Building the Audio Note Kit 1 SET amp...

Rebbi, When I was building my system I faced some of the same issues. I didnt want to spend a ton of money and I listened to a wide variety of music. Rock, pop, Jazz Classical. You have an amp that you built that is capable of playing all of the music you love. I know it can because I had a Kit one in my home and it is a kick ass amp and persuaded me to build my own SET amp. You built it and have a deep connection with it. It is also a platform in which you can make upgrades. If you did sell it you would end up regretting it.
When I was searching for speakers I took my amp on audition after audition for several months until I finally heard the speakers that with my amp could play every type of music that I love. I can crank the volume without a preamp playing all types of music and am treated to involving room filling goodness.

If you live in the NYC area there are many avenues for audition including many guys on this forum who would open their homes to you including me.

Jet,
As with you, I have no limits on music genres. For a given amplifier you simply must find the appropriate speaker. If Rebbi decided to keep the De Capo, same principle, find the appropriate amplifier. Either way it requires the right amp-speaker match. The question is which one do you keep and build around? The marriage analogy does apply, it's about compatibility. Jet I know from past postings you listen to "many" types of music without difficulty.
Charles,

Jetrexpro and Charles, while your comments are certainly true about shopping for another speaker, I am at a total loss as to why both of you would suggest this is the best path? Both of you are very knowledgeable and rightly respected here on the Gon. The list of reasons to amp shop, not speaker shop is long and persuasive.

- The speaker is the most important component in a system and impacts the tone and personally of the system FAR more than the amp.

- The speaker is far more difficult to shop for and find one that suits your preference. Finding the right speaker is a chore and will take more effort.

- The speaker is a much more difficult and hassle prone item to sell. It is heavy, hard to ship, expensive to ship, prone to damage etc...

- The speaker is usually the more expensive item to buy and sell as compared to the amp.

Rebbi can build another amp and AN has already said they will work with him on another amp.

If both of you are suggesting to keep the amp because of some emotional attachment to it due to the building process, then so be it. I think that line of thinking will lead to many more problems down the road with assembling the system around another set of speakers.

Rebbi if you enjoy the building process, then build another amp and have fun! In the end your ears will be even more pleased and you will have gained additional knowledge and experience. Let me suggest that while this first build of yours delivered great sound, you can certainly do as good or better on your next build. Additionally you will have an amp better suited for your speaker. Great sound, the kind you are now hearing, is absolutely available in a PP or parallel single ended tube amp.

Hi Bill,
My point is either choice/path ia very viable. Where we part company is the "common wisdom" that the speaker is more important. Many believe that and I realize I'm in the minority but that's okay with me.Can excellent sound be obtained with non SET amplification, of course! However there are certain qualities that SET does better and to a higher level IMO. This is strictly a personal observation on my part and you and others may not agree, again I understand this.

SET (the good ones)yield the best tonality,timbre, harmonics and sense of naturalness I've "ever" heard(the list of amplifiers is long). I am simply reflecting my personal experiences and speak for no one else. I believe Rebbi based on his written listening impressions has heard these special qualities as well.

If Rebbi finds or builds a non SET that has the same effect on him then that's wonderful. That's for him to decide. SET pushed specific musical buttons like no other amp in my listening experiences. Certainly things could/ may be different for Rebbi. I wish him the best regardless of which path he follows.
Charles,

I certainly agree almost 100% with you Grannyring except for one thing, I didn't read anything that Rebbi was unsatisfied with the Decapo/AN amp, are you Rebbi? He has indicated in the past that his preference for music is small scale which could be most satisfying with that in mind. I would agree with you fully if his tastes leads to large scale dynamic music over time that he would have to decide on whether or not to keep the speakers and find another amp or keep the amp and find far more efficient speakers. I'm also in agreement that it is most difficult finding a speaker that is satisfying, particularly at a given price point and in my NOT dedicated listening room, at least it has proven true for myself. It seems Rebbi was VERY deliberate in his choice and listened carefully before going ahead with the AN. The real benefit, regardless of the outcome, is the experience of the process, really commendable.