vnzbd Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 I am looking for a bit of an education as I am considering a change in my system. Who out there is running a tube for highs and SS for lows system? Are any of them using only the stock x-overs? Any issues with different amplifier gains? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 I am...was Need fix on bass amp and new 2A3 tubes I think I lucked out. My power amp puts out 60-watts max. My mid and high end tube amp puts out 6-watts max. Turns out to be the correct ration for passive bi-amping. Stock AK2 crossover on Khorns is at 300-Hz. Seems to be low enough not to hear the difference between the two amps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southern Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 I am running my Pioneer receiver (270 wpc) to the low end and my Dynaco ST70 (35 wpc) for the mids and highs on my Forte's with modified crossovers (same values as the origingal). I also lucked out without needing any gain controls between the two amplifiers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivernuggets Posted June 28, 2011 Share Posted June 28, 2011 SWL is using tubes/highs and SS/lows. He'll be along shortly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
russ69 Posted June 28, 2011 Share Posted June 28, 2011 I run a 55 wpc tube amp and it has plenty of bottom end, just saying... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schu Posted June 28, 2011 Share Posted June 28, 2011 can someone provide a wiring diagram for thsi set up? thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ski Bum Posted June 28, 2011 Share Posted June 28, 2011 can someone provide a wiring diagram for thsi set up? thanks It's pretty simple. You just need to provide a pair of line level signals from your pre-amp to your amps. Y-splitters on your pre-outs would work, if the amps you are using have their own gain controls for level matching, or lacking that, both have the same inherent gain. pre-amp outs --> y-splitter, one leg feeding tube amps, the other feeding corresponding channel on ss amps --> connect amps to corresponding inputs on speakers. Some brands have multiple pre-outs, e.g. NAD's pre-amps and more expensive integrateds have two sets of pre-outs, one of which has a gain control, a feature specifically provided for passive bi-amping. Using gear with such a feature, simply feed one amp from one set of pre-outs, and the other amp from the other set, making sure to use the trimmable outs with the amp with the highest inherent gain. This is what I have done, using the fixed outs to feed the tubes (they don't reach full output until they see a 2V input), and the variable outs feeding the ss amp (which comes to rated power at a mere 0.8V input), with that pre-out dialed back enough so that levels match. I've done this using a C375 integrated using the built in amp for the lows, and a C162 pre with other amps. I had my crossovers re-worked for bi-amping when I replaced the caps, which was necessary for the old fortes. After all that futzing around, I find I still prefer driving my Klipsch with the tube amps full range. Go figure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWL Posted June 28, 2011 Share Posted June 28, 2011 SWL is using tubes/highs and SS/lows. He'll be along shortly.Been doing it for about a year and a half now. Love it. [Y] It's true what they say...horns love tubes. [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallette Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 I run a 55 wpc tube amp and it has plenty of bottom end, just saying... A Dynaco ST-70 is more than adequate for the full range with Klipshorns...but many want to run SET amp in the fleawatt range for a variety of (good) reasons and while the sound of chamber music and such from this combination is downright heavenly pipe organ is severely limited. The more opiniated bottlehead or the like is likely to consider an AB tube amp little better than SS. All but the most rabid tube lovers will agree there is probably no audible difference between a 32 hz organ pipe amplified by tubes, SS, or digital so correctly balancing a fine SET amp for mid/high and a power amp for the low end is a marriage made in heaven for these SET devotees who want it all. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrestonTom Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 The OP is getting some poor advice. What you are looking at is bi-amping. Bi-amping has the best results when the crossover comes PRIOR to the amps. Do a search on "fool's bi-amping" to understand the difference. BTW, the required crossover need not be expensive. Good luck, -Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vnzbd Posted June 29, 2011 Author Share Posted June 29, 2011 Gentlemen, Thanks for the feedback. I do currently "fools bi-amp" my Chorus IIs from a 5 ch amp. I did this so that I could attenuate the highs 3db and rebalance? the speaker. I have felt that the lows did not keep up with the mids and highs at low to medium volume levels. I have been very pleased with the results. I was thinking about adding an external dac to my system and was looking at one that contains a tube. In emailing back and forth with troutboy and discussing tubes overall, he suggested possibly a tube preamp. While that sound interesting, I am music 80%, ht 20% and after some litght research, I did not come across anything tube processors for ht. That is why I was considering tubes for the highs. I believe that tubes for all may be fun to experiment with but have fiddled with the lows in the Chorus IIs for quite the while now and am reluctant to change that aspect of my system. As far as going to active bi-amping, I am not anti that idea but in posts that I have read earlier, some have retained their high/mid x-over(vs tri-amping?) and wired directly to the woofer. The x-over for the lows in the Chorus IIs is pretty simple with an inductor and cap, how much power is disapated there and how much is gained by eliminating it? Would a larger amp do the same thing? So my thought was to experience tubes on the top but wanted to avoid any balance issues between the highs and lows. The amp that I run is an Emotiva and has a gain of 32 which by what I understand is rather high. I currently am battling the issue of surround with a lower gain from the avr that drives them, but that is another saga! Again gentlemen, thanks for the feedback! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark1101 Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 To set your self up with the best odds for success at "active"...........you need amps with gain controls. Emotiva doesn't make an amp with gain controls which is an issue and why many Emotiva owners complain of hiss on some models. Their amps are always full on. This is definitely not what you want in order to build an optimized active system. I'm not saying you can't build an active with amps that have no gain controls............I'm just saying this is not the correct way because you can't optimize the gain structure of the system and will wind up with a lower S/N ratio hitting your amps because you are forced to lower gain upstream. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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