300b lovers

The older preamp is a nice, but conventional single ended tube SRPP circuit with Akido buffer (extra tube per channel).  It uses dual regulated power supplies and dual regulated filament supplies and really good signal path parts, and the wonderful Khozmo attenuator.  The Raven is a completely different approach and  circuit.  It is fully balanced and transformer coupled at both input and output with custom wound transformers from Dave Geren at Cinemag.  It will take either xlr input or rca input, and will happily provide xlr or rca, or even headphone output, and will drive even a 10K power amp impedance.   The Khozmo setup is dual mono because you have to control both halves of the xlr on each channel.  The power supply uses two damper diodes, very high quality transformer and is a true C_- L - C (cap, choke, then cap) that feeds a much higher quality regulator that is used in the previous preamp and also feeds a pair of gas regulator tubes after that.  It is dead quiet, fully balanced, and has very little sonic signature, but provides great drive for the power amp.  I really like it, and those who have been to the show have heard it driving the 300b mono amps.

The Raven was the surprise for me. You see, I’ve been listening to the Karna amps for 20 years, now reborn as the Blackbird. Yes, there are differences, but what’s at the show is very very close to what I know so well at home ... maybe a teensy bit better, with a couple more improvements Don and I are hiding up our sleeve. But the show amps are 95% to 98% of what the shipping amps will be (yes, the production Blackbirds will be even better, Don and I promise that).

But I’ve never heard a Raven before. Hoo boy, is it good. Wow. I didn’t expect that. I knew what it does, of course, because I designed it more than twenty years ago, and Don refined it and took it a few steps further. But I never actually heard it, just other people’s impressions of it. I was quite surprised when I hear it for myself, in what is a very good room.

I’m not all that good at writing puff pieces, but the initial impression is speed and power, followed by vividness, and depth of tone, an impression that grows over the course of a few minutes, and after listening to a few different selections. We keep telling visitors, no, there is no 200-watt subwoofer (or two) tucked away in a corner, and yes, the new Spatial speakers are entirely powered by ONE Blackbird per channel, with passive crossovers (sample on display at the entrance to the room), and no electronic EQ, no active crossovers, no multi-amping, and no DSP. What you see is what you get.

As for source, Don and I are joking around about our favorite DACs. He’s all-in on the LampizatOr family, while I was dazzled by the Bruno Putzey-designed Mola Mola in a nearby room. I was expecting to be bowled over by the Holo May, but nah, it’s not for me. But there’s no way I’m going to cough up the $13,500 the Mola Mola costs, especially considering how fast DACs become obsolete ... five years or less.

Tube amps, by contrast ... the tech never becomes obsolete. For that matter, all of the tubes used in the Blackbird, and the basic circuit, were first designed in the 1930’s! Talk about not going obsolete.

The sonic differences between the old Akido circuit and the Raven are fairly dramatic. The Akido circuit sounds like one of the best darn traditional tube preamps I had ever heard, and that is why I built it for years and kept trying to squeeze another few percent out of it with every improvement. The Raven is part of the 300b project. Both the amps and the Raven will happily play with the rest of the world, either single ended RCA or XLR, but together they can form a complete balanced chain with a balanced source. The Raven can drive the input tube grids of the Blackbird amps directly via XLR because it has an output transformer. I would not do that with a solid state preamp or DAC output stage, only something with an output transformer or coupling cap to protect the amps from DC input. A solid state device would be fine for possibly many years until one instant that it isn’t, and then DC can come flooding into the amp. That would not destroy the Blackbird, but the input tube would be really unhappy, and some nasty noises could arise from the speakers. The Raven simply cannot do that because it is transformer coupled. The RCA input on the Blackbird amps is transformer coupled, so that is always safe, but the XLR inputs can bypass that input transformer. So the Raven is made to mate with the Blackbird.

The sound of the Raven vs. the older Model 2...? Well, as much as I like that circuit and build, it sounds slightly slow and veiled compared to the Raven. The Model 2 is a great preamp and I have maybe 150+ of them out in the world in one form or another, but the Raven is a step up. There is just more resolution of fine detail, with what sounds like effortless and unlimited drive. It is not bright in any way at all, but it is highly detailed. The whole 300b system is like the iron fist in the velvet glove to my ear. It has all the subtle detail and shadings of a flea watt SET amp, but serious grunt and drive at the bottom and extension to 34KHz at the top end and a very subtle roll off after that. I suspect the final version of the amps may make it out to 50 KHz before the roll off begins. So HF is extended and airy, but again, never bright sounding. The Raven is definitely part of that experience because I built the amps first and used them with RCA inputs and my old preamp, and then I built the Raven. Like the amps, once I heard the Raven there was no going back. So then Lynn and I experimented with several power supply variations before deciding on the final topology. They all sounded quite good, but the final choice was clearly the best to my ear. At any rate, the Raven is a big part of the sound people heard at the show. My old preamp was good, but not in the same league. My 2 cents.....

@lynn_olson

Tube amps, by contrast ... the tech never becomes obsolete. For that matter, all of the tubes used in the Blackbird, and the basic circuit, were first designed in the 1930’s! Talk about not going obsolete

I sincerely believe that this is true. No question that class D has come a long way sonically and will continue to do so. I acknowledge that many listeners are ecstatic about their GAN latest generation iterations. Yet, there is something Intrinsically musically right and natural with properly implemented tubes.

I believe that there are certain listeners who hear and recognize this unique and innate sound character and presentation. It would be illuminating to directly compare the Blackbird 300b amplifier with the state of the art highly praised class D amplifier offerings.

Charles

What. A. Show!

Just got home ten minutes ago from Seattle. The most intense thing I've done since I went to the European Triode Festival in 2004. At least I didn't have to fly to Zurich this time ... only a 2.5 hour flight to SeaTac, and quick trip in the hotel bus. But man, the SIZE of the concourses in Denver ... combined with THREE gate changes.

Lots of fun meeting people at the show, and there were three or four really outstanding rooms, including [blush] our own. The Spatial team are great people and thoroughly professional, and several pre-orders are coming in. I have a feeling several vendors will be using a flight of Ravens and Blackbirds in their rooms next year.