Inexpensive Tube Amps

Will62: I was on a similar search a few years ago for a tube amp  and checked out some of the same units You are considering.  I had some helpful communications with Garry Huang who owns Musical Paradise.  I believe he’s in Edmonton Canada.  I eventually brought his MP301; later bought some tube upgrades from him.  I have used  it with Omega 3i speakers for a few years without any problems.  A lot fun, and very good for acoustic/solo instruments.  The unit is very heavy, nicely finished, and quiet.  I think the quality control is very good.  A simple amp without any gimmicks.  

if they're made in China, I'd steer clear of them, cuz the transformers will probably give up in short order.  my friend bought one of those and listened to it for a little while, then sold it. his was a push-pull design and it sounded ok but somewhat on the bright side. 

I owned a Jolida 502P for years and only replaced it as I became interested in Dennis Had's little hand made amps. But the Joilida was amazing for less money than any comparable tube amp out there when I was shopping around, but was sorted (and had a parts "upgrade") after manufacturing by the Maryland Jolida techs…so maybe that makes a difference. I also currently own a rarely used but well made Chinese $50 "Bravo" tube headphone amp…it's cute and sounds great with the better-than-stock 12AU7 tube I put in there. They immediately sent me a free new power supply when the original failed…whoever "they" are...

I'm surely enjoying my Musical Paradise 301 mk3. 6.5 watts SEP sounds great on my quartets. Replace the stock signal tubes with RCA 6sj7's and it sounds very good-much better than the $400 price. I'm running Shuagang EL34's. My $$$ main rig sounds better overall I suppose, but the little MP has that tube dimensional ability that grabs a guy.

I have three Nobsound tube/hybrid amps and also own the Nobsound MS-10D hybrid/stereo receiver (currently unavailable). I’ve had them for over a year with no problems with any of them. I started with the inexpensive NS-08E headphone amp and loved it so much that I got the NS-01E and the NS-02E, each with different tubes to play with and roll. This was my entrance into tube gear and I’ve gotten the tube sweetness and warmth I’d been looking for years, and at budget prices. The MS-10D puts out 25 watts per channel, enough to easily drive two JBLs with an 86 dB sensitivity.

No one could pay enough to go back to all S-S gear, including an NAD receiver that cost more than all four of these units put together. Tubes are alive and magic, and one does not have to spend an arm and a leg to get that rich mid-range sound, bouncing bass, and overall musicality. I have my receiver hooked up to my HDTV and the voices sound human.

I bought from Amazon and got the inexpensive 4-year protection plans in case of problems. The only problem I’ve had was a bad power supply with one of the amps, and after telling Nobsound about the problem, I was sent another one in a timely fashion.

There’s been a lot of criticism about Chinese gear over the years, but they’ve improved and the makers like great sound just as much as anyone and have tapped into a market where listeners are tired of the digital hardness and harshness and are offering affordable amps that people can try.

I also feel that some of the Chinese tubes are underrated but may take longer than other makes to sound their best. I’m still using the stock Chinese tubes in the MS-10D.

Nobsound is connected with Douk Audio and their products have continued to receive overall favorable reviews. I’ve used each amp with an audiophile pair of Grado GS-1000 headphones and found the combination addictive with each one of them—I rotate them for variety.

That’s my 2-cents worth from a person who actually owns some of these amps. I will add that I’m a professional musician with high standards of performance and I’m glad that I rediscovered the beauty and magic of vacuum tubes without spending a fortune.