bracurrie Posted March 1, 2014 Share Posted March 1, 2014 (edited) I don't remember looking at this amp, but it looks very interesting. I like the part of tubes doing what they do best and SS doing what its good at. http://www.avahifi.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=108&Itemid=231 Comments and observations by the learned and wise panel? Edited March 1, 2014 by bracurrie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryC Posted March 1, 2014 Share Posted March 1, 2014 What is the sensitivity (I think that's the term), i.e., what voltage in for 200 watts out? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derrickdj1 Posted March 1, 2014 Share Posted March 1, 2014 That looks like a power house amp. Tubes in the front end and SS for the rear sound like syngery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bracurrie Posted March 1, 2014 Author Share Posted March 1, 2014 What is the sensitivity (I think that's the term), i.e., what voltage in for 200 watts out? I don't know and AVA doesn't publish detailed specs. Email them your question and they will answer. Or if you are really patient and tolerant of someone who may be a bit of a curmudgeon you could call and talk to Frank himself. Also, I am not sure of this, but AVA might be willing to adjust the parameters of the amp to suit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryC Posted March 1, 2014 Share Posted March 1, 2014 I'll pass on e-mailing and talking with the remarkable Mr. van Alstine, but I really agree with adjusting parameters to suit. IMO, as you probably've noted, I think high amp gain and problematic gain matching is a major culprit in high audible noise levels. Jud Barber gladly lowered the sensitivity of my 100-watt OTL amplifiers, which have proved to be very quiet since, once I solved some other causes. His standard sensitivity was 0.5 v. for 100 watts out, which I think is excessive for K-horns. He estimated that he'd lowered the sensitivity to 2.5 volts in for 100 watts out. I don't know how to translate figures like this to db of amp gain. I gather it's not a simple, linear calculation. I recall you had some noise issues in your setup. How is it at this time? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bracurrie Posted March 1, 2014 Author Share Posted March 1, 2014 (edited) I'll pass on e-mailing and talking with the remarkable Mr. van Alstine, but I really agree with adjusting parameters to suit. IMO, as you probably've noted, I think high amp gain and problematic gain matching is a major culprit in high audible noise levels. Jud Barber gladly lowered the sensitivity of my 100-watt OTL amplifiers, which have proved to be very quiet since, once I solved some other causes. His standard sensitivity was 0.5 v. for 100 watts out, which I think is excessive for K-horns. He estimated that he'd lowered the sensitivity to 2.5 volts in for 100 watts out. I don't know how to translate figures like this to db of amp gain. I gather it's not a simple, linear calculation. I recall you had some noise issues in your setup. How is it at this time? Larry, quiter amps did the trick on noise as well as now I am running a full ranger that is not near as efficient as the Faital/Eliptrac horn. Btw my Manley is maybe 10 dB noisier at approximately the same gain as my ampsandsound.com Stereo 15. Edited March 1, 2014 by bracurrie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryC Posted March 1, 2014 Share Posted March 1, 2014 (edited) Is that noise difference related to gain differences? I'd be curious about sensitivity comparisons. I recall suspecting the Manley of having had higher gain. What exactly do you mean by at approximately the same gain? Edited March 1, 2014 by LarryC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bracurrie Posted March 2, 2014 Author Share Posted March 2, 2014 (edited) Is that noise difference related to gain differences? I'd be curious about sensitivity comparisons. I recall suspecting the Manley of having had higher gain. What exactly do you mean by at approximately the same gain?what I mean and I may not be using the correct vernacular is that the quiet ampsandaound Stereo 15 and the Manley use the same amount of gain from the sound guard to produce equal spl levels. Therefore I believe the Manley to be inherently noisier, in fact I believe the S/N ratio of the Manley to be in the low to mid 80s which would indicate that it's not a gain problem as much as a noisy design or tubes problem. Edited March 2, 2014 by bracurrie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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