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Need advice - EL34 switchable Ultralinear/SEP

Anyone can recommend a switchable Ultralinear / SEP (or SET) mode, preferably EL34 output type power amp.

I plan to have this amp mated with a passive preamp (Lightspeed Attenuator) or Conrad Johnson PV-10 and speakers between Magnepan 1.7 (for Ultralinear mode) and Zu Omen Standard (SEP or SET mode).

Not sure how much power is needed for Magggie 1.7, but I would imagine that in the north of 35W in ultralinear mode would be needed. Another concern is 5 ohm impedance make me think if there is such amp out there.

Price range - up to $3000 used/new
nguyen787

Showing 3 responses by zd542

zd542
5,339 posts
 
If you can do without a switching feature I would use your passive and get an Audio Research VT100 used. Its a good match for that speaker.
zd542
5,339 posts
 
A couple of people mentioned the Cary V12. That really is a great amp. Another amp that is worth mentioning is the Quicksilver V4 mono's. They're very powerful and sound incredible.
zd542
5,339 posts
 
"Is it just me or shared with others - 12 output tubes seem to be too many for a stereo power amp. Tube cost is quite high and more things may go wrong."

Its a legitimate concern. It really depends on the design of the amp. I don't remember all the technical details because it was a long time ago, but I had an Audio Research VT100 and had a tube go bad. It actually did damage to the amp itself, along with the bad tube. I replaced it with a VAC amp and was told that the same thing couldn't happen to the VAC because its designed differently. I would just lose the tube, and nothing else. Like I said, though, it was a long time ago and I just don't remember all the details.
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