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Using tube amp with electrostatic speakers.

Moons ago I started similar discussions and thought I had been given enough good advice not to approach the subject again. Here goes anyway. I've used Martin Logan electrostats for well over 30 years with quite a few different amps but have recently switched to a tube amp and dynamic speakers with which I am very satisfied.  It consists of the Cary Rocket 88R amp and Serie Reference 3 speakers. 

My brother was visiting last week and was so impressed with the sound that he decided that he might want to try a tube amp also (probably the same one as mine).  However, he is using a pair of SL3's that I gave him years ago and I'm concerned primarily about the current requirements of the Martin Logans as well as other concerns that I'm not thinking of.  I don't want him spending money on something that may not bring him improved sound so would appreciate more advice to pass on to him.  He currently uses a Rogue Audio SS amp with his SL3 speakers and, to me, it sounds very good. 
jimbreit
lewm
13,171 posts
 
Bag, You wrote, " Firstly, I never owned any versons before the IIz, and only heard a friends I many times as he sought to find an amp to drive them - Jadis, ARC, Krell, yada yada - he sold them. The Scintilla's are the only speaker that was harder to drive and that's my experience in my 45 years in the hobby. "

I hope you don't think I disagree with what you say.  The IIz was a failed attempt to correct the impedance problems with CLS II, and the "z" mod didn't do much good.  My only point was that the original CLS, before model II, was the best of the bunch sonically and was an easy load for any tube amp. No one would recommend a tube amp for the Scintilla, of course.

bagwell368
13 posts
 
We aren't quite in agreement, but in this hobby with so many people dying to disagree, I prefer to agree, or to find other people's ideas interesting and hopefully charming. 

Keep writing.




lewm
13,171 posts
 
Well, we agree that the CLS IIz was best driven by an SS amplifier, and I added that this is because M-L were targeting such an audience and told me point blank that they were not interested in building a speaker for tube amplifier aficionados.



emorrisiv
313 posts
 
I have had Acoustats since 1980. I used solid state for many years but a couple of years ago tried them with a friend's Dynaco mkiv tube amps. The transparency was like I had never heard before. Even with the 60 watt amp, I preferred it over any of the solid state amps I had used. I now have a pair of VTL classic 300 amps.
 The VTLs have tremendous power supplies and are a perfect match for the Acoustats. They now are capable of dynamics that i have never experienced before. At the same time a much lower sound floor with bass and transparency that solid state amps can't even come close to revealing.
always_looking
4 posts
 
coltrane1 wondered:

If I had a friend with a pair of SL3's I'd be wondering more about how much longer are those panels going to last, as that speaker went out of service in 2002?

Just wanted to say that I purchased my ML SL3s in 1995 and I just replaced the panels at the end of 2016.  The panels actually still produced sound but it was becoming more and more obvious that the panels were inefficient causing me to raise the volume which produced too much bass as compared to the sound level of the panels.  If you take care of them, they last a very long time. :)
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