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Spectron Musician II vs. "Big" Tube Amps

I'm currently looking for a pair of higher powered tube monoblocks (like VTL 450 Sigs or Manley Neo Classic 250s). Some good folks from another thread here at A-gon have brought the Spectron Musician amp to my attention.

Has anybody compared one of these big tube amps to the Spectron? Results? I'm after the naturalness, midrange, and analog sound of tubes. I really like the option of being able to run in both tetrode and triode modes to match my mood.

Associated equipment: BAT tube preamp and tube Cd player, Von Schweikert VR4-III HSE (I know these were voiced using the Spectron amp).

Thanks for any guidance or recommendations!
1markr
bigkidz
3,381 posts
 
As you already probably know, Albert S. loves the amp and does use it to voice some of his speakers. That being said, it is a very clean and clear sounding amp but I felt it lacked depth compared to some of the other SS amps. It is not a tube amp and will not sound like the tube amps you have mentioned. I have not found a SS amp that does the tube sound.
kana813
956 posts
 
The Musician II w/their RS cables and balanced inputs does not lack depth.

I agree it will not sound like the "big tube amps" you mention, because it won't clip or change because of line voltage variations and tube degradation like all tube amps do. Plus it doesn't need a mega buck PC to sound good.

With your BAT gear, VR4s and balanced connections, you
should give the Musician II a serious listen.
rgairns
35 posts
 
I'll second the Musician II recommendation. For outright value and brilliant performance, it could be the ticket.
disc
118 posts
 
I've compared the Musician II to small tube monoblocks and preferred it, even for the highs and mids. Thgat said, my VR-5s like a lot of power. I run it with a Granite tube CD player or, alternatively, with the Granite through a Syrah pre. Sounds great to me, but I haven't compared it side-by-side with any pother powerful amps. Definitely worth a listen.
darrell's avatar
darrell
70 posts
 
I also own a Spectron M2 and find that does duplicate the sound of my 50 watt triode Kora Galaxy tube amp I owned! This is only when the Spectron is used with the remote sense speaker cables. If you use standard speaker cables on the 5 way binding posts instead of the RM Spectron cables on the "Speakon" connection you won't hear what this amplifier can do! It is the ONLY ss amp that I've ever heard that can accuratly create the venue of the performance. You can hear the actual room size of each performance on EVERY cd you play. Its sound quality is very close to the $8400 Orpheus Mono 3s (SS 150watt amps).
For the FULL retail price it will be very hard to beat.
I'm using it on my full range Ambience 1800 le ribbon speakers (89db rating) and also it sounds great on my Manger 103 Zero box speakers (91db).
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