2. amps-preamps
  3. 140029-80294

Does anyone care to ask an amplifier designer a technical question? My door is open.

I closed the cable and fuse thread because the trolls were making a mess of things. I hope they dont find me here.

I design Tube and Solid State power amps and preamps for Music Reference. I have a degree in Electrical Engineering, have trained my ears keenly to hear frequency response differences, distortion and pretty good at guessing SPL. Ive spent 40 years doing that as a tech, store owner, and designer.
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Perhaps someone would like to ask a question about how one designs a successfull amplifier? What determines damping factor and what damping factor does besides damping the woofer. There is an entirely different, I feel better way to look at damping and call it Regulation , which is 1/damping.

I like to tell true stories of my experience with others in this industry.

I have started a school which you can visit at http://berkeleyhifischool.com/ There you can see some of my presentations.

On YouTube go to the Music Reference channel to see how to design and build your own tube linestage. The series has over 200,000 views. You have to hit the video tab to see all.

I am not here to advertise for MR. Soon I will be making and posting more videos on YouTube. I don’t make any money off the videos, I just want to share knowledge and I hope others will share knowledge. Asking a good question is actually a display of your knowledge because you know enough to formulate a decent question.

Starting in January I plan to make these videos and post them on the HiFi school site and hosted on a new YouTube channel belonging to the school.


128x128ramtubes
marqmike
843 posts
 
I greatly value Ralph Karsten’s forthright yet tactful comments. I learn something with out being belittled.  He dignifies the other person by doing that. Thank you Ralph, Almarg and others like that.
georgehifi's avatar
georgehifi
10,312 posts
 
Did I promote such a thing on that thread?
Not on that specific thread, but you have numerous times, what was it that was said???oh yes!!!
"LET HIM AMONG US, WHO IS WITHOUT SIN, CAST THE FIRST STONE"
Think that was it, I remember reading it somewhere, "How to survive in the Australian outback" or something,  correct me if I'm wrong. 
georgehifi's avatar
georgehifi
10,312 posts
 
He dignifies the other person by doing that. Thank you Ralph
Really!!! by saying this about Roger, who is helping others with their questions with this thread.

"But here’s the kicker: This thread was put up as a promotional device. You can tell because the manufacturer is talking about his products, often more than once in many of his posts."

I think you have that totally "arse about face", marqmike

Cheers George
clio09
3,360 posts
 
But here’s the kicker: This thread was put up as a promotional device. You can tell because the manufacturer is talking about his products, often more than once in many of his posts. This is against the Audiogon rules, but because I and others are posting here as well, the entire thread doesn’t have to be taken down.

A promotional device in what manner? Do you think Roger is using this thread to try and sell more products? Since you called out Roger on this I will say you are walking a fine line here Ralph, especially given what you once told me in a conversation we had about marketing. The thread was started so that Roger can share his knowledge and experience with the community. He has requested that other designers not respond to the questions asked of him, and from my perspective it’s not that you don’t bring value to the discussion (and I get it’s a public forum), but when you bring up the self promotion stuff, I have to agree with George that it is the pot calling the kettle black.

You consistently promote balanced differential designs, not always mentioning products specifically, although correct me if I am wrong, but you have mentioned the MP-1 was one of the first balanced preamps in high end audio on more than one occasion. I have read many threads where you reference how your preamps solve the issue of cable artifacts coloring the sound, that you make them unity gain with a buffered output, and you have mentioned or alluded to your amplifier designs many a time as well. Granted you do so in a gentlemanly manner and as a means to educate. However, isn’t that what Roger is doing as well?

Here is an example from 12/26/2017:

Our MP-3 preamp is based on the first balanced preamp circuit ever sold to high end audio (our MP-1). It has a direct-coupled output (despite being a tube preamp) and has bandwidth to about 400KHz.

Here is an older example:


How the MP-1 works is it has a direct-coupled output. The output impedance is low enough that it can drive 32-ohm headphones easily. It is designed to drive 600 ohms without effort; obviously its output impedance has to be well below that in order to do so.

Because its outputs are direct-coupled, the output impedance is flat from 1Hz to 200KHz or thereabouts. So it really can drive 200 foot interconnects without difficulty.

It my opinion that getting rid of the output coupling caps is the single best thing you can do with a tube preamp to improve transparency and bandwidth.

The MP-1 was/is the first balanced line preamp for high end audio.


Roger is being very generous with his time (as you have over the years) and trying to answer as many questions as possible. Is he self promoting? His experience for sure. Does he mention his products? Yes. Does he push them? Not in my opinion. From my perspective he references them to supplement responses relevant to his experience or in direct response to questions about that product from other members posting on this thread. I see nothing wrong with that, especially since you have done the same on Audiogon.


gpgr4blu
1,093 posts
 
I have enjoyed posts by Ralph and Ramtubes on this forum. They are both highly qualified as designers and manufacturers. They both provide  answers to technical questions about gear. Sometimes, they include opinions based on their understanding of the science behind gear. Nevertheless, their posts are almost always informative to the membership here. Occasionally, they are self referential, although I do not view their contributions as self promotion that should be banned such as posts by Audiotroy which usually contain rank self promotion and, at other times, stealth promotion under the guise of informing the Audiogon community of his opinion ( almost always favoring the gear he sells) based upon his vast experience which he claims is more valuable than the opinions of other dealers who are out for the money--- while he is out to help the Audiogon community. 
Of course, these are extreme comparisons about what should and should not be permitted here. I suspect the line should be drawn somewhere in between the services provided by Ralph and Ramtubes and the disservice provided by Audiotroy. Might I add that Ralph and Ramtubes are not close to that line IMHO. 
     
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