Next step: tube pre or tube power amp?


I own a Rotel pre/pro RSP-985 SS preamp and a matching Rotel 120 watt power amp. If I wanted to move into tubes, would I get better mileage out of a tube pre or tube power amp?

I love the convenience of the rotel preamp (remote, built in DACS etc) but I understand that a tube pre will have more impact than just a tube power amp. Is this correct?

Also, my speakers are 91db efficient. What wattage tube power amp would I need to drive them to medium/loud levels?

thanks

Steve
stevecuss

Showing 4 responses by jmcgrogan2

09-09-09: Stevecuss
I'd prefer a tube power amp for WAF and convenience - I can hide it behind some fake greenery in our AV cabinet...

Tube amps that I've owned throw out more heat than any Class A SS amp I've owned. So you may not be able to hide a tube amp in your A/V cabinet. Just something else to think about.....
While your speaker profile will come into play, I can't quite agree with Tvad's numbers. I've been driving a pair of speakers that are 8 ohms nominal and 4 ohms minimal, 89 db sensitivity, in a fairly large room with a 80 wpc tube amp for a year now with no problems.

Tube amps will give you more *tube* flavor than a tube preamp, however, if your speakers are a difficult load, a tube preamp is the way to go. Another possibility is a good tube integrated amp.....plenty of them out there.

Cheers,
John
09-12-09: Jw94055
One more time, a tube pre will give you the advantage of tubes without the heat and cost of a tube power.

One more time, a tube pre is a good starting point and will give you some tube flavor. A tube amp will provide more tube sonic traits. It all depends how far you are willing to go, and for some, it is the wrong direction.

Cheers,
John
Orpheus10, I don't disagree that a tube preamp may be the best way to start, to see if one likes the tube sound.

However, your second statement makes no sense to me. One could say the exact same thing about a tube preamp, that to get the best out of it you will need to roll tubes......that also can get quite expensive, in many cases more expensive than rolling power tubes.

My preamp tubes are more expensive than my amp tubes, because I notice that rolling preamp tubes makes more of a sonic difference than rolling amp tubes.