set vs otl, which is the most musical

there is no way to generalize. set amps may be very linear in their performance or sound like a vintage tube amp of the 70's. otl amps may also have the characteristics of accuracy or "romance" . it is necessary to evaluate each amp on its own merites, regardless of its design.

generalizations are usually wrong, most of the time.

>>generalizations are usually wrong, most of the time<<

Maybe and that's for certain.

I have owned both SETs and OTLs and, for me, the realism and speed of the OTL (Atmasphere MA 2.2) reigns. Never heard better.

when all is right....less is more. in other words; when the speaker is properly matched to the OTL amp then to my ears an OTL is the closer to my ideal than SET's. i've had big OTL's (Atma MA2 for a few weeks) and more modestly powered OTL's (Tenor 75W for three years). an OTL seems to have overall more clarity and imposes less of a signature of it's own. there is more bass articulation and deeper extention 'generally' with an OTL and very extended highs.

as mentioned above an OTL can sound 'tubey' and an SET can be fairly neutral and extended.

my answer is that an OTL is more musical if one's definition of 'musical' is 'reality'.......if your definition of 'musical' is 'rounder' and more 'lush'.....then your answer might be SET. there is no wrong choice.

my perfect amp is a combination of the best parts of the Tenor OTL performance added to the strengths of solid state (darTZeel.....or Tenor Hybrid).

I wonder how you would characterize a SET OTL :)

http://www.davidberning.com/siegfried.htm