The LTA gear is voiced on the thinner side for tube gear. They make good gear, but it is probably not the sound you seek. My personal favorite integrated amp that can run your speakers is the Synthesis A40 (40 wpc) or the A100 (100wpc). I think 40 watts would be plenty for your speakers. The tubes they run are KT66. These are warm and "beefy" sounding amps--the sound is full, but not sluggish or lumpy sounding; it delivers a lot of punch. They come with a built in DAC that is no slouch. At a local shop, I have seen customers trade in some very expensive Jadis, VAC, McIntosh, and other pricey gear that cost much more than these Synthesis models.
Luxman leaves me wanting
My current system is a Luxman L590-AXII driving DeVore Gibbon Super Nines. My source is Lumin U1-Mini (w/Sboosterj and Denafrips Venus II. Also a Rega P3. Speaker and interconnect cables are circa late 90s Cardis Cross There is a lot that is right about the sound of my set up, but I feel it’s lacking fullness in the midrange. When I turn on the loudness on the Luxman, I get the meaty weight in the mids I’m missing, but at anything but low volume, it alters the sound in a negative way.
I had considered a tube Integrated before I got the Luxman, but liked the L590 when I heard it. Now I’m wondering if I should have gone with tubes. (At one point I had a BAT Pre w/ a Classe amp and loved the bloom in the mids and vocals). I’m attracted to the LTA 40+ from the good reviews and long tube life. I’d be interested in hearing one with my speakers, but there are no dealers, so I could buy and return if I’m not thrilled, but wanted to know anyone has heard the 40+ with Super 9s. Also interested in other options to get a richer sound. Budget is around 8k.
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Hi OP: I think that swapping amps for a tonal imbalance problem is the second worst way to do so. The first is to buy new cables. Your description sounds like you are missing bass, not mids per se. There’s a couple of things I think you should try. First, use the Luxman tone controls, they are really good. I’d start by reducing the treble a couple of notches. Next, consider your listening location. Your ear should be at or below the tweeter’s axis. You may need to tilt the speaker back or lower your seat or separate your seat and speaker somewhat. The pooint is, you may need to be much lower than you are, and don't be afraid to listen at the mid woofer's axis, some speakers just sound better there. Next of course is the room. An overly reflective room with solid windows and drywall will sound much brighter for all speakers. |
I have a friend with a Luxman 509x. Luxman integrated amps can usually be used as a stand alone amp or a stand alone preamp. I own a Luxman stereo amp paired with an Audio Research Ref 5 SE. the SE is important. It pairs better with SS amps. It sounds amazing. More importantly I have the friend with the Luxman integrated that he uses with a tube preamp and it also sounds amazing. If you really want that warm sound I would go with VAC or CAT. When paired with a solid state amp it is the best of both worlds depending on your speakers. I tell people all the time to get your foundation right. That way any source can be hooked up to it and sound amazing. I demoed the Luxman preamp and compared it to my Audio Research preamp. It was cool to have all those tone controls and extra features. In the end when your preamp is right you don’t need any extra features. A really good used tube preamp is about $5k to $6k. I would count on you replacing the tubes. Sorry but it’s hard to trust that the tubes were replaced and tube hour clocks can be reset in seconds. In an Audio Research you are looking at about $500 to $700 with the 6550 tube. Do not buy them from the factory. Way too expensive and they started swapping out the original Sovtek 6550 for the cheaper and not as good EH 6550. I hope this helps and I know this works. |
Seeing the title of your post I immediately thought of the Synthesis A40 like @Larryi above. I had the A40 powering a pair of Audio Note speakers whose specs are not far off from the Devores you are currently powering and it made them sing. The internal DAC in the A40 is outstanding and you may find it an upgrade from Venus II with the right cable. I regret selling the A40, I upgraded to the Synthesis 98 DC mono blocks, as I will be purchasing another for my family room system.
John |
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