Questions about Tube Amps...

KellyMic
KellyMic Posts: 166
edited April 2013 in 2 Channel Audio
I am going to sell a bunch of equipment and get a tube amp finally but I am a total "Tube Newb". Since it is my first tube amp I have been doing a ton of research for awhile and now have some unanswered questions I was hoping some others here might know. Right now my current setup is not so great, too many components in the signal path. I am going to go to only 3 (I currently have 6), a DAC, Amp, and my speakers.

I have already decided on a DAC and already have my speakers (Polk LSi25's) and now its down to the amp and thus my questions.

How are the Jolida amps?

I am looking for higher level used over new, any good reasons to buy new?

I keep seeing only one input for each channel, do tube amps not need the ground?

I am looking for 50-75 wpc amps @ 8 Ohms with balanced inputs as my DAC has balanced and since the LSi's are 4 Ohm I think am amp this size is plenty but is it?

Am I being unrealistic to expect to find 50-75 wpc with balanced inputs used in the $1,000 range give or take a couple hundred?

Thank you for your time.
---
Polk Studio Monitor 4.6 Series 2's, Polk RT1000p's, Polk LSi25's, Boston Acoustic VR-975's
Crown D-75, Crown CE1000, Crown CE2000
Post edited by KellyMic on
· Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Comments

  • marvda1
    marvda1 Posts: 4,904
    edited April 2013
    that balanced part you are talking about may cost you a pretty penny:biggrin:
    Amplifiers: Norma IPA 140, MasterSound Compact 845, Ayre v6xe, Consonance Cyber 800
    Preamp: deHavilland Ultraverve 3
    Dac: Sonnet Morpheus 2, Musical Paradise mp-d2 mkIII
    Transport: Jay's Audio CDT2 mk2, Lumin U1 mini
    Speakers: Rosso Fiorentino Volterra II
    Speaker Cables: Crystal Clear Magnum Opus 2, Organic Audio Organic Reference 2
    Interconnects: Crystal Clear Magnum Opus 2, Argento Organic Reference 2, Argento Organic 2
    Power Cables: Argento Organic Reference, Synergistic Research Foundation 10 and 12 ga.
    Digital cables: Crystal Clear Magnum Opus 2 bnc, Tellurium Q aes, Silnote Audio Poseidon Signature 2 bnc
    Puritan PSM156
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • marvda1
    marvda1 Posts: 4,904
    edited April 2013
    i looked at the ayon line for balanced inputs/outputs. their triton 2 (125watts) and close to $10,000 is not balanced.
    http://www.usatubeaudio.com/ayon-triton-ii.php
    Amplifiers: Norma IPA 140, MasterSound Compact 845, Ayre v6xe, Consonance Cyber 800
    Preamp: deHavilland Ultraverve 3
    Dac: Sonnet Morpheus 2, Musical Paradise mp-d2 mkIII
    Transport: Jay's Audio CDT2 mk2, Lumin U1 mini
    Speakers: Rosso Fiorentino Volterra II
    Speaker Cables: Crystal Clear Magnum Opus 2, Organic Audio Organic Reference 2
    Interconnects: Crystal Clear Magnum Opus 2, Argento Organic Reference 2, Argento Organic 2
    Power Cables: Argento Organic Reference, Synergistic Research Foundation 10 and 12 ga.
    Digital cables: Crystal Clear Magnum Opus 2 bnc, Tellurium Q aes, Silnote Audio Poseidon Signature 2 bnc
    Puritan PSM156
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • organ
    organ Posts: 4,969
    edited April 2013
    If I were in your situation, I'd look at tube pre amps instead. I find the LSi mates better with SS amps than tubes. I've tried several tube amps with my LSi9, but the best result was tube pre and ss amp. Just IMHO.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • KellyMic
    KellyMic Posts: 166
    edited April 2013
    Thanks all and Organ this was suggested buy some others too and is now my decided path for now. So I'll stick with my SS amp and look for a decent tube buffer.

    DSkip - The Peachtree looks nice but my DAC is already en-route. I know the brand seems to catch flak often but I ordered the Xda-2 from Emotiva. Never owned anything from them but it looks nice and is much better than my current setup. For it having balanced outs and supporting 192 / 24 it looks like a good deal, plus it has a volume control with a remote which was a must for me.

    Ok, lunch ending, back to work...
    ---
    Polk Studio Monitor 4.6 Series 2's, Polk RT1000p's, Polk LSi25's, Boston Acoustic VR-975's
    Crown D-75, Crown CE1000, Crown CE2000
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter