Atma-Sphere S-30 MK3



To Atma owners and gurus;

I've just recently jumped on the Atma wagon and I must say that so far this has been the single most eye & ear opening amplifier experience in my entire audio life of almost 28 years.

The S-30mk3 has been residing in my rig for close to 4 months now and is still breaking in, but should be almost done anytime soon.

I do however complain of an un-natural tonality in general that comes and goes during the break-in period and which was also very clear from the beginning. This is also accompanied by a certain 'hardness'..much like looking directly into sunlight as opposed to looking through a pair of poloroids..This issue is really bugging me and was wondering if it's part of the break-in process of Atmasphere amps in general, as I have never experienced it with other amps, tube or SS..

This aside, the amp seems to be taking forever to break-in..!!! But, it certainly looks to be my holy grail in amplification.

Along the way, I replaced the stock Chinese 6SN7's with EH's and now settled on Tung-Sol's. The latter being the best sounding of the lot. I do wanna stick to current production tubes as much as possible. Don't wanna go on the NOS merry-go-round..:-)

The S-30 is driving a pair of Tannoy Edinburgh's, from the Tannoy Prestige Series, to wonderful effect and the sound is heavenly! Preamp is a BAT VK-3iX Special Edition and is also a very good sonic match with the S-30..

Appreciate any input and of course any advice from the Atmasphere gurus and lovers here..!

TIA

AudioGrails
128x128audiograils
Nice amp you got there. There's one in my living room, too.

I haven't experienced what you describe during break-in, so can't make any suggestions on that topic.

However, I do have some experience in designing speakers to work well with the S-30 (as well as with other amps, but the S-30 drove the design). In my experience the speaker's impedance curve is a very significant factor.

I don't know what the impedance curve on the Tannoy Edinburghs looks like, but if it has a significant peak or two in the upper midrange or treble region the S-30 would put out increased power into that peak, especially relative to what a solid state amp would put out. And increased energy in the upper midrange and treble region can come across as "hardness".

Duke

dealer/manufacturer
Thank you for helping me understand Atma-Sphere products and break in Audiograils.

Your experience is most helpful.
Audiofeil,

I had no intentions to sound nasty or inappropriate !! I was merely saying that I noticed vast sonic changes during the break-in process of the amp in contrast to what you remarked.

" I suggest your ears were acclimating to the sonics and different presentation of an OTL amplifier. "

>>I couldn't agree more on this<<

Thanks for your input and my sincere apologies for the misunderstanding.

AG
Duke's speculation makes perfect sense as a possible explanation. I use M-60 MKIIIs with my Merlins that have very flat impedance with no frequency anomalies that I can detect. Now, I have heard that V-Caps do take a while to break in, but I'm not sure that it would account for what you are hearing. I'm sure Bill has heard every Atma permutation so I assume he has not picked up on this V-Cap breakin as being a possible cause for your situtation. Let us know if thinks improve.
I have the S30 mk3 OTL amp with the upgrade vcap and resistors. The break-in period for me lasted only a couple of days. I loaned the amp from a dealer and for the first day it really didn't gel and I was very close to handing it back.

However, day 2 was different and I started to really appreciate how revealing this amp is. I am using it with a Bent Audio TVC and Avantgarde Duo Omega horns which have a flat impedance of 18 ohms.

The imaging and dynamics of this amp are second to none in my system and I do not hear the hardness that you are referring to. In fact I would say that it is amazing how high you can set the listening level without and strain or hardness appearing.

I am using the amp in balanced mode with Anti-IC's and stock power cord.

Hope that helps in some way.