Hello Pubul57,
tube/ss combo sounds very attractive but I tried a number of combinations and results were not always desirable. One, obvious reason, that many ss amps have low input impedance whereas many tube preamps(even excellent like BAT) have high output impedance. Others reasons probably play some role as well but I never know in advance.
I agree with you in regard to Joule not only because its variable impedance and rich vivid sound but also because its very user-friendly even for solid state lover. Its on "standby" 24/7 and with one flick of the switch you are ready (30 seconds) to listen to music and do not have to wait warm up. Another, re-tubing which all of us hate need to eb done once per 5-10 years. You also don;t need to search for best NOS - Joule owns the best and sell them for song.
You can extend their tube life span even more but you would need to speak with them directly, I don;t want to go there.
tube/ss combo sounds very attractive but I tried a number of combinations and results were not always desirable. One, obvious reason, that many ss amps have low input impedance whereas many tube preamps(even excellent like BAT) have high output impedance. Others reasons probably play some role as well but I never know in advance.
I agree with you in regard to Joule not only because its variable impedance and rich vivid sound but also because its very user-friendly even for solid state lover. Its on "standby" 24/7 and with one flick of the switch you are ready (30 seconds) to listen to music and do not have to wait warm up. Another, re-tubing which all of us hate need to eb done once per 5-10 years. You also don;t need to search for best NOS - Joule owns the best and sell them for song.
You can extend their tube life span even more but you would need to speak with them directly, I don;t want to go there.