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Post by Axis on Jun 27, 2016 17:29:36 GMT -5
This is cool thread. Cheers monkumonku !  I have to think Lonnie is going to release those 300 watt mono block tube amps some day soon. I want lots of headroom with tube amps. More so than solid state. Solid state I can get bye with 150 watts. It will all be clean. I do not want my tube amps to get near distortion. Tubes gear can sound very good clean. KeithL has talked about this before. |
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Post by bluemeanies on Jun 27, 2016 20:39:51 GMT -5
A lot of what I have read on this thread is mumbo jumbo!
Tubes amplifiers....the ST70 the ST120 and the m125 mono-blocks are superb amplifiers. Made designed and assembled in the USA.
Frankly I am tired of reading about the discussion of these tube amplifiers and about there distortion and the most ridiculous statements mentioning how your electric bill will be having a few more digits.
Jesus, buy the damn amplifier or move on,
To another tube amplifier or buy a block of Emotiva SS.
This discussion has been so repetitive.
Tubes are what I enjoy in 2channel listening.
For some people it's SS....FINE.
When I hear about distortion in tube amplifiers and how appalled people are to think someone enjoys listening to distortion....in realality they don't have a clue or at the least an opened mind..enough to sit and listen to a quality tube amplifier and understand what the presence of emanating music to a live, real life performance.
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Post by lockheed on Jun 28, 2016 7:06:22 GMT -5
This is cool thread. Cheers monkumonku ! I have to think Lonnie is going to release those 300 watt mono block tube amps some day soon. I want lots of headroom with tube amps. More so than solid state. Solid state I can get bye with 150 watts. It will all be clean. I do not want my tube amps to get near distortion. Tubes gear can sound very good clean. KeithL has talked about this before. On Feb 26, 2016 Keith said in a thread on the Emotiva Glass Amplifier sub-forum with the Title "Are these still happening?"
I think it's fair to say that they're on the back burner - but they haven't officially been cancelled.
You can parse the words or try to read between the lines if you want, but I would say that's pretty close to saying that Emo tube amps are not going to happen
After reading everything I can find on here from the tube fans I will be getting the VTA M-125 Monoblocks I had been planning on the XPA-1's, but now I want tubes - not pulling the trigger until early next year so if Emo does a product by than I'll have to seriously consider it but really it seams they have lost interest ed
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Post by pedrocols on Jun 28, 2016 7:38:11 GMT -5
I must say I considered myself privilege as I had the oportunity to listen to the M-125 monos way before I made the decision to buy them. Bob Latino lives 45 minutes away from me and I did literally pick up mine from his own hands☺! Not to mentioned that he allowed me to listen to his own tube amps....At the time I was not aware of the existence of these tube mono amps...
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Post by knucklehead on Mar 13, 2017 20:46:13 GMT -5
Bump an old thread. I just ordered a VTA ST-120. It's going to be my daily driver for the song towers. Can't wait!!!
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Post by audiobill on Mar 14, 2017 5:41:23 GMT -5
Congrats!!
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Post by Boomzilla on Mar 14, 2017 8:31:47 GMT -5
Bump an old thread. I just ordered a VTA ST-120. It's going to be my daily driver for the song towers. Can't wait!!! Congrats to you, amigo. My ST-120 drives my Tekton Pendragons amazingly. Other than the holographic soundstage, I'm not sure that I could pick out the ST-120 from a solid-state amp with a blindfold on. If you want a clean and neutral amp, the ST-120 can be that (and using the stock tubes). If you want a slamming bass range, the ST-120 can do that too (use KT-120 output tubes). If you want a "traditional tube sound," then with the triode switch and a vintage driver tube (I've used a Baldwin Organ tube), then the ST-120 can do that too. It's a versatile little dickens! Boom |
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Post by knucklehead on Mar 14, 2017 16:07:20 GMT -5
I had my Sansui hooked up to the HTPC DAC the other day. I was listening hard for differences between the Acurus amp and the Sansui. I think I detect a better rendition of female voices but other than that it simply sounded great. FWIW I've never heard a 'tube-like' solid state amp and most tube receivers and amps are very much like solid state. That was my impression when I made the switch in 71-72. A decent amp - tube or solid state - should just reproduce the source material. I just like the glow of tubes in the late evening darkness. I'm looking forward to that.
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Post by kauai82 on Mar 14, 2017 16:24:04 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.  Reread this thread and discovered that you bought the kit version. How hard was it to put together ? I have a basic knowledge of electronics and can read a schematic and have done some soldering in building my speaker kits crossovers. Are the instructions clear ? Thanks for your response. Matt |
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Post by monkumonku on Mar 14, 2017 16:38:11 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. Reread this thread and discovered that you bought the kit version. How hard was it to put together ? I have a basic knowledge of electronics and can read a schematic and have done some soldering in building my speaker kits crossovers. Are the instructions clear ? Thanks for your response. Matt I don't think a knowledge of schematics is necessary for building the kit. Bob's instructions are excellent and it comes with diagrams and also a detailed color picture of the finished amp. If you follow the instructions carefully, then you should do fine if you're used to soldering and have done some kits before. Me, the last time I really built anything was many moons ago in college (a couple of Dynaco kits) so I was somewhat rusty. The amp didn't work right at first because I had to redo some solder joints to flow the solder better, and I also forgot to wire something and had something else miswired. But I wouldn't hesitate to build another kit because it was a very enjoyable process, and the instructions were first rate. Bob replies very quickly to e-mails, and Audiobill was nice enough to give me some pointers as well. Now that I've had it for a while, it is still a pleasure listening and I'm still really enthusiastic about it. |
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Post by Boomzilla on Mar 16, 2017 6:05:18 GMT -5
I'm contemplating M125 kits myself, but not in the immediate future...
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Post by knucklehead on Mar 22, 2017 16:11:35 GMT -5
Well! I found a 45 pound package at my front door when I got home from a round of golf! I can't imagine what it is but I'll keep you guys informed. The shipping label says it's from someone named Bob...
Time for a power nap - after that I'll be wide awake and ready to fire up the soldering iron. I'll be using .032" 60/40 rosin core solder.
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Post by simpleman68 on Mar 22, 2017 16:29:49 GMT -5
Well! I found a 45 pound package at my front door when I got home from a round of golf! I can't imagine what it is but I'll keep you guys informed. The shipping label says it's from someone named Bob... Time for a power nap - after that I'll be wide awake and ready to fire up the soldering iron. I'll be using .032" 60/40 rosin core solder. Nice!  |
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Post by audiobill on Mar 22, 2017 20:40:18 GMT -5
Try .032 for the board, .050 for tube sockets and other.
Pretin all twisted strand wiring.
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Post by Casey Leedom on Mar 22, 2017 21:43:45 GMT -5
What? You're not using Silver Solder???  Casey |
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Post by knucklehead on Mar 22, 2017 21:55:04 GMT -5
Try .032 for the board, .050 for tube sockets and other. Pretin all twisted strand wiring. Thanks Bill. I've got .032" 60/40. I've had this spool for years and used it without a problem. I used to do a lot of wiring back in the early 80's working on US Gov. stuff for a place I worked at - remember the MX missile system? I also did a lot of wiring and soldering when I worked on US Naval sonar equipment. The sockets were a bit of a chore - I had to feed the solder in fast since I have the heat on 3. Max heat is 5. I ended up taking a long piece of solder and folding it up to make four strands - made that easier. I got the driver board finished up. I've got a few discolored solder joints from hitting the board a little but it looks good. I have one question: In one of the pics you see a bag marked 1000w with 4 resistors and one bag with .022 uF caps with no other markings. Where will I be using them? This is a very complete kit - so far. Other than those two bags. Lots of little parts to put together but I've got plenty of time on my hands. I enjoyed putting the driver board together. We'll see how the second part goes.        |
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Post by knucklehead on Mar 22, 2017 22:13:39 GMT -5
What? You're not using Silver Solder??? Casey Not when I have perfectly good 60/40 .032" mil-spec solder on hand. I've had this 1 pound spool of solder for over 30 years. I worked for a company that built military gear many years ago up until they shut the plant down. They let us clean out the tool rooms since they weren't bothering with an auction. It was called Western Gear. Great place to work and it was always interesting stuff. I got a lot of very nice tools - including a full tap and die set that has from 5/16" to 2". We built a lot of interesting stuff there - including hydraulics for the oil industry. Ever put together a hydraulic ram 18" round? I did - and that 18" ram was one side of what is called a dual riser. It was used on the four corners of a ocean going drilling platform in deep waters where a normal one that sat on the ocean bottom could not be anchored. It kept the drill rig platform level in all but the heaviest seas. Each ram was 22' long. It looked like an oversized torpedo tube laid down. It sat vertically when installed on the oil platform. That was the most interesting job I've had. Working for Boeing for many years came in a close second. I'm quite happy to be retired though. So - you going to build one of these amps too? Loads of fun - then there's all that listening. I can't wait! I just hope it works like it should. |
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Post by Casey Leedom on Mar 23, 2017 1:10:12 GMT -5
Actually I was going to build two of the Hypex NC400 Mono-Block kits[. I just tried to order them today but my Credit Card company did the Fraud Alert thing which confused Hypex' Web Shop. So I have an email in to them in order to make sure I don't end up with four of the kits! The build-out of these is no where near as detailed as what you're doing since it shows up as pre-assembled modules that you basically just put together. Too bad since I was sort of looking forward to some real soldering and I do happen to have some Silver Solder on hand. It's interesting that your kits has you putting some of the parts on the other side. I wonder if that's to isolate heat-generating and heat-sensitive parts? By the way, those are 1000Ω resistors, not 1000W resistors. When I saw the 1000W figure I thought "Yea Gods there's a lot of power flowing through that board!" ...  Casey |
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Post by audiobill on Mar 23, 2017 1:22:30 GMT -5
Hi Knucklehead,
The 1k ohm resistors go from pin 5 to pin 6 of each output tube. The .022 uf caps go on the 3 post terminal strip where the brown/yellow and green/yellow wires from the power transformer terminate. See the pics and instructions for these parts placements.
Be very sure no parts leads will touch the chassis when the biard is mounted.
Stay with the rosin core solder!!!
Bill
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Post by audiobill on Mar 23, 2017 2:02:32 GMT -5
Also, there is a jumper needed where r39 is marked on the board....mounts on the bottom. Check the instructions for this.
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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. 
