Not so much with sound...lots of ways to fine tune thru tube rolling, etc. I'm just curious which tube amps are built to last for many years with the least amount of repairs. I know Mcintosh comes to mind for longevity. I was snooping around on the web and Air Tight seems to be built like a tank and I've never read any poor repair histories. Luxman same thing. Any others come to mind?
Haven't seen a similar thread where a category has so many enthusiast responses for so many brands. Is that telling us something about tube amps? Cheers, Spencer
@lukaske, do you mean the EAR 859? That is one of their tube power amps, the 868 one of their pre amps. Good products, good designer (Tim de Paravicini), good company.
aAberyclark A couple years ago there was some sort of hubbub over their assembly operation in China but I think it's been resolved. Jolida has changed their name to Black Ice according to their website. I have several of their products and have only had a small problem with their JD100 CD player.
Sbank- “Haven’t seen a similar thread where a category has so many enthusiast responses for so many brands. Is that telling us something about tube amps?” Having heard SS amps, class d amps, class A and AB amps and some other hybrid ones, I prefer the sound of tubes. Viva la Vacuum! Long live tube amplifiers!
Check out Art Audio. I am the new importer and have been pleased to find out how many people have owned and loved these products for 10+ years with no issues. They are really spectacular products and worth a listen.
Absolare gear is top notch, gilded-tank-like solid, very responsive to tube rolling, and the personal service they provide (especially to facilitate experimentation) is second to none. They don’t get much forum time in North America, but they deserve more IMHO.
Check out Raven Amplifiers built in Texas. They are works of art and the music is awesome. I have the Raven Integrated Reflection MK2 tube amp. With my tube rolling I am getting close to 70 wpc. When people come to my house the first thing they notice is the amp. The second thing they notice is the quality of the sound. Dave Thomson has some of the finest historic tubes that he has collected over the years. Check out their website - Raven Audio
I have had 3 Prima Luna integrated since 2013, upgrading each time. Currently enjoying the HP (8 KT150 tubes) and excellent headphone amp. Never had any problem, despite the heavy use.
No mention yet of Thomas Mayer? Ok he is in Germany and not well known in the US. But if build quality is the question, then his work must be included. Every aspect is of the very highest quality down to all solid silver hand wiring. Yes they sound great too.
Not only does he design and hand build his amps, he also makes his own TUBES! Which of these others do that?
I have 3 pair of Quicksilver mono amps and they are super reliable, never had a problem plus they are very musical. Since I have them I forgot about all of my audiophile manias and now I simply enjoy music...
Another vote for PrimaLuna here. I have a preamp and a pair of monoblocks from them, and the build quality is great. Also love the sound in my system. PrimaLuna is from the Netherlands, and I believe they're also built there (I think someone earlier was asking about that?)
I am surprised that the Dynaco gear hasn't been mentioned. The ST-70 is still highly sought after. I prefer the improved versions, VTA I believe was mentioned but not in conjunction with Dynaco unless I misread. Anyway, in addition to Roy's amps, Bob Latino has an improved version and for those who are crazy about perfection, you can't go wrong with the variations made by Don Sachs. Roy's improvements over the original are solid, as are Bob Latino's Roy also has his own preamp the SP14 and a phono step up amplifier as well, but Don's DS2 Preamp is a rock solid variant of the SP14 with fantastic components, it's awesome. If reliability is all you are looking for I would go with Roy's ST-70 amp using his octal driver board, and bis autobias circuit.
Quicksilver Audio is built among the best out there IMHO. I have a slew of Mike Sander's gear and never a problem, Many of my Audiophile friends have his gear too. All problem free. Also, Call them and you will be speaking with the man himself. As I write this, I am listening to his Integrated amp in my office. Very nice piece.
I love my Conrad Johnson LP260M SE's. They sound great, rarely have to change a single output tube (once a year), and have never had a problem with the unit itself. CJ dealers talk about a 97% reliability rate (no trips back for repair)-- and I believe that number.
Another advantage of P to P wired ( NO pcb's) tube amps is they are easier to diagnos and repair without a schematic diagram. So if you need to have it repaired you can take it to a good local guitar amp repair tech.
Plus 1 on Prima Luna Dialogue Premium and the HP power amp, assembled in China. Also BAT. Check out the videos that Kevin Deal does on BAT and Prima Luna at Upscale Audio. I have noticed that only one person has mentioned Conrad-Johnson. Superior build and they last forever. I have one that is 35 years old and still thumping. Rollin
I have a McIntosh MC275 now and it is a monster in every way. The only flaw is the lettering on the sides as it always seems to rub off when you lift up the unit.
Before that I used a pair of MC30s for nearly 20 years. I bought them used from the estate of the original owner, who told me he used it everyday and was sure he had never once replaced a tube. He had them from 1961 to 1993. Crazy. And I hooked them up and enjoyed the hell out of them for another 8 years before I bought new tubes.
Conrad-Johnson. I’m surprised there is so little mention here. I’ve owned their products for more than thirty years with no problems whatsoever. The availability of service is a huge issue for some of these brands. c-j will service anything they’ve ever made, not so with many including Audio Research. All hand wired here in Virginia. Extremely high quality parts throughout... an important part of their value proposition. And due to theses factors, c-j products retain their resale value. Oh yes, they sound amazing as well. In fact, when I was upgrading some years ago, Lew Johnson bought my old EF1 phono preamp for his own use.
I have had VTL MB-450 Series III for many years with no service required. They sound great and with the Auto Bias function you just turn them on and listen......
I do use a sub in my system, I love deep bass...just a preference of mine. I was worried about bass with tube amps, however someone told me since I use a sub, I can always adjust the levels for whatever tube amp I get and get SS deep bass
I've got numerous Icon Audio equipment and love each one. The build quality is second to none and the sound quality is excellent. I drive my vinyl set up with a pair of MB90MKII Mono Tube Power Amps. The mono's, preamp, and headphone amp are all wonderful. Whatever set up I have in the future I don't think I'd ever be without the Icon Audio PS3 MK II Super Double Cascode Pure Valve Phono Amplifier!
i haven't seen a mention of Cary. Mine are going on 9 years old and not a single issue. Had the pre=-amp modified to accomodate HT bypass and that was carried out flawlessly and supports attention was top notch. My close friend has Cary also about the same age again no issues. And of course there is the sweet Cary sound.
Really enjoy the sound and build quality of Linear Tube Audio (LTA) equipment built in Tacoma Park, MD. The equipment features David Berning's Zero hysteresis Output Transformer-Less patented technology (ZOTL). As well, it is always a pleasure to talk with, learn from and discuss high fidelity with owner Mark Schneider. In my over 50 years as an audiophile, LTA was the first tube equipment I ever bought. The LTA equipment is purely about music without thought of is it solid-state or tube.
I own both a Cary SLI-80 and an Ayon Audio Spirit III. IMHO, Ayon is far far superior in build quality (for twice the price at new retail, so you’d expect that). The Cary’s volume pot has become loose over time, and so has the power switch, and the original remote is starting to fail. The Ayon has the additional benefit of tube auto-biasing and comprehensive startup/shutdown sequences that extend tube life. And it is a far more controlled and prcise sound than the Cary (which is still very pleasant when not making direct side by side comparison) That said, the Ayon remote is a super solid shell of heavy aluminum, but the soldering of the board to the battery holder is weak and almost impossible to repair (I tried, failed and had to order a new remote).
QuickSliver Audio, Have Mike Sanders 60 watts mono' amps very musical amazing Value. Very quite ! just love those amps , about a year old no problems I am also testing his latest QuickSilver Headphone amp. WOW is the word it is built like a tank very musical and is probably one of the best tube headphone amps I have heard !
A friend of mine had an Audio Research ( hybrid) HD 220. After many problems with that amp I told him to check out Quicksilver. He had never heard of Quicksilver so he went to Audio Connection and picked up the Mono 120 amps. Driving his Proac D48rs it is one of the best systems that I have heard. If you are looking for all tube amps I doubt you will go wrong with Quicksilver!
I have enjoyed my (David Berning EA2101) for decades. One tube failure in all those years. I'v owned many Mcintosh amps, both tube and SS but I keep going back to my Berning..
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