SET tube amp suggestions

[jrhymeammo]

I just picked up a pair of the Hawthorne 15" Solo Silver Iris.
I'm now looking for a used SET tube amp for around $2K.

Any suggestions?

I'm interested in a 300B or EL84 based amp. 845 based will be cool as well, since they tend to offer a bit more power for wider speaker selections.

Thanks,
JRA

[Poultrygeist]

A $2k SET for the Silver Iris is overkill. Many owners of these OB's are happy with the $300 Miniwatt SET. The N3 is EL84 based. SET's are only intended for HE speakers.

Now if the money is burning a hole in your pocket check out the Decware amps.

[jrhymeammo]

A $2k SET for the Silver Iris is overkill. Many owners of these OB's are happy with the $300 Miniwatt SET. The N3 is EL84 based. SET's are only intended for HE speakers.

Now if the money is burning a hole in your pocket check out the Decware amps.

Thanks Poultrygeust,

As you know they are rated 95dB, and I sit about 10 feet away from them.
So the Hawthorne work as more than HE speakers in my environment.
As usual, I'll just go ahead and grab something and try out different gear until my boredom runs out.

JRA

[Poultrygeist]

This EL84 SE amp seems a good match for your Hawthornes. I'm anxious to try a David Yee hand built amp and he usually has a few for sale on the bay. 6 watts from this amp will push your high efficiency Hawthornes to obscene levels. I've seen less efficient 93db Fostex drivers hit 100 db SPL on 2.5 watts without distorting. 100 db SPL = pain.


http://cgi.ebay.com/DavidyeeAudio-SE...item45f7bf9b1d

[jrhymeammo]

I've decided to go with a pair of 300B monoblocks.
I appreciate your suggestion on David Yee amps.

Thanks,
JRA

[atomicAdam]

I've decided to go with a pair of 300B monoblocks.
I appreciate your suggestion on David Yee amps.

Thanks,
JRA

Well, which pair? And why?

[jrhymeammo]

Well, which pair?

The Wright Sound Mono 7.

And why?

Midrange. I'm thinking about adding Augies for bass with an outboard plate amp, so additional power won't be required.

JRA

[Poultrygeist]

300B 's can sound wonderful with full rangers especially folded horns but the price of good tubes can be more than the cost of many amps. I'm sure the Wrights will make the most of 7 watts.

I recently bought a pair of Eminence Alpha 15" full range bass drivers from Parts Express on which the Augies are based. I'll be using them in open baffles just as the Augies. The name Augie probably comes from augment as in augmenting bass.

Does the purchase of the Hawthorne OB's mean you're getting away from the "boxed sound"?

[RGA]

Yes one of the tough things about 300Bs seems to me to be the price of tubes. My OTO basically will go 8000-10000 hours and because it is EL84 output tubes and 12AX7 preamp tubes with one offbeat tube for the phono stage (I can't recall what it is off hand) you get more life ant the tubes can be as little as $8. And certain tube amps are more about the sound of the transformers.

I would have suggest the Kit 1 from Audio Note as a top contender for under $2k as it can be either a 2a3 or a 300B and you the housing comes for both so you can make changes back and forth if required.

I just never have the time to dabble but it a kit build is definitely in the future - you generally get a much higher level of parts quality compared to anything retail because the labor is the biggest factor in the ending price.

Art Dudley of Stereophile bought one and a couple of other reviewers - I have only heard it fairly briefly so I may try and have a longer look. But my EL84 ain't going anywhere - I still wish Guy Adams stayed in Audio as a designer.

[jrhymeammo]

Hey Poultrygeist,

To your statements, I'll say you are correct about everything.
The offerings from Electro Harmonix and JJ are plenty enough for me.
I'll probably change out the entire system within a year anyway...

I've ordered some Mundolf Supreme caps for the X-Over, but I think I'll wait until I get to know the sound with the Wright amps.

Tylers (SEAS) are beautiful sounding speakers, but the "boxed sound" has been bothering me a bit. I can't afford the Nola Viper or other similar offerings so the Hawthorne is a great fit. It was either that or wait until the ML CLS iiz shows up for sale within a driving distance...

RGA,
The Wright amps come with the O'Netics transformers. That was one of the other reasons for pulling the trigger on the amps. As you said the Output trannies should be a decent of quality. Not that I have an experience with different trannies in a same amp, my belief is that signals shouldn't get ruined at the last process before reaching speakers. A greenie for your post!

[jrhymeammo]

Wright Sound Company Mono7.





Here is my setup.
http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr...udg&1221438683
All of my gear except for speakers are located at the back of my listening spot.

My speaker cables are BlueJeansCable Twelve 5000UE and legthed at 25'(R) & 35'(L). I knew this was going to be a challenge from the beginning, but I just had to give it a try.
The Aleph5 clones(Tim Rawon) had sounded a bit harsh when paired with the stock Hawthorne, so I've decided to go with a pair of 300B monoblocks.
I've had the amps for about 40+ playing time since their arrival.
To my ears, the sound has not changed since the first listen.
The Wright Sound Monoblocks just doesn't have the open sound with authority when compared to the Aleph5 clones. The sound is bit conjested and soundstage has shrunk, especially in digital playback.

As mentioned above, I think my cable length is the guilty party here. My preamp is autoformer based passive unit and my DACs just dont have the power to provide the umph to run long cables. I like to keep my gear isolated from speakers and prefer to have access to my balcony, I think I'll be staying with the Rawsons and ditch the Mono7.

Back to my Hawthorne, I've replaced the original film caps from Jantzen Cross-Caps to the Mundorf Supreme (6.8 & 10.0 uf). I haven't noticed extension on highs and lows (and why should I?), but previous gittery sound turned natural, natural, and more natural. I wanted to be able to confirm this, so I had modified the XO with binding posts and capacitors with banana plugs. I can swap the caps within seconds, and I can the difference everytime. $50~ per cap is expensive but if they sound this good, perhaps the $300 Silver/Gold/Oil cap will sound 6X ...... just kidding.

I'll play around with the entire steup a bit more, but for now I think I'll be keeping the Hawthorne and Rawson amps.

[poppachubby]

Wow, nice stuff JRA. I'm fully happy with my system, alot of it had to do with my speakers. Also, I made sure that my amp and pre were operating at maximum potential. So they both had a visit to the amp doctor.

Aside from that, tubes themselves make the ultimate difference. Once I took the plunge and tubed everything with top shelf stuff, the sound became undeniable.

[Poultrygeist]

I'm about to bite the bullet for a 2a3 amp to drive the Zu's and/or the Frugal Horn Mk3's.

[jrhymeammo]

I've moved the Mono7 much closer to my speakers. The sound has improved drastically due to much shorter speaker cables.

Here is my current setup.


JRA