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Does designing an amplifier by ear really work?


tube fanatic

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8 minutes ago, Deang said:

I don't agree. The internet is where all public discourse takes place. Ignoring dumb stuff increases the liklihood that it will spread. 

 

If that is really true, where did public discourse take place prior to 1991? 

You must be pretty young.

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4 hours ago, Deang said:

Obviously stupid and irrational ideas need to be shamed out of existance. 

It depends who is defining "stupid and irrational." I have been in discussions where I knew the facts were on my side and was not so politely accused of either being stupid, irrational, or some other idiotic manly (sic) cut. Otoh, I agree stupid ideas need to be addressed, but if it can't be done civilly then others who disagree may be offended and then it's up to who has the funniest, thread shutting line. That's my take.

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My vote is yes there is no science or methodology needed to build amps. If you have proper empathy with and can emote with your audio device well you can become an audio synergistic village of man and electronics melded into something that surpasses mere technical abilities and methods. How you feel in relationship to your amp will produce much more as your feelings guide you in ways that empirical methodology never could to superb sound.

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1 hour ago, polizzio said:

 

If that is really true, where did public discourse take place prior to 1991? 

You must be pretty young.

I'm 60. Prior to tbe internet, there was no real "public discourse" - unless you want to count the editorial pages of your local paper.

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Hey Dean there was lots of public discourse but it was face to face and no anonymous keyboard warriors. Outside of this forum I am going back to those days more and more. You see  people eating out and the whole family sits there with their dumb smart phones and no conversation. Go to a tractor pull and same thing.

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1 hour ago, Zen Traveler said:

It depends on who is defining "stupid and irrational".

I have spent half of my adult life getting my *** kicked around here. I'm better off for it. It forced me to reexamine a lot of things - and to change my mind. I read some of my posts from a decade or more ago and I wince - tempted to edit or delete them. But no - they are evidence of my growth. I'm grateful to those who were willing to bring down the hammer. Please, if I ever say something that just seems plain dumb - tell Crites, lol. 

 

 

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22 hours ago, tube fanatic said:

In regard to the Hypex and Benchmark amps, I seem to recall that both use some nfb.  Does anyone have definite info about that? 

Yes, they use NFB, but it's what makes the class D amp drive difficult loads with ease.

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1 hour ago, Deang said:

I'm 60. Prior to tbe internet, there was no real "public discourse" - unless you want to count the editorial pages of your local paper.

 

Public discourse is public discussion. So before the internet (1991 for sure) that would have been talk radio, organized protests or rallies, daily newspaper where folks would write in and comment on topics or the editorial sections, political talk shows on tv on Sunday morning for example (still occurring like Face the Nation), the Johnny Carson Show, the Late Night show, scheduled local government public meetings. So many examples of public discourse prior to the internet if you stop and think about it. Talk radio was huge before the internet, where folks could call in live and interact with a moderator or discussion panel. Organized public discussions at college universities too, big in the 60s and 70s.

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2 hours ago, polizzio said:

So many examples of public discourse prior to the internet if you stop and think about it.

Ha! Before the internet I liked bringing up political and religious issues at parties and among friends...That was in the day when these subjects were supposed to be taboo and ya gotta wonder why? 😕

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7 hours ago, Deang said:

I have spent half of my adult life getting my *** kicked around here. I'm better off for it. It forced me to reexamine a lot of things - and to change my mind. I read some of my posts from a decade or more ago and I wince - tempted to edit or delete them. But no - they are evidence of my growth. I'm grateful to those who were willing to bring down the hammer. Please, if I ever say something that just seems plain dumb - tell Crites, lol. 

 

 

In all seriousness, that type of self reflection/examination is evidence of a well grounded individual.

 

 

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6 hours ago, polizzio said:

 

Public discourse is public discussion. So before the internet (1991 for sure) that would have been talk radio, organized protests or rallies, daily newspaper where folks would write in and comment on topics or the editorial sections, political talk shows on tv on Sunday morning for example (still occurring like Face the Nation), the Johnny Carson Show, the Late Night show, scheduled local government public meetings. So many examples of public discourse prior to the internet if you stop and think about it. Talk radio was huge before the internet, where folks could call in live and interact with a moderator or discussion panel. Organized public discussions at college universities too, big in the 60s and 70s.

Don't forget the oft forgotten "Letter to the Editor."

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16 hours ago, polizzio said:

 

Public discourse is public discussion. So before the internet (1991 for sure) that would have been talk radio, organized protests or rallies, daily newspaper where folks would write in and comment on topics or the editorial sections, political talk shows on tv on Sunday morning for example (still occurring like Face the Nation), the Johnny Carson Show, the Late Night show, scheduled local government public meetings. So many examples of public discourse prior to the internet if you stop and think about it. Talk radio was huge before the internet, where folks could call in live and interact with a moderator or discussion panel. Organized public discussions at college universities too, big in the 60s and 70s.

True, but now everything is in real time and the scale is global.

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1 hour ago, Tube Hawk 6AQ5 said:

Conflict leads to excellence because it weeds out weak ideas and people.

Sometimes but not always. Consider the venue and participants. This is a Speaker Forum that has experience allowing conflict in discussions and when it gets too nasty hyperbole flies and nastiness ensues...Instead of "excellence" we get name calling and then the lowest common denominator drives the discussion. Those who have sensible, factual rebuttals gets tired of typing and the "telling it like it is," crowd feel emboldened by getting others to stop participating.

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Way too many  overly sensitive feedback adverse triode trend hoppers making the rules these days. 

I too have seen this and think we should vote them out of office!

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Not sure how an internet pillow fight between a couple of electro- geeks is a threat to forum security.

Time to grow some hair on your pentodes and toughen up.    - TH6AQ5

Funny line but it doesn't take "hair on your pentodes," to realize that internet bullying and name calling is only manly because there isn't any repercussions in the real world for doing so...Btw, I am not offended by factual/civil debate but instead with idiotic rhetoric that's designed to piss off folks rather than inform. 

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32 minutes ago, Deang said:

True, but now everything is in real time and the scale is global.

This is true. What I realized discussing politics in the BS Section last election was how much influence social media had on our population and how it could be manipulated...I didn't realize at the time how MUCH misinformation was being sent out, real time, and our masses didn't realize who was manipulating them and how susceptible they were to it. I wish we had those threads back because it is living proof of what Volume I of the Mueller report exposed and I was trying to convey at the time which was why are we talking about so much extraneous BS when there were issues to discuss that affected all of us--I started a thread Do Words Matter? at the same time they were trying to coin the phrase, "Alternate Facts," and alarmingly the jargon was dismissed, but the practice continues and influence those who don't wish to dig deeper into the issues.

 

Insofar as what went on in this thread before deletions occurred, I didn't see it and only got involved afterward. For the record I have no expertise in designing amps. :) 

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I'm going to take just a guess - that a number of "high end" tube amplifier products were/are the result of listening rather than following exact rules of the longest AC loadlines and best-positioned operating points per Radiotron manual vs tube characteristics and that perhaps ARC, and Quicksilver have done this practice and certainly Bruce Moore and Scott Frankland.  (It would be good to have a scope to hunt down potential oscillation problems - my 8417/417A tube sure oscillated enough to block the signal)   I once had a modified Dyna Stereo 70 which had probably been modified per Eisenson's "TU-BE OR NOT TU-BE" and for some reason it would LF "motorboat" on a box speaker - but would play on the resistive Magneplanars.   

 

Some designers seem not to be so fixated on things.   Grommes designer Al Hart in a note to me seemed glad to see tubes dead and happy with an op amp RIAA stage with global feedback.   Stu Hegeman in later years had a similar preamp. (I'm sure the HAPI is about forgotten vs his Citation I & IV tube units)

 

I like to see those who are passionate and experiment (Jeff included)   The Japanese "Ultra-Fi" movement several decades ago imo was a very good thing for those who love horn loudspeakers.  Jeff could easily throw high H chokes on the chassis, series pass regulators, big caps - - but apparently has found something which works better for his* sense of how music should sound. (* people don't hear/perceive things the same)  FWIW I've heard "a little" hum from commercial tube (and solid state) amps in my lifetime.

 

Audio - like other hobbys, politics, religion, can bring out strong opinions.  Maybe its best to use that phrase - "lets agree to disagree" . 

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15 hours ago, karlson3 said:

FWIW I've heard "a little" hum from commercial tube (and solid state) amps in my lifetime.

Just to clarify... Coming from the amps themselves? or out of the speakers? If the speakers that needs to be tracked down and squashed AFAIC. The amps themselves if objectionable can be removed to a remote location.

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1 hour ago, a9050lx said:

Lascala is a fine instrument to test audible hum. I think building amps is therapy as much as a search for better sound.still, I run out of room.I just hope some of my equipment is used as intended when I no longer need it.

if you want to gift on forward your gear you have you should have lots of audio visitors in to hear your gear now while you can so they can learn to understand the value of your efforts. Wonderful sentiment.

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