Tubes/SS Power Amps?

Orpheus10, there are inexpensive ways of dealing with heat. You don't need air conditioning for starters, if you do it right.

Now if you set up your system according to how much heat it makes, don't expect it to sound like music. If it does, great, a happy coincidence.

Hot transistor amps are hot because they employ a greater amount of A operation in their output- this is to improve linearity. The same is true of tubes, but they are inherently more linear in many cases.

One thing is certain- all the solid state embodiments known so far make more odd ordered harmonic distortion than their tube counterparts. Odd ordered harmonics in trace amounts are easily detected by the human ear, which recognizes them as brightness and harshness.

So you might look into the idea of creating ventilation in your room to get rid of heat without air conditioning. I have seen this done quite successfully, such that you could sit in the same room with 2 class A 500 watt triode monoblocks all day and all night without getting uncomfortable, and without air conditioning.

Atmasphere, I had an SS amp that began to run hot, so I put a fan on it. The hotter it got, the better it sounded. I put two fans on it, next it caught fire taking two new woofers with it. That was the first and only amp I've ever owned that caught fire. I thought that was just supposed to happen to tube amps.

If creating ventilation can work, that's what I'll do.

Orpheus10, amps in general are not supposed to catch fire :), tube or solid state.

Sounds like that SS amp was overbiased and went into thermal runaway.

The way to do the ventilation is to put one are two vents over the space that the amp/amps will occupy. You can get flexible ductwork inexpensively that can then be routed to the outdoors by a small squirrel cage fan. If you do it right, it will be quite unobtrusive. If you live in a northern climate, you may have to take some simple steps to prevent the ducts from being a heat loss in the winter.

This approach is cheaper, quieter and more reliable than air conditioning.

Atmasphere,

I'd be very interested in hearing your thoughts on class D amplification. Have you heard any of the newer class D amps in a good system? How do you think this new technology will affect the tube based amplifier business?

I find it ironic, as others have pointed out on other posts, that the original and oldest hi-fidelity technology (tubes) pairs so well with the latest and newest technology (class D).

I was thinking you could embrace this new technology by doing one or both of the following:

1. Offer a tube preamp that is specically designed for use with class d amplifiers.

2. Offer an Atmasphere class d amp, based on the Hypex Ncore 1200 or possibly the Pascal amp modules, to complement your current and future offerings. You could also use your proprietary designs around these class d modules.

I know a class d amp with a tube input stage/power supply, designed by and sold through Atmasphere, would create a big buzz in the audio world and with your potential customers. I will definitely voluonteer to test out anything you would decide to build.

Basically, seeing you post just got me thinking of possibilities. I'm just very interested in the new class d happenings and thinking out loud. But, in any case, I wish you and your company the best.

Tim

We've been looking at class D for 9 years now. We have certainly thought about it.

The preamps we make now would work fine with any Class D amp.

The concerns we have had are: is class D a threat to our tube technology? Answer, yes, although not with any current embodiments. However Class D is the rising star in amplifier technology and if its still early on the price/performance curves it may yield something yet.

Second, should we be building one? Answer, maybe. It could well be poor marketing on our part to not have a class D amp in our lineup, as we have been focused on getting as close to sounding like real music as possible. So far that has been easier with tubes, but I am pragmatic enough to know that that could change!