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Post by monkumonku on Jun 21, 2016 22:12:54 GMT -5
Not exactly brand new gear, but my latest addition to the lineup is my VTA ST-120 amp designed by Bob Latino. I'd always been interested in trying a tube amp but the cost is what held me back. Finally I decided what the heck, you have to enjoy life while you can so I went ahead and ordered the kit version. The amp itself is using driver tubes supplied by Bob, 3 Raytheon 12AU7's. It also has 4 Gold Lion KT-88 power output tubes and a Ruby 5AR4 rectifier tube. I also added the optional attenuator knob to the amp which serves as a volume control so a preamp isn't needed. My 2.0 configuration consists of a Sonos system connected via coax to a Schiit Bifrost Multibit DAC, connected directly to the amp. I'm totally impressed with this amp. It has two modes, pentode and triode, which put out 60 and 32 watts per channel, respectively. Triode mode is supposed to have slightly more midrange projection, and slightly roll off at the top and bottom for a smoother sound. I've been using it in triode mode. I hear only a subtle difference but prefer it as it does seem to be a bit smoother in sound. But only 32 watts per channel? This from someone who worked his way up the ladder to a pair of XPA-1's at one time and now has some Crown class D amps, three operating in mono mode putting out 1,000 watts each?  Well like Abe Lincoln said when someone asked him how "long does a mans legs need to be," the answer is "only enough watts to drive the speakers good enough." And that's what this amp does. I'd characterize the amp as detailed, with really nice imaging. The soundstage isn't as wide as a football field but it is nice and open and feels like 3D with the positioning of the instruments. Listening to music is engaging, dynamic and toe-tapping good, with voices and instruments convincingly placed within the stage and also sounding nice and natural. I've got the attenuator (volume knob) around 2:00 for most tracks. I also notice that warmup definitely makes a difference, as the sound seems brittle to me when first started up. Like today - the first track was Joni Mitchell's "Free Man in Paris" and it didn't sound quite right, which my description would be "brittle." I replayed it later on after the tubes had warmed up and that brittle character was all gone. It sounded great. A good example from today was Santana's "Europa." Every little detail came forth, the instruments sounded really natural and in the room, and Santana's guitar was breathtaking. So impressive. That's about all I'm going to say because I'd just end up repeating myself, but bottom line is this is all the amp I need for stereo. It makes the music truly alive and I'm so glad I opened the wallet to get it.  |
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Post by geebo on Jun 22, 2016 7:22:20 GMT -5
Nice little review Rickie. But what does it do to the AC bill out in Southern Cal this time of year.  The amp looks great. Good job! |
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Post by audiobill on Jun 22, 2016 7:33:09 GMT -5
This model pulls about 2 amps.
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Post by Boomzilla on Jun 22, 2016 7:35:21 GMT -5
And that's yet another variant of the classic Dynaco ST-70! A GREAT amp in its original format, and Mr. Latino has definitely brought it up to date. I envy you the pleasure of that amp - enjoy!
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Post by audiobill on Jun 22, 2016 7:47:11 GMT -5
The original Dynaco ST-70 was nominally 35 wpc, but was redefined to 20 wpc when the FTC required standardized testing in 1974. Monku's amp is a solid 60 wpc in pentode mode, 3 times the power of an original ST70. Compare the transformer sizes....
Also, Monku's amp has the dramatically upgraded driver board designed by Roy Mottram for really excellent sonics.
These only LOOK like original Dynacos, a classic with over 350,000 sold to eager customers over time.
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Post by Boomzilla on Jun 22, 2016 7:50:33 GMT -5
I agree with you totally, audiobill - the amps are not ST-70s in any way. But their architecture, chassis style, and basic design are derived from the classic Dynaco. And one day, if I like my 12W Heathkits enough, Mr. Latino may well end up selling me amp # 350,001. |
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Post by simpleman68 on Jun 22, 2016 7:53:32 GMT -5
Glad to hear it's working well in your system. Gonna audition a set of tubes in my rig some day.
Certainly going to give Bill a call when I'm in the area again, which should be soon.
Scott
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Post by monkumonku on Jun 22, 2016 9:00:46 GMT -5
Nice little review Rickie. But what does it do to the AC bill out in Southern Cal this time of year. The amp looks great. Good job! Thanks! Yes, it does increase the a/c bill, somewhat because of the current draw but probably more so from the heat those tubes generate! But just think of how much I will save on my heating bill in the winter. Oh, never mind.. Southern California never gets cold. |
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Post by mshump on Jun 22, 2016 9:07:35 GMT -5
How do you like it compared to a SS amp?
Mark
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Post by monkumonku on Jun 22, 2016 9:45:37 GMT -5
How do you like it compared to a SS amp? Mark I haven't directly compared the ST-120 with my Crown amps, such as switching back and forth because each amp has its own speaker wires, plus I don't want to leave the tube amp on without it being connected to the speakers and I don't want to keep turning the amp on and off frequently. But just my overall impressions are that the ST-120 has a very 3D or holographic feel, like the instruments and vocals sound so realistic and are placed very convincingly in the soundstage. It's a very engaging experience, like I said in my review. When I replaced my Emo XPA-2 and XPA-5 with the Crown amps, nothing ever struck me as sounding different. They both sounded very good and I was happy. Although I haven't switched back and forth with the new amp, my impression is that it has a more musical or "there" character to it and even in triode mode with just 32 watts per channel, the amp has authority and drives everything effortlessly. It's a joy to listen to! |
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Post by Boomzilla on Jun 22, 2016 10:50:05 GMT -5
Most people's reaction to tubes is about the same monkumonku - The soundstage alone is captivating. The spec-readers insist that it isn't as accurate as solid-state, and in general, I agree with them. But, (and this is a big "but"), I play music for my enjoyment - not for a SPL or distortion meter. When I take the time to listen, I want the music to sound good to ME. I've discovered that I like the sound of tubes. It may homogenize the sound (so that poorly-recorded program doesn't sound so badly done), but since the majority of music that I listen to isn't recorded to audiophile specifications, it's fair to say that tubes make the majority of my music library sound better. Yes, on the (few) recordings I have that ARE masterfully recorded, the tubes aren't allowing me to hear the Nth degree of detail that is there. But you know what? I can live with that. Now this destroys all "audiophile" credibility that one could claim. I've deliberately introduced (tube) components that definitely and distinctively alter the sound of the original recording. To which I say - so what? It's my system & I want to please my ears. That said, I'll probably also keep some more accurate transistor equipment in the house for doing reviews. But for my listening - bring on the tubes! |
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Post by Cogito on Jun 22, 2016 10:57:29 GMT -5
Not exactly brand new gear, but my latest addition to the lineup is my VTA ST-120 amp designed by Bob Latino. I'd always been interested in trying a tube amp but the cost is what held me back. Finally I decided what the heck, you have to enjoy life while you can so I went ahead and ordered the kit version. The amp itself is using driver tubes supplied by Bob, 3 Raytheon 12AU7's. It also has 4 Gold Lion KT-88 power output tubes and a Ruby 5AR4 rectifier tube. I also added the optional attenuator knob to the amp which serves as a volume control so a preamp isn't needed. My 2.0 configuration consists of a Sonos system connected via coax to a Schiit Bifrost Multibit DAC, connected directly to the amp. I'm totally impressed with this amp. It has two modes, pentode and triode, which put out 60 and 32 watts per channel, respectively. Triode mode is supposed to have slightly more midrange projection, and slightly roll off at the top and bottom for a smoother sound. I've been using it in triode mode. I hear only a subtle difference but prefer it as it does seem to be a bit smoother in sound. But only 32 watts per channel? This from someone who worked his way up the ladder to a pair of XPA-1's at one time and now has some Crown class D amps, three operating in mono mode putting out 1,000 watts each? Well like Abe Lincoln said when someone asked him how "long does a mans legs need to be," the answer is "only enough watts to drive the speakers good enough." And that's what this amp does. I'd characterize the amp as detailed, with really nice imaging. The soundstage isn't as wide as a football field but it is nice and open and feels like 3D with the positioning of the instruments. Listening to music is engaging, dynamic and toe-tapping good, with voices and instruments convincingly placed within the stage and also sounding nice and natural. I've got the attenuator (volume knob) around 2:00 for most tracks. I also notice that warmup definitely makes a difference, as the sound seems brittle to me when first started up. Like today - the first track was Joni Mitchell's "Free Man in Paris" and it didn't sound quite right, which my description would be "brittle." I replayed it later on after the tubes had warmed up and that brittle character was all gone. It sounded great. A good example from today was Santana's "Europa." Every little detail came forth, the instruments sounded really natural and in the room, and Santana's guitar was breathtaking. So impressive. That's about all I'm going to say because I'd just end up repeating myself, but bottom line is this is all the amp I need for stereo. It makes the music truly alive and I'm so glad I opened the wallet to get it. Is that a tube socket on the front of the unit? What is it's function? Just curious. |
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KeithL
Administrator 
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Post by KeithL on Jun 22, 2016 11:01:04 GMT -5
It's a tube socket - but not for a tube. It's for a "slave" preamp - and provides both power and signal connections through a tube socket attached to a wire umbilical. (The original Dyna ST-70 had one.) Not exactly brand new gear, but my latest addition to the lineup is my VTA ST-120 amp designed by Bob Latino. I'd always been interested in trying a tube amp but the cost is what held me back. Finally I decided what the heck, you have to enjoy life while you can so I went ahead and ordered the kit version. The amp itself is using driver tubes supplied by Bob, 3 Raytheon 12AU7's. It also has 4 Gold Lion KT-88 power output tubes and a Ruby 5AR4 rectifier tube. I also added the optional attenuator knob to the amp which serves as a volume control so a preamp isn't needed. My 2.0 configuration consists of a Sonos system connected via coax to a Schiit Bifrost Multibit DAC, connected directly to the amp. I'm totally impressed with this amp. It has two modes, pentode and triode, which put out 60 and 32 watts per channel, respectively. Triode mode is supposed to have slightly more midrange projection, and slightly roll off at the top and bottom for a smoother sound. I've been using it in triode mode. I hear only a subtle difference but prefer it as it does seem to be a bit smoother in sound. But only 32 watts per channel? This from someone who worked his way up the ladder to a pair of XPA-1's at one time and now has some Crown class D amps, three operating in mono mode putting out 1,000 watts each? Well like Abe Lincoln said when someone asked him how "long does a mans legs need to be," the answer is "only enough watts to drive the speakers good enough." And that's what this amp does. I'd characterize the amp as detailed, with really nice imaging. The soundstage isn't as wide as a football field but it is nice and open and feels like 3D with the positioning of the instruments. Listening to music is engaging, dynamic and toe-tapping good, with voices and instruments convincingly placed within the stage and also sounding nice and natural. I've got the attenuator (volume knob) around 2:00 for most tracks. I also notice that warmup definitely makes a difference, as the sound seems brittle to me when first started up. Like today - the first track was Joni Mitchell's "Free Man in Paris" and it didn't sound quite right, which my description would be "brittle." I replayed it later on after the tubes had warmed up and that brittle character was all gone. It sounded great. A good example from today was Santana's "Europa." Every little detail came forth, the instruments sounded really natural and in the room, and Santana's guitar was breathtaking. So impressive. That's about all I'm going to say because I'd just end up repeating myself, but bottom line is this is all the amp I need for stereo. It makes the music truly alive and I'm so glad I opened the wallet to get it. Is that a tube socket on the front of the unit? What is it's function? Just curious. |
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Post by audiobill on Jun 22, 2016 11:03:32 GMT -5
In a nod to the original Dynaco ST70, those sockets now contain the bias test points. They originally provided power and signal connections to 2 Dynaco PAM-1 mono preamps, used for stereo.
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Post by garbulky on Jun 22, 2016 11:03:52 GMT -5
Wait are you telling me you like the distorted colored sound of the tube?  |
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Post by novisnick on Jun 22, 2016 11:17:31 GMT -5
Wait are you telling me you like the distorted colored sound of the tube? YES HE IS!!!!   Hes making his own music! |
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Post by milsap195 on Jun 22, 2016 14:47:35 GMT -5
I had the same impressions when I went from an Xpa-2 to the Carver VTA-180's. Just so pleasant of a listening experience to have nice tube amps!
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Post by Boomzilla on Jun 22, 2016 15:01:52 GMT -5
Wait are you telling me you like the distorted colored sound of the tube? READ MY LIPS! |
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Post by Boomzilla on Jun 23, 2016 8:52:01 GMT -5
Strongly considering those 125 monos...
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klinemj
Emo VIPs 
Official Emofest Scribe
Posts: 15,083
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Post by klinemj on Jun 27, 2016 17:16:39 GMT -5
I have heard some pretty amazing tube amps, and it certainly is tempting to try! My friend in Germany has Sonus Faber Cremona speakers powered by a tube amp (whose name will come to me before long!) and running a VPI turntable. And, it is spectacular.
Mark
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Well like Abe Lincoln said when someone asked him how "long does a mans legs need to be," the answer is "only enough watts to drive the speakers good enough." And that's what this amp does. 
