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Clayton Audio Class A amps. Need amp advice

Hi Guys,

I am looking to change my amps and for a few reasons.

First because I just upgraded my DAC from the great PS Audio DirectStream to the incredible Bricasti M1 DSD USB DAC. I love the Bricasti and it has shown that in my system it could offer me more with a more resolving and neutral amp IMO.

I am currently am using the wonderful sounding CJ Premier 12 mono tube amps. I love them and tubes in general but my speakers are the great Ascendo C8 Renaissance and look to present a somewhat benign load being 88 efficient and 6ohm but they are unique and have an internal firing 21 cm Kevlar Bass driver that is great but stubborn and the speakers I think will really shine with a iron fist control of that driver.

I love tubes, always have and always will but I grown tires of a flabby bottom which is exasperated by a unique and somewhat difficult to grip bass driver set up I spoke about above.

I want an amp that can give me as much tube sound as possible but with Grip and bottom end. I know this is a lot to ask for in the used $5k to $7k price range.

I have read and it seem like the Clayton offer exactly what I am looking for but wanted to hear from some of you guys if anyone has ever heard them or know of them or anything. Any info would really be appreciated. Here is the info on my speakers and I will also list the rest of my system in case you think that is helpful. Thanks

C8 Renaissance
Technical Data
Principle
• Three-Way with SASB bass unit (TOS Off)
(current damped outer driver with semi symmetrical band pass)
• Four-Way with SASB bass unit (TOS On)
Dimensions (W/H/D)
• 28 / 80 / 40 (without Base)
• 28 / 108 / 40 (with Base)
Weight
35 kg
Frequency Range
29 Hz (-3 dB) – 32.000 Hz
Power Rating
350 W Program (min)
Impedance
6 Ohm
Sensivity
88 dB / 1W/m
Outer Chassis (COAX)
• 25 mm Neodymium-fabric-tweeter
• 18 cm Woofer with XP cone
Inner Chassis
• 21 cm Chassis, Kevlar cone
TOS Chassis
• Ribbon-tweeter
TOS Function
• switchable (TOS Unit - Dipole AN / AUS)
Sockets
• Single / BiWiring Base
Dimensions (W/H/D)
28 / 18 / 40 cm
Weight
11 kg

Ascendo C-8 Renaissance Speakers (Germany) Speaker
Purist Audio Design Corvus Praesto Revision 2.5m Bi-Wire Speaker cable
Darwin TRUTH Pure Silver Reference 1 Meter RCA Interconnect
Darwin TRUTH Pure Silver Reference 1 Meter RCA Interconnect
Bricasti M1 USB / DSD / Volume Control DAC (New) DA converter
Tellurium Q BLACK DIAMOND Reference USB Cable
Decware ZSTAGE External Triode Output StageTelefunken ECC801S
Audio Research REFERENCE 1 MK II w/Rhodium IEC/NOS Tubes Tube preamp
PS Audio PowerPlant Premier AC Regenerator
Conrad Johnson Premier 12 Mono's 140 Watts Tung-Sol KT120's Tube amp
Salamander Amplifier Stands (2) Synergy System AV Furniture Stand
BMI Shark Jeweler Grade Platinum 9 AWG AC Power Cable
Mad Scientist PC-NEO with Power Purifier 11 AWG Power Cable
Sablon Audio Petite Corona 2.0M 7 AWG AC Power Cable
JPS Labs The Power AC+ 2M 8 AWG AC Power Cable
Synergistic Research Labs Tesla Series SE T1 AC Power Cable
Synergistic Research Labs Tesla Series T1 AC Power Cable
PS Audio Noise Harvester (5) Converts noise to light
OYAIDE RI Beryllium Power Outlets (2)
Blue Circle Audio The Yalu Balula Industrial Surge/Spike Protection
JPLAY v5.2 hi-end audio player turns PC into a digital transport.
Fidelizer Pro Version 6.1
JRiver Media Center 19 Music Software
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fsmithjack OP
712 posts
 
Charles1dad

That is kind of what I am afraid of..lol. As of now I certainly prefer and value higher the 3d 3 dimensional, liquid and organic sound over bass slam but I have never really heard this good of an SS amp and what intrigues me is the Clayton's camp claim that it gives at least enough of that 3 dimensional, liquid and organic sound that the increase in other levels will mean it won't be missed nearly as much as others per say and the overall SQ will be much better. I think maybe with my amps now I rely on that 3 dimensional, liquid and organic sound because its really most of what it offers. If I can get enough of that dimensional, liquid and organic sound to be happy and still get all the other stuff and get more out of my speakers I will be happy but heck I may def be asking too much from a SS amp. That is why I am leaning toward such a different ss amp. The pure Class A 300/600 is not normal so I guess i am hoping for a non normal effect and I may have a shot from a non normal amp but I appreciate all of you you guy's help and can see where I may be looking for too much out of the tube sound out of these Claytons. Man I wish I could hear them first. You guys are def helping me develop my thought and feel for this though so thanks and the more the better.

Agape126 thanks.

I owned Manly 30 watt mono and in some ways those were the best sounding amps I have ever owned. The EL84 is the best sounding tube IMO but just not enough power. I moved to the Snapper and really like them with my Martinlogan Spire but when I switched to the Wilson Sophia 2's they couldn't push them properly. At the time I was in a big room 22x22 with 16 foot cathedral ceilings. I found my CJ amps to be much more powerful than the Snappers. I would love to buy the Manley 250 and would today if there was a pair I could make a nice trade deal on but no go. I tried but I love Manley. Thx

rdoc
93 posts
 
Frank,
I do not know your room or where you live. But, I had a Pass XA-30.8. It was one of the very best amps I have ever owned. I thought it would be my last amp. I bought it in the winter. When summer came in Texas, I had to sell it because of the heat that it generated (375 watts at idle).
After an hour of listening, I would start to sweat because it put out so much heat! So, if you are going to get the Claytons, make sure the ac in your listening room is up to the task.
bill_k
918 posts
 
Rdoc - good point that should definitely be considered! Your Pass amp put out about 30 watts in Class A, only a tenth of what the Clayton claims to. As such if they're biased similarly in Class A according to their power ratings, the Claytons would put out ten times as much heat! I had a friend that used to run Atmasphere amps, and while they sounded superb he would listen in his underwear since it got so unbearably hot in the listening room. I'm not kidding.
mitch2
4,065 posts
 
Can anyone else familiar with Clayton chime in
Three types of noise I have heard from amplifiers include transformer hum, 60 Hz buzz/hum, and high frequency hiss.

Transformer hum will occur with toroidal transformers that are subjected to DC on the power lines. The larger the transformer, the louder the hum. Plitron makes a LoNoise transformer that is expensive but will largely eliminate this hum. The Claytons use two large transformers per amplifier and are indeed susceptible to that type of hum when DC is present. DC on the power line is not that uncommon an occurrence and can result from a variety of factors, that may or may not be associated with things going on inside of your residence, as others here have pointed out.

The 60Hz buzz/hum is, in my understanding, most often a grounding issue. The Claytons do not play well with anything but a balanced signal. Forget using rca/XLR adaptors or the Claytons will buzz like crazy. I got around that issue by using Jensen input transformers to convert the single-ended signal from a Tom Evans Vibe into a balanced signal.

Hiss from the tweeter is related to the amplifier's noise floor, amplifier gain and sensitivity of the speakers.

Clayton implemented a power supply upgrade that includes new toroidal transformers, and a rebuild of the power supply. Before having that upgrade performed, my M300s were quite noisy but, after the upgrade, not so much. However, they were never as dead nuts quiet as my current Ncore amps or my DNA-2 amplifier. Neither of those amplifiers can ever be heard through my speakers when they are at idle. The DNA-2 has a very large toroidal transformer which is quiet most of the time although, on occasion, a very slight mechanical hum can be heard right next to the amp, but not at all through the speakers. The Claytons never achieved this level of quiet, although they did sound good with music playing, as do the other two (quieter) amps mentioned.
jriggy's avatar
jriggy
565 posts
 
Fsmithjack,

In your digital thread, I recommended the Wells Audio Innamorata over the Claytons... I just thought I would reiterate due to a video review recently posted on AVShowrooms.com. You should find it helpful. Go check it out...
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