Hi Charles
Yes I am sure you are talking about those that are well designed as was Salectric, at least that can perform at a satisfactory performance level that they can be used on a wide variety of music. The output transformer and power supply design would certainly come into play as it does with all designs but more so with an SET to realize realistic performance across the frequency spectrum. I have yet to hear a budget SET, admittedly the breed I'm most familiar with, perform adequately full bandwidth, at least from my perspective. This isn't to say they don't exist but I doubt at the budget the OP is looking at. This is why I chimed in on this thread. I personally feel that a PP or say a used Atmas-phere 30 watt stereo OTL may be a better alternative unless he listens primarily to small scale, music where a budget SET would be satisfactory and perform quite well, that magical midrange. I have heard a few expensive, well designed SETs that were superb across the board, the Lamm being a great example with the Russian 6C33 tube, not typical for sure and very expensive.
Since their reemergence as a more mainstream audiophile alternative for high efficiency speakers 20 years or so ago, there have been numerous offerings at various pricepoints so I'm sure there are some that offer excellent performance for all types of music. Out of general curiosity I too would be interested in hearing your input as to what one might have to spend to achieve what I have described above and a few examples.
Yes I am sure you are talking about those that are well designed as was Salectric, at least that can perform at a satisfactory performance level that they can be used on a wide variety of music. The output transformer and power supply design would certainly come into play as it does with all designs but more so with an SET to realize realistic performance across the frequency spectrum. I have yet to hear a budget SET, admittedly the breed I'm most familiar with, perform adequately full bandwidth, at least from my perspective. This isn't to say they don't exist but I doubt at the budget the OP is looking at. This is why I chimed in on this thread. I personally feel that a PP or say a used Atmas-phere 30 watt stereo OTL may be a better alternative unless he listens primarily to small scale, music where a budget SET would be satisfactory and perform quite well, that magical midrange. I have heard a few expensive, well designed SETs that were superb across the board, the Lamm being a great example with the Russian 6C33 tube, not typical for sure and very expensive.
Since their reemergence as a more mainstream audiophile alternative for high efficiency speakers 20 years or so ago, there have been numerous offerings at various pricepoints so I'm sure there are some that offer excellent performance for all types of music. Out of general curiosity I too would be interested in hearing your input as to what one might have to spend to achieve what I have described above and a few examples.