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First Tube Amp


Jvitti1970

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definitely go used for your first unit... because, it probably wont be your last tube amplifier.

 

a good place to start is to decide on what tube set you might be looking at... 2a3/45, 300b, KT etc.

 

also, consider some of the home built units by better known or well versed home builders because you will probably get a better deal as a starter.

with La Scalas, you wont need much power to achieve sweetness, but a little more power might give you better LF performance from that wonderful Doghouse section of your speaker.

 

I started with a Chi'Fi unit myself... and I quickly progressed from there.

 

there are a lot of Scott integrated's in that price range for sale that sound good, and they are quite serviceable. They have nice BIG iron.

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Boyuu/Reisong  A10 while technically not a SET (it's a single ended ultra-linear design using EL34 pentodes) sounds very good driving my pair of Heresy III. It's half your budget and easily  returnable on Amazon. Mine sounds so good with upgraded JJ tubes that I feel no reason to upgrade.

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Many details would be useful:  room size, listening level, distance from speakers when listening, type of music, and lots more.  I have set guys up with ridiculously low powered amps which practically blew them out of the room.  Your budget opens up many options like the Decware Zen Triode.  It provides more than enough power for any “reasonable” listening level in my opinion.  The lifetime guarantee is very appealing as is its being built in the US.

 

If you are electronically experienced, and can build your own, I can provide you with a link to my most successful SET design which works great with LaScalas.

 

Maynard

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@tube fanatic  Thanks for the insight! My present listening room is small. Im using Chorus l’s in  12x12 space. Down the road when my listening room in larger I will have the tube amp connected to my LaScala’s 

I like mid to moderate volumes. I listen to everything from reggae to jazz. I am about 8-10’ away when listening 

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On 7/5/2021 at 3:58 PM, pallpoul said:

A Dennis Had inspire or fire bottle, would be excellent for your speakers. I have one like new if interested. it is SET and you can play with tubes rolling (changing) and find what suits your ears best.

Is it still available? 

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On 7/5/2021 at 9:37 AM, Jvitti1970 said:

Looking to dive down the rabbit hole pair my LaScala’s with a tube amp. Been told SET is the way to go. New to this.  $1000  budget. 

Have you narrowed down what triode you would like to use? 45 / 2A3 / 300B? I would suggest a new build if you want SET. You can build it yourself or have someone build it for you.

 

You are definitely going to have to do a lot of research, then make a decision. That's the hard part for a first tube amp. Subsequent amps are a little easier each time.

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4 hours ago, Curious_George said:

 

You are definitely going to have to do a lot of research, then make a decision. That's the hard part for a first tube amp. Subsequent amps are a little easier each time.

SO MUCH TRUTH HERE! I ended up with 4 different power amps, chasing sound and have found what I like ( For now) : )  in one SET 45 and one PP45 and am now going to make a plan to sell off at least one amp, but maybe 2. I'm running them on La Scalas too.

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Depending on my mood, I run my 1974 LaScala's on a 3.5 watt/ch 2A3 amp or a Phase Linear 700B which is really not a 700B anymore since I redesigned the entire driver board section and converted it to full complementary output. 

 

In my opinion, 3.5 watts is the minimum I would want for headroom reasons. 1.5/1.75 watts just doesn't leave much room for dynamics even with efficient speakers like Klipsch heritage series. 

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