Will 3.5 watts from a pair of Welborne Moondogs drive my Cornscalas well?

[jbsl]

I agree Bruce everyone is different in how they want their system to sound. Some want the front row and some want the 25th row.

To me the fun is experimenting with different equipment.

[Cut-Throat]

The 3 low watt SET amps I have heard in the past 6-8 years were not to my liking.

Some people don't like fine expensive red Cabernet wines and much prefer Budweiser, that's OK.

Not a fault of the wine however! Own a low power SET amp for a year or two, spend some time with it, and you may change your mind.They are not 'party' amps however.

[Guest David H]

I know it's subjective, but I'm trying to talk myself into buying a SET amp to replace my Dynaco 60wpc tube amp. I'm looking for more musical detail. My current amp sings but only at higher volumes.

I just built a Decware SE84C-DIY amp, and so far it sounds great with my Cornscala's, however I have a pair of Dynaco MkIII's that also sound fantastic. If your Dynaco's are all original some updates may be in order, if not I would take a serious look at the crossovers and mid horns you are using. The K-400 sounds better at higher volumes to me.

Recently I built a pair of ALK Universals for a freind, and immediately noticed a huge improvement in low level detail over an AA crossover with upgraded caps.

What components did you use for your Cornscala?

[Nailbender]

GotHover,

As stated above I have a Bob Latino Dynaco clone 60wpc amp. I also have Bob Crites' Cornscala crossover, CT125 tweeter, Atlas PV-5H with Pyle horn and cast woofers. I've been looking the last few days in the forum history about ALK crossovers for a Cornscala, but I'm afraid to ask Al how much. Maybe some day...

[Guest David H]

As stated above I have a Bob Latino Dynaco clone 60wpc amp.

Sorry, I missed that altogether. I don't see the Bob Latino or the Crites gear being an issue. I have never heard the Crites Cornscala crossovers or the Pyle mid horns, but, I have used the Crites woofer, tweeters, and Sonicap crossover upgrades, and been very pleased.

[Erik Mandaville]

Brian:

Despite certain advantages (which are ultimately also subjective in terms of perceived improvements) afforded by the use of higher order passive crossovers, the problem one may encounter has to do with the associated insertion losses. This has simply to do with the fact that higher order crossovers have a greater number of passive components -- coils (aka inductors) and capacitors. Each of those parts contribute a certain 'obstructions' for the amplifier; and lower powered amps such as the Moondogs (I know, I have a pair) are less able to overcome the difficult load of more complex crossovers because of power limitations. They simply do not have much headroom to work with. That's the reason many SET owners have found very good results with extremely efficient single-drivers in Lowther or Fostex-based horn, bass reflex, or tuned pipe designs. Or, Klipsch Heritage. The La Scalas I had were driven beautifully well by a pair of parallel-feed amplifiers I built some years ago. In fact, I think that system provided some of the best sound we have had here. However, the crossovers used were very simple in order to permit a better power transfer between amp and speaker. See picture below of this system.

One thing I believe should be mentioned about the Moondogs or other amps that use directly AC heated triodes has to do with the fact that they contribute a small amount of 60Hz hum. This is ameliorated somewhat by the use of a hum balance potentiometer, but with very quiet program material, it's possible this inherent component of AC heated triodes may be bothersome. This is a known and well-documented characteristic of this type of amplifier, and it's equally well-known and documented that push-pull output amplifiers are inherently more quiet in this respect.

The Moondogs are superb 2A3 amplifiers, but as Kevin mentioned above, they may not be the best choice for everyone.