Spectron vs any good tube amp.

In the past I own McIntosh 2102 tube preamp and when I tried Spectron with my speakers (at that time WATT/Puppy 8) I felt much more musicality with Spectron and bought it and then another one and use them with my new speakers SASHA (its next generation of WATT/Puppy - mots power hungry) and all tube preamplifier Joule-Electra LA-300 and I am extremely happy.

I know that Enjoy The Music reviewer Wayne Donnely sent back his $50k Sigfried amplifierx back and use Spectron - and this guy attend weekly Chicago Philarmonic.

I can give you more examples but its all useless. Spectron provides free home trials why won;t you listen for yourself in your system with your firends etc.

Mike

There's certainly no doubt about the Joule-Electra LA-300. That will be my next Pre, but I'll have to try the 300B before I consider any thing else in regard to amp.

My present speakers are 92DB, 8 ohm; it seems that 300B's like 16 ohm, I don't understand that?

More information on speakers for 300B would be helpful.

Orpheus,
A good 300b SET amp can handle an 8 ohm load(even 4 ohm if it stays relatively flat).There`re so many 300b amps available and the quality-performance spectrum is very wide.The key is selecting one with top quality transformers and also a 'stout power supply'. There`re plenty of upper quality built SET amps to choose from.
My speakers are 94 db efficient and the amp just seems to coast with them. My room is 25x14x8 and opens(no wall) into a 26x18 room. I listen to jazz(a whole lot!) big band and increasingly more classical music. Generally my listening levels are 75-83 db and 10 feet from the speakers. At those levels the amp is using perhaps 1/10 of a watt. so there`s much headroom available.
Best Regards,

"My present speakers are 92DB, 8 ohm "

You don;t need ss power amplifier, IMO, if you like tube. Its very benign load.

I don;t know well 300b SET tubes but regarding the power needed for reproduction of the musical peak - your speakers will need much, much more then 1/10 of the watt or even 10 watts. Read small article on the subject written by Simon Thacher of Spectron (He is also tube man and work with Jud Barber of Joule-Electra on OTL tube amps)

http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/manufacture/0708/index.html

All The Best,
Mike

Mike ,
Hello, It always come down to individual preference and listening levels. Not everyone wants or seeks very loud levels or peaks of 100db or more to enjoy their music. Cubic volume of the room is a factor(that`s why I listed my room size). With reasonably normal hearing and a good resolving system I believe low 70s-low 80s db is plenty loud,comfortable and 'safe' long term for your ears. These levels still allow headroom for louder musical peaks in maintaining music`s ebb and flow.

For jazz and classical you don`t have to blast the music to enjoy it. If your interest is pop,rock,electronic,hip-hop etc. at very loud levels then of course you`ll want(and require) more power. Really high volume levels/peaks IMO are too risky to one`s ears, but that`s obviously a personal decision.

My point to Orpheus is that under reasonable conditions he should be fine with a high quality 300b SET amp that usally provide 8-10 watts of power. If he wants 105-110 db peaks he`ll want a different amp.I have on a few occasions listen at 95-100 db and the sound was unsressed and very clear but I would`nt do this on a regular basis. Of course I don`t know what Orpheus`s preferences are.
Regards,