ski bum
|
[QUOTE:MB]I guess since the SE84C+ was my first foray into tube amps, I didn't realize how good it really was! [/quote]
There is no such thing as the perfect amp. Decware amps, at least the SE84, is about the least expensive amp that provides a genuine, high grade, full blown SET experience (crystal clarity and 3-D imaging). This isn't just a foray into tubes, but deep into the SET zone. Welcome to the dark side.
Steve's gear may not be the most expensive on the market, but they are the greatest values going, where more $$ may get you a fancier chassis, but not much (if any) improvement in sound. He uses good iron and a simple circuit, which has been honed over the past 12 years or so through the production of a few thousand iterations. For your first foray into SETville, you chose very well.
The only amps I've heard which share Decware amps imaging prowess were, not surprisingly, other SETs, of the more expensive variety (Wellborne Labs, Wright Sound, Vaughn, Dodd, etc.). Power supply hum, low power, and high output impedance go with the territory, but so does compellingly real sounding music, unlike anything I've heard with ss, even the unconventional Pass amp. You gotta pick your poison, since nothing is perfect. (Mark, the poison you've picked may have extra bitterness due to extreme near-field listening where the residual SET hum is audible...listen to Phil and Bobby, and 'take a step back!')
Block quote fail, but I tried.
|