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Originally Posted by pstrisik
As I've said, I'm very skeptical, even for my 87db 8ohm AR's. But Dennis expresses great confidence. Either he is a wizard or is hyperbolic (he does come across this way in his expressiveness). He has such a track record with great design, that I'm giving the amp a chance. Either: 1) it is as he says and it will live happily with my current speakers, 2) it won't be powerful enough but I will get a good sense of single ended sound at lower volumes - enough to take a new path if I like it.
New path is either: 1) build or buy higher efficiency speakers (used vintage Klipsch or a single driver design) or 2) buy CAD-805AE's and be done with it!
As an aside, I'm wondering what we call this amp. I don't think it is SET. The KT-150's are not triodes; they are described as beam tetrodes. Unless Dennis wires it in triode mode, if that's possible.
The KT-150 is a higher current tube, though I don't know what that translates into in practice. Can it mean that the 12watts it produces in this design is a beefier 12w than other SE designs? I suppose it is possible. My 70wpc C-J Pr11A certainly produces a beefier 70watts than the typical 70watt solid state amp. Why couldn't there be differences between tube designs in this dimension?
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Hi Peter,
Do you have a delivery date for the amp or are you still waiting to hear from Dennis? I'm anxious to hear your first impressions.
You're right about the tube ... It's a tetrode. There is no doubt that this amp will not play as loud as a big SS amp but it's about the tone & emotional content according to Dennis. I don't doubt the sound is lovely but is it loud enough? I tend to turn it up the longer I listen.
I do know one thing, my 120 wpc tube amp sounds much larger than my 100 wpc SS amp.
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Wes
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ARC LS27, ARC VS115, McIntosh D100, Mac mini, Vandersteen Treos, Audioquest cables, Shunyata Hydra AV
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