New amp for ht & 2ch

ezc
ezc Posts: 426
edited May 2005 in Electronics
I have been looking for that sound that I wanted from my system, tried different sources, cables,& tweak. I just couldnt get my LSi15 to give me the sound I was searching for. Just purchased a Balanced Audio Tech. BAT VK60 tube amp for the front mains. The sound is very very very close to what I have been searching for! Yes tube amp for HT & 2ch. I have never heard my 15's sound soo good. I have tried some SS amps & the sound was better than direct from my Rotel RSX 1065, but not anywhere close to the BAT. The BAT has given my a much wider, taller, & deeper with more air around each instrument & more dynamic during HT. 60 watt tube amp has no problem driving the 15's at reference 85db & still have 20+db head room. The improvement is like the system just got diled in & the cloud infront of the 15's has been lifted. This has been the best upgrade in the past 2 years.
Post edited by ezc on
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  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 50,777
    edited May 2005
    Hmmmmm....VK60, nice amp!
    Political Correctness'.........defined

    "A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."

    President of Club Polk

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  • dorokusai
    dorokusai Posts: 25,577
    edited May 2005
    A SS slave finally finds value in tubes ;) I will presume you don't read much here Ace.....where have you been hiding?
    CTC BBQ Amplifier, Sonic Frontiers Line3 Pre-Amplifier and Wadia 581 SACD player. Speakers? Always changing but for now, Mission Argonauts I picked up for $50 bucks, mint.
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  • organ
    organ Posts: 4,969
    edited May 2005
    Welcome to the world of tubes. Watch out, there's no going back. Wait until you get a tube pre in the chain. Congrats on your new amp. Glad you're enjoying it so much.

    Maurice
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  • ezc
    ezc Posts: 426
    edited May 2005
    Doro,

    Been busy at work & havnt had time to log on daily. I was almost ready to sell my LSi's, I just couldnt find the sound I was looking for. But after breaking down & going tube I finally found what I wanted! Redbook cd have now come to life & dvd's sound much more full! I liked the ease of use of a SS amp, trigger input & output & low maint. I didnt want to use tubes beacuse it makes my system slightly harder to use. With tubes there is no just puch one button to turn on the whole system. With tubes I need to power the system than manually turn on the amp & let it warm up till the led's are on than start using the system. I guess its a trade off much better sound but more steps to turn the system on. My wife still needs to learn how to use the system! By having the system turn on with one button it couldnt be easier to use. But as you can see I picked quality over ease of use! Hope the WAF dosnt bite me in the **** with this upgrade!
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  • jrlouie
    jrlouie Posts: 462
    edited May 2005
    This is an interesting read for me. I have an Lsi setup and for the most part, when reading anything about tubes, I just somewhat let it go in one ear and out the other because I've always read that the Lsi's need lots of current/power wherein SS provides better than tubes.
    Maybe this ideology isn't always true? Sounds like you really like your tubes.
    I've often thought about getting a tube pre (to allow for SS amplification but "tube" sound), but just never bit the bullet. Always that thought, "do I really need that?"
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  • dorokusai
    dorokusai Posts: 25,577
    edited May 2005
    A couple of those suggestions about power come from those who never had adequate power in the first place....it's about quality, not quantity.

    I personally prefer a Tube/SS combination....tube warmth on the output stage, and hardcore SS power....never fails.
    CTC BBQ Amplifier, Sonic Frontiers Line3 Pre-Amplifier and Wadia 581 SACD player. Speakers? Always changing but for now, Mission Argonauts I picked up for $50 bucks, mint.
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  • reeltrouble1
    reeltrouble1 Posts: 9,312
    edited May 2005
    Originally posted by dorokusai

    I personally prefer a Tube/SS combination....tube warmth on the output stage, and hardcore SS power....never fails. [/B]

    This WORKS for me.

    RT1
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  • jmierzur
    jmierzur Posts: 489
    edited May 2005
    Originally posted by dorokusai
    A couple of those suggestions about power come from those who never had adequate power in the first place....it's about quality, not quantity.

    Thanks for saying this. It would be nice if more understood this concept.
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  • ezc
    ezc Posts: 426
    edited May 2005
    I purchased the 60 from a friend who was using it for 2ch. My initial intention was to use it for a dedicated 2ch system but after installing to my system I think it will stay there & be used for 2ch, dvd, sacd, & dvda. What I did notice is I cant plug the amp into my Monster htps7000 power cond. When plugged in to the 7000 the sound stage shrinks, starts to sound harsh, & the top end becomes grainy. I also tried plugging directly into a regular outlet & it was about the same as plugging into the HTPS 7000 may be just slightly better. Plugged into a dedicated outlet audio outlet the amp just sings! Dedicated outlet is 30amp breaker with duel romex 10 awg & wattgate 381 outlet. This amp likes current & if you give it what it wants it sings! Pic of one of the dedicated outlets being installed. I would like to change all the wires to stranded 10awg in the future to all my dedicated outlets.
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  • Tour2ma
    Tour2ma Posts: 10,177
    edited May 2005
    Originally posted by ezc
    Plugged into a dedicated outlet audio outlet the amp just sings! Dedicated outlet is 30amp breaker with duel romex 10 awg & wattgate 381 outlet. This amp likes current & if you give it what it wants it sings!
    30 ampere Dual 10 AWG... LOL... IF that doesn't satisfy it...

    Was just looking at your V60's brochure on the BAT website and noted its "Power Supply Energy Storage" spec: 450 joules! That's in the same league as my 5 x 400 wpc Sunfire and it's in "a little" 60 wpc stereo amp.

    If you're in the mood, it might be interesting to hear how your old SS amp performs on this circuit, but I suspect you'd run back to the BAT post-haste... ;)
    More later,
    Tour...
    Vox Copuli
    Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. - Old English Proverb

    "Death doesn't come with a Uhaul." - Dennis Gardner
    "It's easy to get lost in price vs performance vs ego vs illusion." - doro
    "There is a certain entertainment value in ripping the occaisonal (sic) buttmunch..." - TroyD
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  • ezc
    ezc Posts: 426
    edited May 2005
    Tour,

    I have tried my SS amps plugged directly into one of the dedicated dedicated circuits. Yes it is better than being plugged into a regular home circuit or the HTPS 7000, But I still dont get the sound that I want from my system. With the vk60 its like everything clears up from lower vol to higher vol. The tubes sound much warmer & not as harsh as the SS amps Ihave tried. I know one thing for sure, any amp or system will sound better with dedicated outlets one for each price of equipment, & sound even better & better as more cable is used. In the future the next upgrade is a dedicated 100 amp sub panel next to the system & I will run four 10awg cables to each outlet, either 4 10awg romex or best would be 4 hot 4 neut & 1 ground (total 9ea 10awg wires) stranded 10 awg wire to each outlet. Right now I have only two romex 10awg to each outlet. My system is kinda like my race car the faster I want to go the more fuel (electricity)is needed, bigger fuel line or more wire to the outlets! The search continues for better picture & sound!
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  • jmierzur
    jmierzur Posts: 489
    edited May 2005
    Interesting future upgrade plans. Just curious, what you are planning on running off a 100 amp sub-pannel?
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  • mantis
    mantis Posts: 17,204
    edited May 2005
    Nice man,

    I'm still liking that Rotel rsx1065 you got there. I love that piece.
    Thats the receiver that started my love for Rotel.

    Dan
    Dan
    My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.
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  • ezc
    ezc Posts: 426
    edited May 2005
    Thanks Dan The Rotel has been a very very good receiver! Its just time to try & find a better sound for my system. Once I put the panel in it will be dedicated for my AV system only. Each peice of gear will have its own outlet. I already have the panel which is a small comercial GE panel. Still debating on building an extension which would be a dedicated media room, If we decide to go that way the panel will go into the media room, if not it will go into the existing room. One thing I have proved over & over for the best preformance you need good electricity and plenty of it!
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