Forums - Sarah vs 45 SET?

saxguy

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Posts: 8

Sarah vs 45 SET?
Yesterday at 14:11:12

I'm finally on page one for my Sarah, which I ordered without ever hearing one. I used to have a pair of Wavelength Cardinal X-1s, so I'm somewhat familiar with the sound of the 300B, but keep reading that the Sarah has all the midrange with the fidelity of the Zen.

I've never heard the Zen either, but I own a pair of Alan Eaton 45s with National Union Globe 245 tubes. I'm running them with a custom pair of Omega Super Alnico High Output XRS with integrated deep hemp subs.

What can I expect from the Sarah vs the 45 monoblocks that I'm using now. I know it will have more power, but sonically what am I gaining/losing?

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CAJames

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Re: Sarah vs 45 SET?
Reply #1 - Yesterday at 15:22:56

FWIW, I think a lot of us ordered our first Decware amp without ever hearing one. I know I did.

Not knowing what a 45 amp sounds like I can only speak in the most general of generalities. The Decware SET sound tends toward the linear, transparent and detailed with liquidity more than warmth. Other SET amps might be relatively warmer and rolled off at the frequency extremes and lose some detail and dynamics in the SET yumminess. Regardless, I'm a big fan of Omega speakers and you should be getting outstand sound. Since it looks like you have plenty of tube amp experience you're familiar with "break in" and understand your amp will sound better after 100+ hours than it does out of the box.

Congratulations and keep us posted on you journey.

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Lon

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Re: Sarah vs 45 SET?
Reply #2 - Yesterday at 16:36:41

I agree with James that most of us had not heard a Decware amp before we ordered one--I have done that numerous times, my first leap of faith paid off so well I repeated and repeated and repeated. . . .

And like James I have never heard a 45 amp, and so can't make a comparison though I have lived with a SEWE300B for over two years now. I have heard two other 300B amps before buying the SEWE300B though, and can say this: in comparison the SEWE300B is less "romantic," but more dynamic and transparent. I don't find a pronounced midrange, but a clear and open one--though a lot can depend on the tube complement in use.

So I can't say much more than "I think you'll not be disappointed." And if you are, you can take advantage of the return policy, or I think you'll find you can sell the amp easily on the second hand market.

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saxguy

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Posts: 8

Re: Sarah vs 45 SET?
Reply #3 - Yesterday at 20:19:50

The 45 SET is very open and transparent with great top and bottom extension and tight, defined bass. It throws a huge soundstage and has very precise and weighty imaging. For small scale music/vocals it's the best I've had. It's downfall is power - a little less than 2W. Also, it only has an 8 Ohm tap, so my 4-6 Ohm XRS may not be completely showing their true colors.

If the Sarah can do all of what the 45s can do, while being able to turn things up a bit more, I'm really looking forward to hearing it.

As far as tubes go, I had ordered the full set of Cryotone tubes a few months back as I was coming up on page one. They've just been sitting here.

I've been on page one for quite some time. Back in early October Sarah had said that she would be sending out invoices final payments for November 2022 deposits "soon." I still haven't received my invoice, so I'm wondering if there are issues with getting parts right now.

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The other Lon

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Posts: 125

Re: Sarah vs 45 SET?
Reply #4 - Yesterday at 21:30:51

I’ll probably be stoned after this, here goes. I own way too many amps. My two favorite are my Decware Torii MkV and my Dennis Had Type 45. The 45 has a wider soundstage. Like how is it possible to be that wide. As you said though, the power is the limiting factor. In a small room with efficient speakers it is great. Expand the room or lower the efficiency and you feel jilted.

I would gladly trade my Sarah for another 45 to run a pair in mono. This is an unfair statement though as my Sarah has an inexplicable hum I cannot get rid of. Eventually I’ll send it back to the mothership and hope it comes back and I get what everyone else has with it.

I like being able to go between both the Torii and the Type 45. Each has benefits. The 45 is a dream though. When I put it in my smaller room with the HRv2’s it is amazing.

Never hurts to have both of what you want.

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Lon

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Re: Sarah vs 45 SET?
Reply #5 - Yesterday at 22:42:19

Personally I think the two amps are going to sound different, they use different output tubes at the least, are designed differently. I don't think you'll get the same sound with more power, you will get more power (the difference may not be quite as large as you think with the wattage) and you'll get the Decware sound, not the Had sound. You'll probably LOVE it, but it won't be exactly the same.

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JHC Senior Member Posts: 70	Re: Sarah vs 45 SET? Reply #6 - Today at 01:37:21 I don't have much more to offer—I am a UFO listener—but I am interested to know more about your thoughts on the 45 amp. I have been interested in those for a long time and they seem to fly a bit under the radar.
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Steve Deckert Administrator If the 1st watt sucks why continue? Posts: 6453	Re: Sarah vs 45 SET? Reply #7 - Today at 16:52:32 Just a side note: Best way to (only accurate way) to set the hum balance pots on the Sarah is to connect an AC volt meter to the speaker jacks (keep speakers connected) and adjust for the lowest value, which is determined by the tube. Most of the time you can adjust as low as 0.114 volts ac.
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Kamran Seasoned Member Sarah Posts: 1223	Re: Sarah vs 45 SET? Reply #8 - Today at 20:51:56 That could be a useful YouTube short Steve!
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CAJames

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red light on memory
lane."

Posts: 2926

Re: Sarah vs 45 SET?
Reply #9 - Today at 21:04:35

Quote:

Posted by: Steve Deckert Posted on: Today at 08:52:32

...Best way to (only accurate way) to set the hum balance pots on the Sarah is to connect an AC volt meter to the speaker jacks (keep speakers connected) and adjust for the lowest value, which is determined by the tube...

FWIW there were (at least) two different kinds of hum I experienced with my (non-Decware) 300B amp. One, I think it was 120 Hz but it has been awhile, was what you could adjust with the pot. The other, I think 60 Hz, was from the tube itself and the pot had no effect. With the noisy tube I could clearly hear one frequency hum respond to the adjusting the pot while the other stayed constant.

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[Volumio | Jay's CDT2 MRK3] -> Denafrips Terminator 2 + Gaia
Sumiko Pearwood -> Mapleknoll Athena -> Luxman SUT -> Mapletree Phono 3E
STR-1002 -> Woo WA22 -> 2x UFO25s, balanced monos
Omega SAM , Hifiman Arya, Audeze LCD-XC

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