Does listening in Ultra linear mode make you a snob?

Ern Dog
Ern Dog Posts: 2,237
edited May 2009 in 2 Channel Audio
I had some friends over to listen to my rig last night and one of the guys called me a snob just because I like to listen to my tube amp in Ultralinear mode instead of pure Triode mode. That was a first for me. :p
Post edited by Ern Dog on
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  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,418
    edited May 2009
    You have Ultra Linear mode? I am sorry but thats downright snobbish in my book, and then you rub your friends noses in it like that? Does arrogance know no bounds these days?:p;)


    j/k... I like my sound as pure as i can get it too. They were just jealous they cannot appreciate the same in their own homes...:)
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
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  • mantis
    mantis Posts: 17,194
    edited May 2009
    Ern Dog wrote: »
    I had some friends over to listen to my rig last night and one of the guys called me a snob just because I like to listen to my tube amp in Ultralinear mode instead of pure Triode mode. That was a first for me. :p

    Thats the stupidest thing I have ever heard. Listen how you like Bro, Snob or not.

    Dan
    Dan
    My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.
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  • mhardy6647
    mhardy6647 Posts: 33,804
    edited May 2009
    Ultra-Linear would be, in most snob hifi circles, the equivalent of marryin' your cousin, havin' a rusty pickup on concrete blocks in the front yard, and some houn' dogs bayin' on the porch of the double-wide.

    :-)

    Single-ended Class A no NFB and a power supply that could choke a rhinoceros -- for 1 watt per channel, or less. Now you're talkin' snob...

    http://www.the-planet.org/nnetg.html
    Not snobs... nope, not us...
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  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User] Posts: 1,394
    edited May 2009
    I have no idea what this ultra linear triode pentode modular mode is. Is this audiophile vocab? I am not there, what the hell is this?

    Seriously,
    Halen
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  • beardog03
    beardog03 Posts: 5,550
    edited May 2009
    mhardy6647 wrote: »
    Ultra-Linear would be, in most snob hifi circles, the equivalent of marryin' your cousin, havin' a rusty pickup on concrete blocks in the front yard, and some houn' dogs bayin' on the porch of the double-wide.

    :-)

    Single-ended Class A no NFB and a power supply that could choke a rhinoceros -- for 1 watt per channel, or less. Now you're talkin' snob...

    http://www.the-planet.org/nnetg.html
    Not snobs... nope, not us...




    Yep !
    To all of the above....

    I also found that it depends on what type of music you are listening to, and what tubes you are running, and alot of other variables.....

    I usually listened to my V12 in UL mode

    Speaks make a big difference also....


    if you are into silky sweet mids, Triode is they wat to go,
    UL seems to give much more across the range output power

    IMO
    at least the `ol V12 seems that way
    Cary SLP-98L F1 DC Pre Amp (Jag Blue)
    Parasound HCA-3500
    Cary Audio V12 amp (Jag Red)
    Polk Audio Xm Reciever (Autographed by THE MAN Himself) :cool:
    Magnum Dynalab MD-102 Analog Tuna
    Jolida JD-100 CDP
    Polk Audio LSi9 Speaks (ebony)
    SVS PC-Ultra Sub
    AQ Bedrock Speaker Cables (Bi-Wired)
    MIT Shotgun S1 I/C`s
    AQ Black Thunder Sub Cables
    PS Audio Plus Power Cords
    Magnum Dynalab ST-2 FM Antenna
    Sanus Cherry wood Speak Stands
    Adona AV45CS3 / 3 Tier Rack (Black /Gold)

    :cool:
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  • Face
    Face Posts: 14,340
    edited May 2009
    halenhoang wrote: »
    I have no idea what this ultra linear triode pentode modular mode is. Is this audiophile vocab? I am not there, what the hell is this?

    Seriously,
    Halen
    Tube amp topologies.



    I only listen to my Stingray in triode mode. It would be nice to have a little more headroom though, but a 80+wpc triode amp would break the bank at the moment.
    "He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not become a monster. And when you gaze long into an abyss the abyss also gazes into you." Friedrich Nietzsche
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  • mhardy6647
    mhardy6647 Posts: 33,804
    edited May 2009
    halenhoang wrote: »
    I have no idea what this ultra linear triode pentode modular mode is. Is this audiophile vocab? I am not there, what the hell is this?

    Seriously,
    Halen


    Triode mode means wiring a pentode or a "beam power" output tube to operate in the same manner as a triode. This is intrinsically more linear but less efficient (i.e., less output power) than exploiting the extra grids (screen and suppressor grids) in a pentode. Here's a relevant thread:
    https://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?p=832643
    also: http://www.webace.com.au/~electron/tubes/triode.htm

    Ultralinear mode is a particular application of feedback from a tap on the output transformer back to the power pentode to flatten frequency response and reduce distortion (THD) at any given power level. I b'lieve it was invented by David "Dynaco" Hafler (certainly looks like it).
    http://www.webace.com.au/~electron/tubes/ul.html

    You might also want to look at pp 20-27 of http://www.anthemav.com/oldsitev1/pdf/taste.pdf
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  • madmax
    madmax Posts: 12,434
    edited May 2009
    mhardy6647 wrote: »
    Single-ended Class A no NFB and a power supply that could choke a rhinoceros -- for 1 watt per channel, or less. Now you're talkin' snob...

    http://www.the-planet.org/nnetg.html
    Not snobs... nope, not us...


    That is the real snob teritory. Where do I get one? :)
    Vinyl, the final frontier...

    Avantgarde horns, 300b tubes, thats the kinda crap I want... :D
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  • mhardy6647
    mhardy6647 Posts: 33,804
    edited May 2009
    best bet: build your own...
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  • cfrizz
    cfrizz Posts: 13,415
    edited May 2009
    Whichever one you listen to means you're a freakin geek!
    Marantz AV-7705 PrePro, Classé 5 channel 200wpc Amp, Oppo 103 BluRay, Rotel RCD-1072 CDP, Sony XBR-49X800E TV, Polk S60 Main Speakers, Polk ES30 Center Channel, Polk S15 Surround Speakers SVS SB12-NSD x2
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  • mhardy6647
    mhardy6647 Posts: 33,804
    edited May 2009
    cfrizz wrote: »
    Whichever one you listen to means you're a freakin geek!

    guilty as charged.
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  • organ
    organ Posts: 4,969
    edited May 2009
    Hey man, maybe your friend is jealous of your set up. Snob? No way. Snobs are usually into triodes. The lower the power output, the more snobby lol:D.
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  • cfrizz
    cfrizz Posts: 13,415
    edited May 2009
    :D LOL guilty & proud of it! March on with your geeky self!:D
    mhardy6647 wrote: »
    guilty as charged.
    Marantz AV-7705 PrePro, Classé 5 channel 200wpc Amp, Oppo 103 BluRay, Rotel RCD-1072 CDP, Sony XBR-49X800E TV, Polk S60 Main Speakers, Polk ES30 Center Channel, Polk S15 Surround Speakers SVS SB12-NSD x2
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  • Ern Dog
    Ern Dog Posts: 2,237
    edited May 2009
    organ wrote: »
    Hey man, maybe your friend is jealous of your set up. Snob? No way. Snobs are usually into triodes. The lower the power output, the more snobby lol:D.

    Too Funny! :D
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  • doctor r
    doctor r Posts: 837
    edited May 2009
    I really can't beleive that you would even own an amp with the, dare I say it, triode option switch. Just having that switch in the same room makes it possible for you to do the unthikable and ... I hate to consider the possibilities, the lose of stature, the possible expulsion from the Country Club. Quickly have it modified so you are not tempted. Triode mode has ruined so many who's futures were bright.
    integrated w/DAC module Gryphon Diablo 300
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