2. amps-preamps
  3. 159531-110095

Tubes?

I have Revel Salon 2 speakers. Sensitivity is about 85 db. and 4 ohms. They are power hungry speakers. Currently, I am driving them with McIntosh 601's and a McIntosh solid state preamp. I was look looking at a pair of McIntosh MC2301. They are tube amps rated at 300 watts into 2 - 8 ohm loads. I listen to all types of music (sometimes at very high levels). I never run out of power with the 601's, but I am very intrigued with tubes. This may be a misconception, but I remember some friends who played guitar saying, tube watts were louder than solid state? Perhaps this is not really true or not true regarding home stereo. Perhaps the best idea is to keep the 601's and get a good tube preamp?                          Thanks, Dave 
tobor007
three_easy_payments's avatar
three_easy_payments
2,097 posts
 
I'm in complete agreement with @charles1dad.  With the OP's speakers the tube pre and SS amp makes the most sense and is the path of least resistance to a nice sound.  

And all things equal I have no idea why folks who love tube amps wouldn't want to create a system based around SET tube amp of reasonable power (~22 watts and higher ) paired with easy to drive speakers.  I fear that all the fist pounding exerted by @millercarbon to bully people into buying some KT88 Raven amp are going to distract some from missing the magic of a large bottle SET circuit with carefully selected speakers.  The experience just can't be replicated from some push-pull design IMO and is worthy of experiencing.  
mmporsche's avatar
mmporsche
144 posts
 
It all comes down to what sounds best to the listener (buyer). I had a Constellation amp/preamp and switched to tubes after hearing a setup at RMAF in 2016. I ended up buying the Voxativ 9.87 speakers and their integrated 211 tube amp, rated at 24 watts. The speaker drivers are very efficient, I believe 98db, and play at very loud levels. They also have 2 dedicated woofers that each have 250 watt A/B amplifiers. I get plenty of tight bass and the magic of a single driver with no crossovers. I know somebody said don’t trust anyone that mentions a specific brand but I have no affiliation. I just listened to everything I could find at RMAF for 3 days and nothing sounded better in my opinion. Point of my comment is to suggest a somewhat unique solution that has satisfied all my needs. I like listening to all types of music from Madeline Peyroux to Tool and find my setup very satisfying.
bigwave1's avatar
bigwave1
250 posts
 
+1 MC, wrong loudspeakers. As I went up the efficiency ladder,  I went from clipping high powered SS amps on Mirage M1’s to barely cracking 5 watts on OB’s at 96 dB, 1watt, savoring the colors and hues over the wind blowing in my face. 
charles1dad's avatar
charles1dad
10,250 posts
 

mmporsche,

Wow! Switching from the constellations to the 211 tube integrated is quite a leap across the amplification spectrum. I suspect your current system sounds marvelous.

bigwave1,

I understand your point regarding the advantages of higher efficiency/sensitive speakers (My preference as well). However the OP (Dave) is happy with his Revels. So I believe most suggestions to him are provided with that in mind (Keeping the current speakers),

Charles

jjss49's avatar
jjss49
6,612 posts
 
@oldhyvmec

’life is short, make sure spend as much time as possible arguing with strangers on the internet’

just trying to reward good behavior here, discourage bad

but do i really care? no, not really - just would be nice to have folks be nice while helping other nice folks

with covid, fires, horrible state of the nation, we hang out here more than we should, so it’d be nice if we could have a nice place here
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