Spectron vs any good tube amp.

Atmasphere,
The reason I don`t listen at what I consider to be loud volumes is due to potentially harming my hearing. Sadly I`ve treated/examined 'young patients' who have suffered permament hearing loss due to chronic loud noise/ sounds be it music,ocupational etc. It`s no coincident that many professional musicians do unfortunately develop diminished hearing as a result of their profession. My hearing is still very good and I won`t purposely jepardize it.Music does`nt have to be'loud' in order to connect and become involved emotionally.(IMO).

As I said in my earlier post, this is a personal choice.
Even at live venues with unamplified music it can get too loud(no PA system in use) at times. Our ears detect loudness in nature for a reason and in many instances are`nt related to electronic distortion at all.

A crying/screaming baby, irate,aggresive shouting people nearby or how about a thunder clap or loudly barking dogs?? All are just a few examples(non electronic) of our ear`s protective and survival mechanisms at work.In my case SET amplifiers provide stunning realism without the need to 'crank it up'.
No thanks I`ll take a pass on loud music. When your ears warn too loud I pay attetion. YMMV.
Best Regards,

Mike there is no misunderstanding, your example of a piano reaching 109 db peaks at 10 feet means nothing in most listening enviroments. I have a piano in my living room and when played its volume can obviously be controlled(and is) by the player. most of the time the volume ranges in the 80s db level as to keep it comfortable for the surounding listeners in the room. Just because an instrument is'capable' of a certain max level does`nt compel the musician to play at that level. At church services,weddings school recitals etc. instruments are often played well below their maximum levels. When played at more subduded levels people seem to still enjoy these live performances immensely.When I practice scales on my trumpetI play at levels that are much below what the horn is capable of, what is the point of 'blasting' the sound level? live instruments sound quite beautiful even when played softly and at moderate levels.

I personally don`t except the notion that your home audio system has to match'peak' levels such as "109" db to sound realistic.That level of sound pressure is dangerous to our ears if done with any regularity.Why rely on atmasphere to 'tell' you what a SET amp(which one? there are many) sounds like, experience it yourself if you really want to know.

In reality we all attempt to achive what we want. If it`s your goal to reproduce that high db level, more power to you. We just simply have different priorities.Much of music`s beauty and soul is subtle and nuanced a good system should be able to communicate these emotional aspects.

Don't know the reason why Spectron was ever dragged into this. OP already had a pre-conceived notion which needed affirmation by only one poster. Bringing in Spectron seems gratuitous at best.

Charles1dad, you and I are on the same page when it comes to the 'too loud' thing. I for one value my hearing quite a lot- I think anyone here does as well. The point of my prior post was simply that SETs can create a 'too loud' experience at an *actual* sound pressure that is quite lower than it seems and I explained why that is.

Its my opinion that a system should be devoid of loudness artifacts, leaving that to the music instead. But- if you are concerned about hearing, than using SETs is a good way to go.

" Why rely on atmasphere to 'tell' you what a SET amp(which one? there are many) sounds like, experience it yourself if you really want to know."

Charles1dad: you do have some problem with reading AND understanding at the same time. Athmasphere explained NOT (Nyet!) what a SET amp sounds like. He explained the composition of odd and even harmonic distortions extressed as a function of ..., to put it in clearly understood terms, the poisition of given volume control. These facts I was anaware of and thankful to him for kind sharing or teaching.

I did listen to a SET amplifier and not a single one. With single exception of $60k unit in listening room of Stereophile reviewer ( we listened to Schubert Male Songs) - I HATE its sound as its full of distortions and bleed my gentle ears.

When I attend live concert I hear music at whatever level musicians play it, be it 109 dB or 79 dB and without any distortions whatsoever. No distortion. Period! This is exactly what I am seeking in my electronic stereo system - the accurate as technically possible reproduction of live sound as I remember it.

My system with Joule-Electra flagship "450" preamp, two Spectron monoblocks with all upgardes and David Wilson's Sasha speakers is very close to this ideal and is under my budget (I love Alexandria II but at $169k cannot afford these magic speakers).

You listen whatever you want and at any conditions you want - just specify its your PERSONAL preferences.