When this challenge was first presented years ago, I accepted it and invited him over to present the A/B against his choice of my amplifiers... He wouldn't go for it.  In fact there was a rather lengthy thread on the older forums that resulted from the whole affair.

Steve

This topic seems to be a dead horse, but in looking at a few other threads on the subject made me curious about a few things.

First, I'm curious at to why SETs inspire such ridiculous anger and sanctimony from some out in cyberland.  Well, actually I don't care if people choose to be uptight.  But it is shocking just how uptight some folks are!

Second, I was wondering if the spatial character of my zens is strictly an artifact of phase shifts or something, as those sanctimonious types are absolutely convinced.  It certainly does not seem to me that my zens are adding anything artificial with regards to spatial cues, but they do seem to let those cues, if they're on the recording, to shine through in a much better way than traditional mainstream amps I've used.  I'm not sure I care much, when enjoying the music is the goal, and music through the zens is quite enjoyable to say the least.

Third, I wonder if that Hafler null testing could elaborate exactly what the CCE mod does.  I'm really curious about that, as many have reported distinct differences.  (I'm not sure I could identify improvements following the mod, but I was forced to listen to ss for two weeks while Steve had my amps.  The difference upon re-installation of the zens was a breath of fresh air, but it had been too long to really know how the CCE modded zens changed the sound.)

Fourth, I am curious as to how some of the audio forums continue to get traffic.  Some of the DIY sites are tremendously informative and almost collegial in tone compared to, for example, audioholics.com.  (what a bunch of jerks!)

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It's not unlike science vs. religion.  As science continues to advance the distinction between it and religion becomes less and less.  At some point the two will become one and the same.

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The spatial accuracy of your Zens is actually the LACK of artifacts and phase shifts.  I'm writing a paper now that will give insight into both sides of this argument, as many engineers will disagree.

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The CCE mod deals with both the local AC feedback found in the tube and with the distortions caused by secondary electron emissions by reducing or eliminating it.  There will be a paper forthcoming on exactly what the CCE mod does and how it works.

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Quality of membership.  With forums came a new opportunity to be anonymous, and therefor make statements without consequence.  This spawned a huge group of guys who enjoy quoting from manuals and books to make themselves look smarter than they really are.  It's all about looking smarter than the next guy.  To some degree this can be highly entertaining, but when an entire forums membership is dominated by these personalities it becomes in a word, tedious.

Glad to have you on our forums Alan, and especially pleased you are enjoying your amplifier!

Thanks,

Steve