Hey OC,  how goes it?

Just a point of clarification--I didn't sell the Zu/Torii combination because I felt it to be sterile, I was having major room issues which I couldn't cure at the time.  I came home from work one day to find my wife had re-organized the living room in a more baby-friendly manner and I couldn't get my Superflys to give me their magic in that configuration.  I tried for months and finally a friend helped me re-nail it and I was on cloud 9....

Then we re-arranged the room a bit more as my son got more mobile and I lost it.  Out of frustration I sold the Zu speakers and bought Von Schweikert VR-33s which had an efficiency rating of 90db (so I could keep the Torii) and could be placed against a wall with little thought going into placement...    Despite seeming OK on paper Torii was a miserable match to it and led to me selling it.

One other point--I wasn't a big fan of the Torii by itself.  I think it really shined when I used it as a power amp behind an Audion Premier preamplifier.

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As for the nano-tech drivers, they're very impressive.  I've heard them in a Superfly (totally different speaker!) Omen Defs, Def 4s and in my own upgraded Definition 2s and they're just really transparent, nimble, resolved and expressive while maintaining Zu's tone density and meatiness.  

The downside is that they will highlight  fault in your chain.  Having the stock 211 power tubes in my amp for example left my system almost unlistenable--getting it right elevated it to mesmerizing....

Received my Shugang 274B Preffered Series today fom TubeStore. Right out of the box I am impressed. I have to agree with Gopher and Will. Also, SBerger is dead on, they have everything I like in the 1950's Russian Svetlanas, but just more. The bass is not less, just more tight, less muddy, with a bit more air and that euphoric quality that is very seductive. Yet, all the detail is still there. Texture which the Russian tubes excel in, is even better. Very nice. How many hours to wait for a more accurate impression?

Btw, I hear no similarality with the stock ruby, which I also do not like.

Edit: My wife and I did some serious listening and comparisons today. The Svetlanas have slightly more attack and impact which we like, but that comes at the expense of midrange vocals. The 274B favor midrange, and a sweet midrange it is. Vocals are more prominent. We like both, but so far the 274B is really attractive.

Yeah, it is a huge sound stage! For my taste its not exaggerated but more front row. I think it depends where you want to sit. I do agree  some music it can be bit in your face but, I usually just turn down the volume a tad. It seems to be louder. The highs are so extended yet so smooth.

Sorry along I can't remember anymore, are you using RCA 5U4G coke bottles or the straight shoulder ones?

I found the ST coke bottles to be light in the bass department, but never tried any of the regular straight shoulder types.

The Valve Art 274B pair had about 80 hours on them and I decided to put them in backup status for a while. I put the RCA 5U4G rectifiers that I had been using just before and signed a bit of relief. These present just that little bit of warmth that I had been missing the last few days. The output dropped a bit, which surprised me a little. I think the 274B will be in again in time, but right now with the ZP3 being broken in I'm happy and familiar with this sound and have one less thing to critically listen to / for.

Thanks Northery heads up Lon. I will order a set.

Cool!  The Torii Mk2 that I just acquired came with the Valve Art version of the 274B, sounds good.  Might grab some of these for future use.

- Michael