OTL amps with Wilson Watt/Puppy 6s


OK I'm in the market looking for an OTL amp to mate with a pair of Wilson Watt/Puppy 6s. The speakers are rated at 93 dB and 4 ohms. My room size is 16 x 19 x 8 so its not too large or too small. So far I have on my list:

Atma-Sphere
Joule Electra
Transcendent
Tenor

Are there any others that people recommend I consider?
bryans

Showing 5 responses by tubegroover

Hi Chris

You have touted the Berning in many threads. Certainly one would be curious about its performance relative to other OTL designs with all the other pluses it offers, low heat and an ability to drive speakers with low impedance dips. It really seems to me that there aren't too many audiophiles that have done direct comparisons with ALL the popular OTL's with a few exceptions, Atmasphere and Tenor come to mind as of late. I have traced back to all threads on this site and AA for comparisons of various OTL amps. They all have their pluses and drawbacks but there seems a consistency in their overall presentation of music, pure midrange, frequency extension and ultra-transparency. A window into the music. The SE Class A designs seem described by concensus a bit purer and maybe harmonically a little richer(?) than the Transcendent which is a direct coupled AB design. Problem with those (Atmasphere, Joule, Graff) is the heat, the Transcendent runs a bit cooler.

So are you saying the Berning offers the sonic trademark of other OTL amps? Have you compared and to which ones in particular?



Will
Chris I certainly look forward to your impressions. The Transcendent OTL amp has been a revelation in my system. It outperforms, by a significant margin, every tube and solid state amp I've listened to of late including the Rogue m-120's and Pass amps which are highly regarded in this price range. It is an incredible value at 2.1K and the performance is so good that it could encourage one to look for a speaker system to match with its limitations.

I am considering the Joule VZN 80 for my Merlin VSMs (the choice of Bobby P) and would certainly love to hear the Berning. I could use a bit more power at times in my room. One thing is for certain, after having an OTL in the system there is no going back!
Through the generosity of Chris, I received a Berning ZH270 to audition in my system. I must say that my first impression was, "Damn it's small". Don't let the "small" matter fool you.

I read the manual and it is evident that the engineering of this amp is completely different from other OTLs. It is an all out effort to bring out the benefits of OTL design and overcome some of the shortcomings including heat and current limitations. There are three settings to adjust the feedback so one can tailor the sound to the system and taste. The late Harvey "Gizmo" Rosenberg gave the design a thumbs up and so do I. It is one of those special innovative products that take a back seat to the mainstream way of thinking. It also has the sonic attributes unique to OTL designs. Then there's the bass...it almost defies belief that a 10 lb amp can put out this degree of well defined natural bass with power. It never ran out of gas although I have efficient speakers with no impedance dips. I'm sure it would work very well with the Wilson's.

Bryans I would encourage you to add this amp to your audition list regardless of your budget.
Hi Ryan

I haven't heard a pair of mono T-8's in my system so I can't compare directly. What the Berning does do over the Transcendent is probably a result of the extra power but a direct comparison would have to be done to be sure. On large orchestral music I noted that more of the musical information is preserved during busy passages. High frequency extension is better as is space/ambient information. My wife noted this immediately. She loved it. The T-8 stereo gets a bit polite or should I say stays polite at such times, not nearly the dynamic performance of the Berning, not enough power. You have to remember Rhyno that the T8's are very large. A pair would take up a lot of space. Plus you have 16 output tubes and 10 driver tubes total. The Berning has 4 output tubes and 6 driver tubes total. Power rating would then be equal. The Berning could be used with a wider variety of speakers, the Transcendent would have to be matched more closely. 4 ohms is the max impedance dip for a pair of monos.

I love the Transcendent but have realized almost since I first acquired it that it wasn't enough power for some music in MY room which has a large volume. Always figured I would upgrade to monos or look at other options. I need to listen to Joules before I commit to anything else but I'll tell you the Berning is in the running. An incredible amp it is.

Allan, I can't even imagine 2 ZH270's strapped, it must be an awesome experience.
After extended listening since last Saturday I am buying the Berning ZH270, thanks Chris, Allan and especially David Berning. I won't belabor what has already been stated above because only listening to this most incredible product can convey what a marvelous accomplishment of engineering, innovation, performance, economy and size it is. It just has to be heard to be believed and then maybe you still won't believe it. A MUST AUDITION for anyone in the market for any amp in this price range and up, even below, you may hold off until you can get it :*) It should drive virtually any speaker on the market.

This amp is like no other in too many ways to go into here. Check the Berning site for reviews and especially the article by Charles Hanson in Glass audio. It is a technical tour de force.