highdudgeon;151495 Wrote: > The best kind of amp, I think, is the kind of amp that will allow you to > buy the best possible speakers within your overall budget. There are > differences in amps, to be sure, and they are especially obvious when > comparing tube and solid state amps (which says something about amp > construction, because ideally made amps should all sound alike). > However, differences between speakers are vast. I have had everything > from $9 McIntosh MC-501s and a used $450 Carver A-500x paired with > superlative Harbeth Monitor 40s and two Quads. The changes in speakers > made more of a difference and the differences between amps was > shockingly nuanced. > > In short, take a look at your total budget, think about what you like > in music, take your room into consideration, and then pick out some > optimal speakers. Buy a less expensive amp. Then, when you have more > budget flexibility, by a cooler-looking, longer-living, etc., > amplifier. (I have nothing against buying something because you like > the way it looks...so long as you're not totally throwing your money > away.) > > Oh, and I would say this: maybe stay away from tube amps. They don't > have the same bass response and high resolution as well-made solid > state amps. I'm not dissing them, either -- I own, and love, two tube > amps. However, the Transporter is an extremely high definition > device...so you might as well let that come through. You can always > grab a tube amp (a vintage Mc is great) for a second piece down the > road. I like having tube gear around.
If you end up with high-efficiency speakers (eg. horns, like he owned before), then tubes might be the ideal amplifier choice for him...I know I certainly wouldn't run a pair of 100+db sensitive speakers with a high-powered solid state or Class D amp! -- PhilNYC Sonic Spirits Inc. http://www.sonicspirits.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------ PhilNYC's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=837 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=29239 _______________________________________________ audiophiles mailing list audiophiles@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/audiophiles
