Upgrade path...Need suggestions


Current system for 2 channel:
Arcam Alpha SE8 cd to
B&K Ref 20 to
Bryston 3bst to
Gallo 3.1's 88db sensitivity
System is also used for h/t
My first thought was to upgrade the B&K to a tubed pre but after some looking I found no tubed pre's in my price range that had zone 2 which is very important to us.
Now I am thinking about an amp upgrade. Have never had tubes but want to give it a try. How much fiddling do they require? Keep reading about biasing, pentode, triode etc. and have no idea what it means. Is it a constant battle or set it and forget it? How much tube power do I need?
Budget is <$1000 so used is the way I want to go. Would like to get some recommendations. Looking for that "tube" sound. Soundstage, warmth, detail, midrange, etc..
Thanks for any suggestions.
Steve
scoly1

Showing 1 response by jalapenos

great suggestion from Rodman. The PrimaLuna are a perfect tube amp to get you started and should hold resale value quite well. Perhaps you could run a tube amp on the Gallo's top terminals and your existing Bryston on the second voice coil of the woofer. With that said, I bet the modest power of the PrimaLuna would be more than adequate.

Another inexpensive tube option would be an AES (Audio Electronic Supply) Superamp. Depending on the model chosen, this would offer a little more power and the ability to switch between triode and ultralinear. A big benefit of this is the doubling of power in ultralinear vs. triode. Some of the AES amps are manual bias and some are cathode (self) biasing. Upscale Audio has info on these as well. AES is a subsidiary of Cary Audio and both utilize very robust power supplies and run the output tubes conservatively -- these two components are critical in an amplifiers performance and longtime enjoyment, imo.

I think you are on the right path in considering a tube amp for your Gallos -- their impedence is compatible with a tube amp (which generally don't like 4ohm & lower). Don't worry about seemingly low power ratings either. Once you have tubes successfully integrated into your system, you'll never regret it!