Painful Reality

---------------- On 7/26/2003 11:44:01 AM DeanG wrote: See...humble. He's worse than freaking Leo. ---------------- I may be a bit less humble about the 2A3 PP amp that is cooking in my head right now... In this amp I should steal from others only 98% of the concepts instead of the usual level of 100%!!! Jeff L.

I am really glad you enjoy the Horus. The transient handling and the ability of rendering the low level details while placing the music first is what makes this stong point of this amplifier. Using the 2A3 AVVT mesh plate bring it a bit further to my taste but the availability of these is a bit obscur. I guess the TJ 2A3 Mesh should be interesting too. As I stated in the MagneQuest web site, credits for this amp should be given to other than me. On the list are: Gordon Rankin who suggested me to use a parafeed configuration AND a grid choke when dealing with a 2A3 or a 45. Christian Phaneuf from Expériences Sonores in Quebec City (the guy that started me into this madness). I shamelessly copied the input-driver design he used in a nice 45 SET amp. I think he was himself inspired by a design from Steve Berger (from April Sound). Nothing new under the sun... And finally LeoK who suggested some modifications in the output section (mods he implemented in Chris's amps). So I'm left with nothing of my own in this amp I guess... Hurry up to show us these photos! Have fun listening to it in the meantime! Jeff L. P.S. Getting a digital camera would be a good thing!!! P.P.S. (editing time now) AHHHHHH! re-reading this post, I realised I forgot THE most important guy behind the Horus... Endless thanks to Kelly (Mobile Homeless) as he was the first one to bug me to write about the Horus on the MagneQuest website. I owe him a lot, especially for the exeptional coverage I received here.

---------------- On 7/18/2003 2:00:42 PM Just1n20 wrote: ya the jolida tube amp i'm looking at is intergrated, i don't think i could afford a good separate tube pre-amp and tube amp system. anyone have any recommendations in the under $1000 range or thoughts on the Jolida JD 202A? i'm limited to that price range for college. ---------------- This preamp should be pretty nice. I don't think I ever saw one go over 200 USD. These pop up quite regularly on eBay. I think these should be nice. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=14974&item=3035970274

---------------- On 7/17/2003 12:02:15 PM DeanG wrote: I'm sorry Chris, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to draw the line at consensual sex with penguins. Italy huh? Man, she actually managed to drag his arse away from the computer. That's great. ---------------- Consentual sex with a penguin maybe... but with penguins! Now that is pushing it.

C'mon BigBusa, get real... 600 W are for sissies! This is "watt" you need http://www.crownaudio.com/amp_htm/macrotvz.htm "W/cubic inches" now that is something you should like...

---------------- On 7/15/2003 8:20:53 PM BigBusa wrote: The world of tubes isn't as spectacular and breathtaking as you've been lead to believe. The difference between a SS and a tube amp is minor. IMO you'll be severly disappointed chasing the wild goose that is the elusive, detailed, warm sounding tube amp. A tube amp is just old outdated technology that has only been brought back from the dead because of years of myths and over glorified stories about these amps. They are not what they are cracked up to be. I have been down that long, mysterious, unsatisfying road myself ...only to return to SS gear where I started in the first place. ---------------- Hello gross generalisation... I once ended up with a girl that was not stellar in bed... I didn't turn gay for that.

---------------- On 7/11/2003 11:19:39 AM Triode Pete wrote: The Tango U-808 is a universal SINGLE-ENDED output transformer & is not designed for push-pull. It's designed for triodes like the 2A3 & 50, & pentodes (6L6). I guess that's why it's universal. ---------------- Hum... Er.. Dean, it's finally me who stand corrected!!! I guess I mistook the screen grid tap for a center tap in the U808. Seeing "a third wire" and the "Universal" mention made me wrongly assume that the "universality" was in the sense of the Hammond 125 serie, I'll shamfully admit. This being said, I still wouldn't describe them as outstanding. Especially in a PP configuration...

---------------- On 7/11/2003 6:04:10 AM DeanG wrote: Good SET is about the iron -- it's responsible for 7/10's of what the amp does -- and these have outstanding iron. Looking at the pictures you can see that they are well laid out with good parts. These weren't thrown together by a weekend warrior. ---------------- These particular amps are using Tango's "workhorse" the U808. This OPT is a compromise as you can use it in push pull design and in SET design. I would not qualify it as outstanding. It's a nice OPT but of the "experimenter grade" quality. For sure these amps seems to be really nice and at around 1000. these could be no brainers. I'd check for the availability/cost of the Western Electric driver tube though...

---------------- On 7/2/2003 9:42:49 PM DeanG wrote: Another kind word about the 8417's. The Quicksilver 8417's really weren't based on the Bogen circuit. That circuit came out of Mike's head. After I bought my M-60's I called Mike Sanders several times with questions about it. I also wanted a schematic to the amp, which he said he didn't have. He said "the circuit is so simple you really don't need one". At any rate, at some point I brought up the 8417's -- and he shared an interesting story about them. He said that after he came up with the design and put them in production, he was reading a review where the reviewer said they were "based on the Bogen circuit". He had no idea what the reviewer was talking about, so he went and dug up the info on the Bogen. He told me, "sure enough -- same circuit". His point was that there was nothing really new under the sun. That Monster is kind of frightening. I couldn't even afford the retube. Vintage: Isn't the Quad mentioned actually the first amp to use "partial triode" -- which ended up being called "Ultra-linear" by Hafler and Keroes. I'm not sure, but I think Quad actually came up with the feedback loop thing off the transformer first, but the Hafler and Keroes version is what ended up becoming famous. They may have not been exactly the same, but I think the concept was similiar. ---------------- There is nothing new under the sun for sure. Or maybe "Ultrapath" was??? Nahhh! Intereting annecdote about Mike Sanders not having seen the Bogen! The fact remain that for the bargain hunter amongst you, the Bogen MO-100 is a nice amp to get for really cheap. As for the Quad, I'll have to check but the cathode feedback was used in two other amps before. I don't have my source about this ("Initiation aux Amplis à Tube" from Jean Hiraga) but I'll check.

---------------- On 7/2/2003 8:14:17 PM mdeneen wrote: He he -- if I was looking for enormous profits - - I'd look into the HiFi wire bid'niz. mdeneen ---------------- You bet... especially after realizing that the "made especially for us" ultra pure copper wire was actually stripped down Canare GS-6.

---------------- On 7/2/2003 8:21:12 PM mdeneen wrote: Oh---THOSE "MkIIIs" - - killer. mdeneen ---------------- Maybe but there's no remote...

Maybe these chassis would do for you then maybe not as they would probably be overkill... http://www.plitron.com/pages/Products/Audio/chassis.htm

Danny, the guy asked for ULTIMATE monoblocks... I told him what was my ultimate. Ultimate IS ultimate. Or was it ultimate with regards to cost... Sanely ultimate maybe? If we consider the "I am flat broke but I want to get the ultimate for my pocket money": I'd vote for the Bogen MO-100A. About nobody knows about these gems. They can be bought on eBay for anything between 25 USD a pair to 100 USD a pair. Yep the tubes are the 8417 but if you can lay your hand on these, I bet you'll like these. These amps were the inspiration behind the Quicksilver 8417 mono amplifiers. Don't want the the 8417? Craig at NOS Valves will surely be glad to modify them to get EL34. Now for a "ultimate in the vintage departement"... Go for a Quad II. Good Lord why doesn't this amp do not get more coverage around here? These are MARVELOUS amps. The cathode feedback winding was brilliant. In my opinion these Quad amps schred ANY McIntosh to pieces (but that's my opinion and others will surely disagree). Dynacos, Eicos, Fisher, Scott might be really nice but for me the vintage amp of choice is the ugly Quad II. Be sure to stay miles away from the crappy reisue they put out recently. Don't get these on eBay as they can run into serious money. Swap them at pawn shops. It must be said that the Quad II must be the only thing out of UK that is not plagued with QC problems. You want something new, doesn't need to feel like front row at a Grateful Dead concert, but you haven't a fortune to spend? A soldering iron for you means a way to hurt yourself?... Ultimate (SET wise) might come with the Wright 2A3 monoblocks. These are delightful.

Re: the Ongaku The fuss about this amp (IMHO of course) was: -its price -the fact that it was one of the first SET to have press coverage this side of the Atlantic -the fact that it could drive other than efficient speakers so owners of B&W could ear the "SET magic". For the rest, this amp sounds good but certainly not better than any SETs by Gordon Rankin of Wavelentgh Audio for exemple (a really nice guy with really nice amps but not often heard of around here). I would take Leok's delightful cobalt Moondog anytime of the day over an Ongaku which actually sounds pretty "slow" and to my ears. Re: the Tenor Audio OTL This is definitively my ultimate amp. Hearing this amp (particularly the 15W version) on my Lamhorns screw me for life. I can't live without them... Sadly I can't live with them either! I will hear soon the new hybrid version they put out and I must say I am pretty curious about what Michel Vanden Broech (Tenor Audio designer) will have achieve. This guy IS the tube guru by excellence. I wish I had only one glimpse of his genius.

Je crois qu'un vieil ampli à tube tel un Eico HF-81 pourrait faire l'affaire. Par contre, l'achat sur eBay d'un tel ampli comporte certains risques (plutôt des risques certains). La plupart de ces antiquités sont reçues dans un état pitoyable, malgré la description du vendeur le déclarant la plupart du temps comme "working OK"... Si tu n'as pas le goût du risque, un Jolida 102B pourrait être bien. Personnellement j'aime bien les push pull de EL84. Je les trouve plus "suave" que les push pull de EL34. Bien sur, le type de musique que tu écoutes devrait influencer ton choix. Si pour toi, prendre ton pied c'est d'écouter quelque chose du genre de Carla Bruni, alors un ampli monotriode s'impose.