$$$Sensitive Speakers with $$Amps?

Hi Charles,

I am welcoming suggestions and thank you for yours. I will keep the First Watt on the back burner.

Single drivers and simple circuits seem to go hand-in-hand. There are only a handful of different ways to design simple amplifier circuits. One can complicate the design by adding tricks to make their's unique, but that's getting away from the purity of sound IMO.

This tells me that great sounding low-watt amplifiers can be built inexpensively and this has already been revealed. Other things that I've come to believe, for example, is that point-to-point wiring is ultimately superior to circuit board wiring. Again, this is my opinion. However, good looks and other features drive up the costs for boutique designs. I don't want an ugly duckling, but a compromise seems reasonable.

I like to challenge what I've become comfortable with. When I get my speakers of choice, I will use my current Sam Kim amp to see how it does for noise and SQ. Sam can also build me a low-watt design, but a 300b or 845 may not be Sam's choice. This is why I'm seeking everyone's help, so I have more viable options and can narrow down my listening when I'm ready to get serious.

Our amps only have one stage of gain. Hard to get simpler than that. In general its been my impression that cost is less important than the simple fact that some amps sound more like music than others. So my answer is now 'depends' as there are expensive amps that do deliver.

Kenny with the Horning you`re lucky in that you have many choices available. OTL, DHT tubes as SET or PP design,low power SS(in class A) etc. Just with 300b amps alone there`re so many good choices for less than silly money.Many Horning owners seem to do quite well with 8-10 watts of power. Of course the transformer and power supply can vary significantly at the same power rating.Based on what your priorities are it seems a DHT(2A3,300b, 845 etc)either as SET or PP will give you what you want.OTL is a different sound and certainly has it supporters also.

It would be ideal if you could compare some SET and OTL amplifiers with your speaker of choice and simply hear for yourself.I`m confident you`ll find exactly what you want with some research and patience, I sure did.
Regards,

Thanks Charles! Yes, research and patience.

I don't know if this thread will hold up, but it would be great if Horning/Rethm owners could chime in with their own amplifier solutions. Or, if we got more contenders for lower cost/low-watt amplifiers regardless of the high sensitivity speaker type and/or brand.

That would surely help with my research and definitely my patience.

It seems that most boutique dealers are located on the E. & W. Coasts, making it difficult for this Colorado guy to hear stuff up close and personal...Except for RMAF, which is not so up close and personal.

My goal, is to get a low-watt Sam Kim amp and compare it to a few winners that I've researched (I consider this research), and then pick my keeper.

Atmasphere,
You are right of course, as your amps have stood the test of time and are highly regarded. No debate there, as some expensive amps do deliver the goods and sound superior. This, probably relates to the quality of parts used that cost a pretty penny, but provide the final percentage of return. I understand, and thought I relayed the value of spending the extra bucks with my reference to the $40K Tron that I love. I know that you have far less expensive designs.

It's an intersting hobby, and for some of us we enjoy finding less expensive solutions that excel to fit our personal high expectations and budgets of what's wonderful. For example, Sam Kim does not install Auricaps or the like. Instead, he cuts open different runs of quality capacitors and he knows by inspection, which ones will sound the best. This is what does it for me, because I'm a retired Locksmith who doesn't have unlimited funds. However, there are reviewers who expect the quality of parts to be there. This is why I rely on all of you for quality feedback.