Small integrateds: red wine, bel canto or wyred?

Re the Red Wine Audio amps:

I have owned the 30.2 for 5 yrs. I use tubes and class A ss in my main systems and got the RWA for mostly summer use as heat is an issue where I live.

I think it sounds great and enjoy listening to it and my ears are tuned to Triodes and Nelson Pass designed ss amps. 30 watts is what it is and will be more than enough for some/not enough for others but I think they are quality watts if 30 will do it for you.

Battery issues: Just like car batteries, you should get 3-4 yrs on them. I got 4 on mine. It is very easy to replace them yourself. I did. It takes 2, ordered them @ $16 each, out with the old/in with the new in 5 minutes and I'm NOT that handy. If $32 and 5 minutes are too much trouble to do once every 3-4 yrs then the 30.2 is not for you. SLA's do not like to be deep discharged but with their "smart charger" you never have to worry, it's fit and forget.

I have no experience with the Sig 15, don't even know if it's Tripath based like the 30.2 (kinda think it isn't). Now that I'm using SET's, with only 1 output tube per channel, heat is not so much an issue anymore, in fact, I didn't even use the RWA this summer. I think about letting it go from time to time. The one thing it can still do is isolate me from the grid.

So, my 2 cents FWIW. With your 95 db speakers you should be okay unless you like to disturb your neighbors.

The Red Wine Audio 15 is not Tripath based. My past experience with the 30.2 is that it sounds good, but it's missing the detail and resolution in the treble, some would say that it has a harmonically flat at the top end.

On the other hand, the 30.2 has great tone and mid-range density.

My understanding is that the 15 corrects the flatness in the treble region but I haven't heard one so I couldn't say one way or another.

I'd recommend a tube amp. But having said that, I do not currently have a tube amp, but Hypex NC400 based DIY monoblocks, which I think is amongst the finest solid state (and tube) amplifiers I've ever heard. But the OP asked for a small integrated recommendation, not a power amp recommendation.

All,

Just to clear the air:

The battery pains that raytheprinter mentions was in the past when we were using SLA battery technology. Since then (as of the Fall, 2010), we migrated to our own designed LiFePO4 battery packs that offer over 2000 charge cycles, and can also be ran and charged at the same time with no time limit (for non-critical listening).

Zmanastronomy is entitled to his opinion about the Signature 15, but if you view posts from many customers on our discussion forum on Audiocircle (as well as read the reviews published on the Signature 15), they offer a completely different response to Zmanastronomy's. Perhaps it was speaker mis-matching, or something else (tube that was not performing to spec) - but regardless, as Wilsynet points out, the Signature 15 is NOT Class T - it is Class A tube input followed by a Class AB MOSFET output stage and has excellent treble extension - with a high freq. response of the amp -3dB at 100kHz.

Eric Alexander of Tekton himself owns a Signature 15 - it is a fantastic match with the Lores and Lore S. This has been stated in many places online, such as our forum and in this review: http://parttimeaudiophile.com/2012/03/22/follow-up-red-wine-audio-signature-15/

I am also excited to mention that a new version of the Signature 15 (the Signature 16) is scheduled to be released early next year, and besides a new enclosure and updated tube stage that now accepts 12AX7s along with 6922s, it offers even better dynamics right off the bat! More details on this to follow, along with details of our new dacs that offer up to 24/192k Async, Integer-Mode USB inputs, and a new Isabella preamp design, and so much more!

That being said, very soon we will be announcing close-outs on our LFP-V Editions that we current sell - so contact us for pricing and availability of what we have left in stock.

As always, feel free to email or post any questions you have. I work tirelessly to provide the best possible customer support and responsiveness (even on weekends), and as many of you know, we offer a 30-day refund policy and 5-year warranty on our products. We only want happy customers and put this before anything else and always have!

Thank you,

Vinnie Rossi
Red Wine Audio

Hi Vinnie, I agree with you 100%.
I've read so many positive reviews and post about the 15.
It must have been a synergy mismatch in my system.
I should have put that in my post.
I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive my blunt statement.

Zmanastronomy,

No need to apologize - and we all know that it's all about
synergy of the components (including the listening room).

Thanks for your post,

Vinnie