Just visited the RBH website. I like the combo of silk dome tweeter and aluminum woofer. Should be flexible performers for most musical genres if paired with tubes.
Good luck!
Good luck!
pls recommend some "entry level" tube amp options?
For used amps you might want to check out the Golden Tube Audio SE-40. These were designed as 40w stereo (which might be enough for your room and system) and they were frequently bridged to make an 80w monoblock. Some of the later products might have reliability problems, and the company eventually went bankrupt. But mine, which I bought used, have worked perfectly for several years. You can occaisonally find them here on audiogon for about $450, or $900 for a pair of monoblocks. They are a great, inexpensive introduction to tubes. There was a topic on GTA here recently, and these is also a yahoo group which has more info on these amps. |
alright friends... just wanted to thank all for the input and responses in this thread, lots of great information and suggestions that were very helpful and enlightening as i tried to choose my first tube amp. what i ended up purchasing in the end to get acquainted w/ the tube scene is the Almarro A318a integrated amplifier... even though my custom-ordered RBHsound loudspeakers have not arrived yet, i couldn't wait and plugged the A318a into a pair of Linn 'Katans' bookshelf speakers "liberated" from my home theatre setup, w/ cheap 16 AWG speaker cabling. i fired up the system for the first time last night, and all i could say was... OMFG. the music is just pouring out of the Katans like liquid, and i have found myself unable to walk away from the system, i keep wanting to hear song after song... as i said before, i am a total 'newbler' when it comes to audio equipment, and listening to the luscious and warm sound produced has just left me speechless. i'm most certainly hooked, and cant wait for mt RBHsound 61-SE's to arrive which are much more sensitive that my Katans (only 85dB sensitivity) so i am expecting even more from the system as i get it laid out properly... after reading many good reviews about the Almarro A318a i am not dissapointed w/ the purchase at all, the aesthetics of the unit are just gorgeous (especially w/in my japanese-style home office) and the warm and enveloping sound just has me nailed to the floor as i am more and more impressed w/ the output. my next step is to choose some reasonable speaker cabling for the final setup, i am planning on going w/ a heavy gauge copper wire for the aluminum woofers in the 61-SE's, and a silver wire to drive the silk-dome tweeters, from what i've heard so far it seem things can only get better from here forward! just wanted to give my sincere thanks to all who so kindly offered input and suggestions as i wandered in these fora totally clueless, your help has been greatly appreciated. thx again my friends, wonderful day to all..! |