 950, though, the Butler was a nice step up from the Outlaw monoblocks I had before it. I can't wait to hear how good it gets when I finally upgrade the last weak link in the system 

Anyone have a Butler hybrid amp paired with a Van Alstine pre?

[tdangelo]

I had 2 2250's that I ran in mono.  They were driven with an Aberdeen fully modded Tact 2.0s - worked and sounded great 

Tony

[Phil]

Carlman,

You re-stated it well.  That is what I meant.  Thanks.

I suppose it is also a matter of "compared to what."  Given that my previous amp was a first iteration class D amp, I'm comparing the Butler, in my system, to what was very transparent amp, but one which lacked emotion, if that is the best word. 

One thing notable about the Butler is that the longer I listen to it the more I appreciate it. 

Phil

[RPM123]

Hi,

I am using the 2250 with a Jeff Rowland Synergy IIi pre with very good results!

[topround]

I am using a friends Butler with my Mapletree Ultra 4 SE pre with wonderful results.
If by warm you mean delicious then I understand what you mean. I am hearing a very dynamic liquid sound. Very addictive, very engaging, and no fatigue whatsoever. The romance of tubes with the transparency of SS. I have already offered to buy it if he wants to sell it.
Not trying to hype the amp , but it does so many things right. You tend to just listen to music instead of equipment.