Quote:
Originally Posted by Kuky
Hello, sorry to resurrect an old thread but I found this quite interesting.
I listened to a pair of Triangle Magellan Quatuor at the local Triangle/McIntosh dealer.
System for the audition was DCS Rossini Player/DAC + C1100 + 1,2kw monos. It was incredible so I have to have those speakers.
Now this Triangle Quatuors are difficult to drive, are quoted at 260w in 8ohms and are able to receive 500w peaks. They were measured to dip to 3ohms.
Of course my budget does not allow for such an expensive pream/amp combo and I was discussing with the dealer about a MC462 which I think should be more than enough. For preamp/DAC I would use an old Devialet D200 I have until I will have more money to upgrade.
But the dealer told me he has a second hand Mastersound Evolution 845 integrated tube amp (55W Class A) and he thinks that this tiny integrated is more than enough with those speakers (which I found hard to believe)
Obviously I will audition with both when my speakers arrive but I have 2 questions.
1. Why do you think tube watts are so much "bigger" than ss watts? Same principles should apply to both? Or maybe I am missing something? The only electrical difference I know is that tube amps soft clip when pushed too hard vs ss amps which will hard clip, possibly destroying the tweeters.
2. As I made my audition on 1,2kw monos should I expect a very bad surprise in terms of SQ when I downgrade to 462?
Thank you very much,
Cristian
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Nothing that was said above is incorrect and all good points. However, Dan d'Agostino when he was CEO of Krell believed that the fundamental necessity for the best/optimal solid state sound was a 10% operating range for the amp. This is a generality but it's the rule I follow. Solid state amps are very different than tube amps in this regard. Essentially, you get the whole watt range with a really good tube amp. So a top notch tube amp rated at 150 watts/ch will give you even more than 150 "great" watts. Your sound will not become harsh or brittle even into clipping.
Not so with a solid state amp. As the SS amp approaches clipping you may notice an increase in harshness, etc. However, when operating within the optimal 10% range, I believe an excellent SS amp matches or beats an excellent tube amp because it will be much better on the bass and comparable or actually better in the mid and treble because of a better S/N ratio and better resolution.
Also, SS amps do a better job with insensitive speakers and low impedance loads.
Bottom line, I think you will be just fine with a 462 with this speaker. I would avoid that small tube amp. Mac SS amps are designed to sound like a tube amp and have great bass, neither over or under damped. But by all means audition both. However, remember that it takes months of listening to reliably determine the suitability of the amp/speaker interaction.
Best
Charles