Looking to move to a Tube Integrated setup


I'm moving from solid state class D to a Tube Integrated amplifier and have narrowed it down to (2). The Ayon Scorpio II w/KT150's and the PrimaLuna DiaLogue Premium HP w/KT120's. Does anyone have any experience with either or both of these they can share. Recommendations? Others I should consider in the $3K to $6K range? My speakers are relatively efficient at 98dB.

128x128jijoh123

Hi @jijoh123 yes they are a bit different. I owned a Rogue Atlas 3 paired with a Rogue RP1 pre amp. Pretty powerful combo, muscular for sure, I could have easily stuck with the set up. There was an audible hiss and hum though, I couldn’t ignore it. When I swapped in an NAD pre amp, quiet. Their tech support was great, gave me several ideas, ultimately the noise floor of the preamp was a bit to high and the noise was present with their preamp. 
I sold and bought the Cary. Little less power but my Volti Razz speakers are pretty sensitive, 96 to 99 db depending on who you listen to. So the decrease in power didn’t mean much. For me the ability to switch back and forth between UL and Triode mode is cool, depending on my mood. Also the rectifier section on the newer SLI80 makes it less of a syrupy overall sound, what I remember about Cary back in the day.

Honestly I don’t think you could go wrong choosing either.

To clarify, he rectifier section is now solid state as opposed to the older models which were tube. I’m not an engineer, but have read that this is the difference.

I will say this and you are right no measurement of numbers will tell your ears what they are calibrating coming out of speakers in your own listening room..

I started with the Raven Audio Black Hawk for 45 day trial and what I heard changed me for ever with never owning tubes ..You can go to Audio store and listen and yes get basic concept but until it is in front of you that is the tell tale sign of tubes or solid state for you..And then this is just the start of your tube voyage..the good cables to gain little more sound detail and tube rolling will change everything you thought you heard ..You start buying Military tubes that will cost but the reward is worth it..No matter who you are you are always striving to hear a little more over few years after you get used to what you have...Its been a 5 year journey for me and I at 73 yrs old are at my max sound system ..

There is MUCH more variability in the sound of tube gear than there is between high end solid state gear.  For my particular taste, there are many high-powered tube amps that I don't like--many sound hard and brittle and less "pleasant" than most solid state amps.  But, this variability means that, with a diligent search, one can find a suitable amp; it just takes a bit of effort.  I tend to like lower powered tube amps, but the concern being voiced here is with how difficult a load the Moab might be despite being relatively efficient.  I've only heard the Moab being driven by solid state amps, so I don't know how significant are the concerns raised above (I liked the speaker, by the way).

Still, it is probably worth your while to look at some low to medium powered tube amps.  I agree with the poster above who suggested the Audio Note Oto.  I really like the sound of that amp and it seems to work well with a wide variety of speakers.  The only big downside for my purposes is the lack of remote control of volume.  Audio Note also makes another very good sounding integrated in the Soro (6L6 tubes).

My favorite brand of integrated amps are models from Synthesis Audio (Italian).  In particular, I like their 40 watt A40 amp (pushpull KT 66 tubes) which includes a very good built in DAC and has remote control.  The bigger, and more expensive A100 (a quad of KT 66 per channel) is also very good and perhaps more suited for a demanding load.