Jvitti1970 Posted September 5, 2018 Share Posted September 5, 2018 Gettng a MAC MC250 to run my Forte and LaScala’s. Amp is said to have a tubey sound. Will it be in my best interest to get a tube preamp or SS.?Budget will be under 1k Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallette Posted September 5, 2018 Share Posted September 5, 2018 Welcome to the madness. That choice is always controversial depending on who you ask. I'd be a strong advocate of a good tube preamp as I like that "tuby" sound. Being a fan of acoustic music, I find the clinical approach SS brings to be like listening in a hospital rather than a nice room with leather chairs and such. Your mileage may vary. I run a Van Alstine Super PAS4i which can still be had, I believe, for less than a thousand and features an exceptional phono section if that interests you. The hunt is an adventure...enjoy! Dave 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark1101 Posted October 8, 2018 Share Posted October 8, 2018 I have MC 250s and also 2100s. I have used them with tube preamps and they sound great with Klipsch. It's a good choice of amp. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimjimbo Posted October 8, 2018 Share Posted October 8, 2018 Even though this question was posted a month ago...I have run MC250s with a Mcintosh C29, and a Mcintosh C32, (both SS) and the combo was outstanding. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted October 12, 2018 Moderators Share Posted October 12, 2018 OK let me ask a question about something I read once. I read a tube preamp is more important than the tube amp if looking for that tube sound. It kind of made sense and made me wonder since the preamp could change the sound also. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimjimbo Posted October 12, 2018 Share Posted October 12, 2018 OK let me ask a question about something I read once. I read a tube preamp is more important than the tube amp if looking for that tube sound. It kind of made sense and made me wonder since the preamp could change the sound also. Agree Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ski Bum Posted October 13, 2018 Share Posted October 13, 2018 23 hours ago, dtel said: OK let me ask a question about something I read once. I read a tube preamp is more important than the tube amp if looking for that tube sound. It kind of made sense and made me wonder since the preamp could change the sound also. Low order harmonic distortion has ramifications in both tonal coloration and perceived loudness. That can happen in either a line stage (pre-amp) or power amps. A tube line stage can be designed as squeaky clean as you wish, it's a pretty easy task, as is engineering in however much "tube sound" as desired (reflected in how much or how little nonlinear distortion the stage produces). A tube amp, on the other hand, has a more challenging task, as the source impedance of the amps is typically well above zero and the loads they're connected to are all over he map, so there is impedance mediated linear distortion associated with the amp/speaker interface, on top of the non-linear distortion typical of tube amps. Taking this even further, different topologies produce different harmonic spectra, e.g. pp designs inherently cancel out even order harmonics and produce predominantly odd harmonics, where single ended types preserve even and odd harmonics. Line stages are almost exclusively single ended, but single ended amplifiers have severe practical limits (tend to be low powered, which was the whole reason for the development of pp approaches in the first place). For those reasons, I've always found the tube sound to be exemplified by the amp/speaker pairing to a higher degree than using tubes elsewhere upstream in the rig. Either method is as valid as the other, it's just a matter of how dirty you like your martinis and which recipe will get you there. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted October 23, 2018 Moderators Share Posted October 23, 2018 On 10/12/2018 at 2:07 PM, jimjimbo said: Agree What he said Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted October 23, 2018 Moderators Share Posted October 23, 2018 On 10/13/2018 at 10:30 AM, Ski Bum said: For those reasons, I've always found the tube sound to be exemplified by the amp/speaker pairing to a higher degree than using tubes elsewhere upstream in the rig. Either method is as valid as the other, it's just a matter of how dirty you like your martinis and which recipe will get you there. That's well reasoned also. I think I might need to do some playing around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.