Who will survive? One last table til I die.

Raul,

Yes, I know that tubes are voltage devices. Bipolar transistors are current devices and mosfet transistors are voltage devices like tubes. Yes the theory of operation is different but the application is still very similar. You use a small current or voltage to control a larger voltage or current. And though bipolar and mosfet transistors operate on different principles they end up sounding much the same. And neither has linearity that is even close to that of a vacuum tube. This is all quite irrelevant to this discussion.

The topic of complementary devices is another red herring. It just makes it easy to implement a push-pull topology without using a transformer or coupling capacitor. The push pull topology does cancel distortions but also has it's own set of advantages and disadvantages. Push pull is widely used with both tube and transistor equipment so it has nothing to do with the topic at hand.

You are really in the weeds when you imply that non-feedback is practically gospel. Please name a single commercial transistor amplifier that uses no global feedback. For that matter name a single non-triode tube amp with no feedback. Reduced feedback is an often cited goal but with the vast majority of amplifiers the sound would sound awful without any feedback.

The intent of my post was to counter your outrageous assertion that tube amplifiers are frequency equalizers and therefore unsuitable. You countered with a number of irrelevant facts (some of which were also wrong) but never came back with any justification for your position. If you are going to make sweeping authoritative statements then I suggest that you be ready to defend them.

Personally I love the sound of tubes and in particular single ended triodes with no feedback. So does that give me license to say that transistor amps suck? Or that anyone that likes transistor amps is uninformed and/or can't hear? I have plenty of tolerance and even appreciation for people that have different preferences and views. But my tolerance for those that impose their views on others is pretty thin.

Chris

Anybody notice how Raul's English improved about an order of magnitude in that last post? Interesting...

Indeed. One wonders who actually wrote it. Is some SS amp builder ghosting for Raul?

Raul- Would love to test it for three months. Everyone else uses their system as their reference point- what is YOUR reference point for your own personal state-of-the-art, zero feedback, solid state amp/pre/phono?

After all, I wouldn't want to start my testing with something less than the same equipment you have so as to be fair. Maybe you could let me know what speakers you have, too, to further reduce trial and error.

Regards
Jim

Raul, anyone who thinks that the location and order of harmonic distortion is "not matters", has no clue of what harmonic distortion is, nor how it affects a musical presentation. Please bone up on it, and try again.

Regarding the 1.8 ohm output impedance of my amplifier, I use 8 ohm speakers which provides a damping factor greater than 4, so it works as well for speaker control and frequency response as any SS amp with any kind of damping factor. Any damping factor greater than 4 is immaterial and makes no discernable difference in the amplifier's ability to control the speaker. The frequency response of my amp is totally unaffected by speaker reactance in my particular system, so it doesn't matter what Stereophile says about amps with 3 ohm output impedance and poorly designed highly reactive speakers. If you notice the Stereophile chart, the impedance peaks that are imposed on the very poor example they chose to use, are at the resonant freq.(F3) of the driver, and at the cabinet tuning point. In the case of my system, my frequency response starts above both of those points, and have no effect in my system. But since you are not a speaker designer(and apparently not an amp designer either) I wouldn't expect you to know about that, any more than you know about the subject we are discussing.

The "very high output impedance" as you put it, has no bearing at all on anything, until you connect a speaker to it. That is when the damping factor is defined, and not until then. If I attached a speaker with a 0.1 ohm load to a SS amp with a 0.05 ohm output impedance, then the damping factor of the SS amp would suck(with that speaker). If you actually knew anything about this parameter, then you would not make statements such as you do.

I actually think that you know very little about audio. You read a few things, and think you know what you are talking about. Your statements give you away.

By the way, we are all still waiting for you to reveal the contents of your "highly musical" solid state system that will be revealing of the "true music" that you think we all are lacking in our systems.

You know, not only are you seriously lacking in audio knowledge, but you are very abrasive, rude, and arrogant. You seem to think that it is ok to ignore anyone else's points, can never debate an opposing position with facts, and simply repeat your own flawed opinions, in the attempt to look important. This is really sad. I like to engage in vigorous audio debate, but I prefer to do so with someone who knows what he is talking about. Unfortunately, you do not.

I'd suggest quite a bit more study before engaging any serious audiophiles here again. You really do need it.

Dear Teres:****" Ultimately, there will never be such thing as a zero-feedback amplifying device, and this includes single-ended triodes (where the electron flow and the space charge are the feedback parameters working in conjunction with the grid-cathode voltage) and transistor emitter-follower configuration (where the flow of minority carriers is the feedback parameter). I agree that a zero-feedback amplifier would be great, but it's not achievable yet."***
Can you read this again?.

There are many amplifiers that don't use global feedback ( use local feddback )¨Krell, Levinson, FM Acoustics, Rowland, etc....

*****" You countered with a number of irrelevant facts (some of which were also wrong) but never came back with any justification for your position. "****

Justification? you can do it for your self: test a tube and a SS amplifier on the subject: in a scientific way and in subjective way, then you can have the answers. I don't have to probe anything for my self. It is almost imposible to do that by writing in this thread, you have to have " live experience ", is the only way. This is not a subject that we can arrange with " words ".

***" But my tolerance for those that impose their views on others is pretty thin."***

I don't try to impose anything, I only give my point of view : tube amplifiers are frequency equalizers.

Chris, if you really think that I'm wrong, why don't try to prove it. Till to now you don't do anything about. Only words that don't prove anything on that subject.
This is not a contest, it is not important who are right, the important issue is that all of us can learn about.
Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.