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Best Amplification for Cornwall II?


audiophile03

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Before I spend some big bucks on an integrated, I am wondering if I could get some opinions on the best amplification for a pair of Cornwall II's. I am looking at getting a custom built Class A SS integrated made, an 18wpc SET tube integrated, or some other tube powered integrated in the $1500 and under range. I listen to many different kinds of music but more classical, organ (ie. Bach), blues rock, and jazz. I would venture to guess that with my moderate listening levels (65-89db) and my relatively small listening room (~14ft x 14ft x 12ft ceiling, fully carpeted), I am only using a few watts of power. Any info/recommendation is greatly appreciated!

Cheers,
Jared

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Hmmmmm that's kind of a big question......there is so much to choose.....I'll just throw this in, when I had my Cornwalls I was using one of my Adcom 555II's......I liked the sound....but that's me. I also liked how my little Carver Cube M400t made them sound.

I'm always swaping amps and speakers around.......I'm a mess.....lol lol

I'm sure some of the other guys with tubes will chime in.....

Welcome to the forum, good luck with your amp selection.

MKP :-)

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Maybe something like this will work.  I have been intrigued by these Anthems for a while but never heard one.

 

http://app.audiogon.com/listings/tube-anthem-integrated-2-hybrid-tube-integrated-amplifier-2015-02-02-integrateds-94025-west-menlo-park-ca

 

 

 

Maybe someone who has experience with these Anthems will chime in.

 

Bill

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Keep in mind that 2 Watts will take your head off, so 15-20 gives you plenty of head room

 

Tubes clip more gracefully than SS, so for low output Amps, tubes offer an advantage if you overdrive them in not destroying your speakers.

 

For the Vintage tube amps, there are no shortage of options with proven track records. All of them will require an extensive and expensive rebuild, if they haven't been rebuilt already.

 

There is even a company that sells kit Dynacos or will build them for you. I don't know if these were his fav... but I understand that they guy who designed your speakers owned several of them.

 

As to the phono section, and pre amp, I would keep them separate from the tube amp. A high quality SS surround pre-amp is the way to go IMHO. There are so many choices for outboard phono sections, that integrated makes no sense if you like Vinyl.

 

You can pick up high end surround pre-amps for a few hundred if you don't own one already.

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Hey Bubo, thanks for your input. As you stated 25wpc of class A juice will be plenty. As I stated in my first post, my listening dB ranges from 60dB to ~89-93dB during peaks in the music. As for the integrated, I have had separates for a long time and am wanting to have just one big beautiful piece. My digital sources are run through my tube DAC and I have a very versatile phono preamp as well. So, those items will not be "built in" so that I can still change those out at will. I am hoping to have built, a preamp and amp section that compliment each other which I am still contemplating. My friend has built many high quality, expensive pieces to which I have owned one or two in the past, but he is very skilled with building audio pieces from exotic woods. Here is a pair of 5 liter cabinets he built from Jatoba and Bamboo for my Fostex FE-103SOL 50th Anniversary full range drivers:

0979bcd194abaf279ab3de85e1a93074.jpg

Edited by audiophile03
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 My friend has built many high quality, expensive pieces to which I have owned one or two in the past, but he is very skilled with building audio pieces from exotic woods. Here is a pair of 5 liter cabinets he built from Jatoba and Bamboo for my Fostex FE-103SOL 50th Anniversary full range drivers:

 

 

Nice cabinets!

 

At my woodworking skill level, victory is defined as not leaving any fingers on the table. Anything of beauty has to be bought in.....

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Maybe something like this will work.  I have been intrigued by these Anthems for a while but never heard one.

 

http://app.audiogon.com/listings/tube-anthem-integrated-2-hybrid-tube-integrated-amplifier-2015-02-02-integrateds-94025-west-menlo-park-ca

 

 

 

Maybe someone who has experience with these Anthems will chime in.

 

Bill

 

 

I never knew Anthem had a tube offering.  I'd love to hear one as well.  I've never heard anything from Anthem that I didn't REALLY like.

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