Little Dot T-100 class T amp

JLM · « **Reply #40 on:** 12 Feb 2007, 11:45 am »

Low power + LS35a doesn't seem like a good match to me. The Tripath power ratings go down as impedance goes up, from memory you'll get maybe 4 wpc of clean power at 15 ohms. With the LS35a efficiency (again from memory) of around 85 dB/w/m, you'd be pushing to break 90 dB in room. (My rule of thumb is to reach 105 dB so that the amp provides a commanding grip of the speaker thats needed to give good bass response and dynamics.)

Last year I ran a RWA Clari-T (same chip run off battery) with 89 dB/w/m 8 ohm single driver speakers in a 12 ft x 20 ft room. The Clari-T with my speakers made music, but a 30 wpc Teac A700 amp transformed the speakers from polite dinner guests into NFL linebackers in tuxedos. Your situation would be worse, I'd expect a case of audio constipation. I'd look for 100 wpc minimum to go with the LS35a's. I ran as similar combo 20 years ago with very good results.

Tubo · « **Reply #41 on:** 12 Feb 2007, 03:13 pm »

Quote from: JLM on 12 Feb 2007, 11:45 am

Low power + LS35a doesn't seem like a good match to me. The Tripath power ratings go down as impedance goes up, from memory you'll get maybe 4 wpc of clean power at 15 ohms. With the LS35a efficiency (again from memory) of around 85 dB/w/m, you'd be pushing to break 90 dB in room.... Your situation would be worse, I'd expect a case of audio constipation. I'd look for 100 wpc minimum to go with the LS35a's. I ran as similar combo 20 years ago with very good results.

My experience with LS3/5A's has been very different. I have found that LS3/5A's, despite their 82dB efficiency, are very easy to drive. I've owned a pair of 15-ohm Rogers for over 25 years and a pair of 11-ohm Spendors for over 10 years. I've run them with many different amps, mainly tubed, though recently with Tripath-based amps. They sound best with moderate-power tube amps such as the Dynaco Stereo 70, the Quicksilver Minis, the cj MV-50, and Musical Reference RM-10. Remember, LS3/5A's were not designed to handle lots of power. To my surprise, they also sound terrific with SET 300B amps of only 8 watts, such as the ASL AQ-1005DT. They can play so loud, in a large acoustical space that includes living room, dining room, and kitchen, that my condo neighbors ask me to turn them down. I have subsequently learned that in Asia many LS3/5A aficionados consider the pairing with a SET 300B amp a heavenly marriage.

In my 12x14' bedroom I have my Spendors driven by a Trends TA-10, a Tripath amp that is probably only 6 watts per channel. It is a wonderful combination also, although less warm than the SET 300B sound, but more incisive and detailed. And louder than you or your neigbors would want to hear, most of the time.

To address the LS3/5A's lack of deep bass, both Rogers and Spendor systems are supplemented by passive subwoofers driven by hefty transistor amps (Adcom and NAD), with active crossovers (Dahlquist and Paradigm) splitting the signal before the amps.

I would try the Little Dot amp with LS3/5A's. I think you will be plesantly surprised.

Paul_Bui · « **Reply #42 on:** 12 Feb 2007, 04:31 pm »

Jeff et al,

I'd like to share a little finding I've had recently. Spontaneously last week I replaced the Patek SE with fully charged Clari-T monoblocks to drive the BB FTA-2000s (less than 89db after filters installed). To my surprise, after first few minutes of sounding a bit thinner from the mids up and a bit bloated in the bass (they have been collecting dusts for months), the T-amps drive the speakers with such clarity and authority that are very pleasing to my ears. In fact, I could not remove them from the system since then. Best of all, they no longer clip as they did in the past, when they were driving the same speakers but was driven directly with a modded SB2.

IMHO, putting a good active preamp (in this case a maxxed SinglePower MPX3) in front of the Clari-Ts really does the tricks. I don't feel the preamp adding warmth or any other euphonics to the chain. Instead, it seems to let the Clari-Ts drive the speakers effortlessly.

kbuzz3 · « **Reply #43 on:** 17 Feb 2007, 08:42 pm »

folks following this thread, i was about to order one from the candaian authorized dealer obad imports but when i looked at the web today the price was 399 plus shipping. Is my memory failing? or the price was significantly lower last week?.....i had hoped to buy one and report back this week but at $430 its no longer an impulse purchase....

or maybe im just getting old at it was $399 all along.....

DZetye · « **Reply #44 on:** 17 Feb 2007, 11:52 pm »

I talked to Eddie Wu of Diykits

http://www.diykits.com.hk/

and he was complaining that there wasn't much profit in the amp at those prices. I noticed he lists Obad as his distributor on his web page so he may have raised the prices. If you don't mind ordering direct from Eddie in China (I bought a Zhaolu DAC from him without any problems), I would suggest Emailing him through the website for a lower price. He can ship express mail with a 4-5 day delivery and tracking. He has lots of transactions with the folks at Head-Fi. There shouldn't be any problems.

mrdon · « **Reply #45 on:** 20 Feb 2007, 02:34 am »

I thought people might like a report on how the T_100 sounds. BTW, this comes from my contact at Obad.

Quote

Out of the box, the unit sounded a little "thin" however, the soundstage was
wide and full (like the TA-10) and the details were all there. You could
hear those little nuances that Tripath is famous for. After about 10-20
hours the bass is a little thicker but still not enough for me. I don’t have
a good speaker match though: celestion impact 30's, 90 db, 150w, 3 ways.
Those speakers were sufficient for the Trends TA-10, but this amp needs a
pair more substantial..I'll be doing a lot more experimenting!

zheka · « **Reply #46 on:** 21 Feb 2007, 09:28 pm »

Quote from: kbuzz3 on 17 Feb 2007, 08:42 pm

folks following this thread, i was about to order one from the candaian authorized dealer obad imports but when i looked at the web today the price was 399 plus shipping. Is my memory failing? or the price was significantly lower last week?.....i had hoped to buy one and report back this week but at $430 its no longer an impulse purchase....

or maybe im just getting old at it was $399 all along.....

the price went up. i managed to order mine at old price ($299 USD) about a week ago.

kbuzz3 · « **Reply #47 on:** 21 Feb 2007, 09:34 pm »

the price went up. i managed to order mine at old price ($299 USD) about a week ago.
[/quote]

thank you for the reply. I thought i was getting alzhimers for a bit there. I had it in my brain as a cheap, try it purchase. Then i saw it was $399....Please let us know how it sounds.

I cant wait for aan excellent version of the tube plus tripath combo. I cant believe no one else is working on this ....

Jampot · « **Reply #48 on:** 22 Feb 2007, 12:14 pm »

Quote

I cant believe no one else is working on this ....

Dodd battery pre / RWA Sig 70's

Get great write ups and only $6500 - save you a fortune in power cords and ac conditiong

Sorry, excuse my British humour.

Does put the guys initial 'steal price' in perspective though. $399 is less than you can buy simple tube pre or dac for surely?

Jim

shep · « **Reply #49 on:** 22 Feb 2007, 12:28 pm »

Try to get it direct, add another 100 or so for tweaking and you might have a major steal. Self-interest..mine is on order. Anyone have one...please report. Thus far the one review I've seen is not very encouraging but I'm assured this can be put to rights. (jeez I hope so)

Bemopti123 · « **Reply #50 on:** 22 Feb 2007, 02:14 pm »

Quote from: Paul_Bui on 12 Feb 2007, 04:31 pm

Best of all, they no longer clip as they did in the past, when they were driving the same speakers but was driven directly with a modded SB2.

Could it be possible that more than the amp itself, the F200As have finally broken after hundreds of hours of play?

I had a set up, about 6 years back which comprised of Gershman X-1 monitors and an older Nakamichi PA-7 Stasis (Nelson Pass design) which at certain levels clipped, I mean the amps had 200 watts per channel.

After perhaps 6-9 months, I pushed the speakers again with the same amplifier and preamp and low and behold, it drove it to insane levels without clipping. I wonder if an active preamp or buffer would somehow prevent clipping.

DZetye · « **Reply #51 on:** 7 Mar 2007, 11:16 pm »

So has anyone received theirs yet? I am anxious to hear preliminary reports of sound quality.

shep · « **Reply #52 on:** 7 Mar 2007, 11:57 pm »

Mine is still being torn apart and put back together

shep · « **Reply #53 on:** 8 Mar 2007, 12:08 am »

It's turning out to be more complicated than first thought. M. doesn't yet know if he will do away with the tube stage, change tube type or rebuild it completely. The details are beyond my limited understanding

I'm sort of hoping to see it in the new three weeks but since I have given him carte blanche to do what he wants, when he wants, I'm just pretending It has nothing to do with me, so I don't go mad with impatience!

DZetye · « **Reply #54 on:** 8 Mar 2007, 02:50 am »

What is the price range of Michael's mods, if you don't mind me asking? Please post your impressions when you get it back from him here.

shep · « **Reply #55 on:** 8 Mar 2007, 07:38 am »

This is a tricky question to answer

I am his Guinea pig. If it doesn't work out, tough s...t, I'm out of pocket the amp (s) and the parts/shipping. The good part for anyone following after me is that all the thinking and grunt work has been established; the procedure. He's an honest guy who enjoys the chase and the discovery. The bad part is inevitably shipping. I'm actually paying as much for that as the amp, since it will have been sent twice (HK>Hawaii>Hawaii>France). The Trends he did for me was totally reasonable so I'm sure this one will be too when it's sorted out. A lot depends on what parts he uses.
He can't keep everything in stock, being a one-man op. so there's that to factor in. I suggest you wait and hear how this goes and mail him directly when he's totalled it all up. Please wait though! I don't want him thinking about anything else

PS I'm not being evasive, we have a buddy system which is kind of special, not a business association. I want this to succeed on all accounts but it's entirely up to him where he takes it.

Paul_Bui · « **Reply #56 on:** 8 Mar 2007, 08:06 am »

Quote from: Bemopti123 on 22 Feb 2007, 02:14 pm

Quote from: Paul_Bui on 12 Feb 2007, 04:31 pm
Best of all, they no longer clip as they did in the past, when they were driving the same speakers but was driven directly with a modded SB2.

Could it be possible that more than the amp itself, the F200As have finally broken after hundreds of hours of play?

I had a set up, about 6 years back which comprised of Gershman X-1 monitors and an older Nakamichi PA-7 Stasis (Nelson Pass design) which at certain levels clipped, I mean the amps had 200 watts per channel.

After perhaps 6-9 months, I pushed the speakers again with the same amplifier and preamp and low and behold, it drove it to insane levels without clipping. I wonder if an active preamp or buffer would somehow prevent clipping.

I lied. The Clari-Ts do clip when the stepped attenuator knob gets past 9 o'clock, but by that time I would have more than enough volume. Anyway, I am running a Promitheus TVC out-of-the-box, and I plan to hook it up to the Clari-Ts just to see how an off-grid life would be like.

shep · « **Reply #57 on:** 8 Mar 2007, 08:34 am »

Mine clip at around 10 oclock. Funny thing: I had no experience before this with T-amps. I didn't know how to recognize their form of clipping. It's special. I can play really loud with some kinds of music and others, voices and brass mainly, easily provoke what I call "shouting". It's not nice...it seems to have less to do with volume than with the purity and intensity of a certain range of tones. This never changed from day one, even though a lot of other things did (burning in). I can't wait to get the powerful chip set and hear my speakers cranked up!

DZetye · « **Reply #58 on:** 11 Mar 2007, 07:14 pm »

There is going to be a review and test of the Little Dot T-100 here in a couple of weeks

http://stereomojo.com/AMPSHOOTOUT_000.htm#shootout

arthurs · « **Reply #59 on:** 11 Mar 2007, 08:02 pm »

The stereomojo shootout is being done at my place and I'll be doing the write up. We finished up the integrateds yesterday, will do the power amps next Saturday, and should be to press with results in about 3 weeks if all goes as planned. I'll be sure and ping this thread and will gladly shed any additional light I can for you guys after James publishes the results.