What speakers are you using?
PS Audio BHK preamp and amp rundown
I've lurked a long time trying to figure out what's best for myself and my system. I had some tube gear over the years and was intrigued by the BHK components. So I bought the preamp first and was pretty happy with it. I found a special price here on Audiogon on a demo at a huge discount. The sound was good. Maybe not as spacious as an old CAT preamp I had. But the CAT was difficult to own. Too difficult. The BHK bass is excellent. Nice all the way around. I took everybody's advice and went to Upscale Audio and bought the Tungsram PCC88. That is an absolute must for this preamp. Hearing it before and after was not a small change.
I decided to bite the bullet and buy the 250 amp. Maybe I should have bought the 300's, but who knows. You have to stop somewhere. Since Upscale Audio sells PS Audio I was going to inquire there and found they had a special type of Tungsram PCC88 not available for sale. Supposedly a super version of some sort. I was willing to pay a an upcharge if I could get them and the amp as I was so intrigued. I was shocked to find out it was $300 cheaper than the "demo" price and it included $400 worth of the "super variant" tubes no charge, meaning two pairs. I felt like I scored.
I first broke in the amp, which took a while. The bass was constricted. Or maybe congested. But I left it on 24/7 for two weeks and it sounded wonderful. Not quite as technicolor as all tube, but very good. I put in the Super Tungsram and BAM it woke it up. Huge change. One of the biggest upgrades ever.
Now I was wondering if the super variant Tungsram really was that different. They included two sets when I bought the power amp, so I took out the Tungsram I had bought and put in the upgraded version that I got as a spares with my amp. At first it was hard to tell just what was happening. They had to break in. But now with two sets of Tungsram broken in I can go back to back and the Super variant is superior by far to my ears.
Now I'm wondering if I should have bought the 300's. Upscale will give me full credit if I do it soon. I have two sets of speakers and neither are hurting for power. Kevin said that power is not the issue. Then got a bit over my head. I'm looking for input.
I decided to bite the bullet and buy the 250 amp. Maybe I should have bought the 300's, but who knows. You have to stop somewhere. Since Upscale Audio sells PS Audio I was going to inquire there and found they had a special type of Tungsram PCC88 not available for sale. Supposedly a super version of some sort. I was willing to pay a an upcharge if I could get them and the amp as I was so intrigued. I was shocked to find out it was $300 cheaper than the "demo" price and it included $400 worth of the "super variant" tubes no charge, meaning two pairs. I felt like I scored.
I first broke in the amp, which took a while. The bass was constricted. Or maybe congested. But I left it on 24/7 for two weeks and it sounded wonderful. Not quite as technicolor as all tube, but very good. I put in the Super Tungsram and BAM it woke it up. Huge change. One of the biggest upgrades ever.
Now I was wondering if the super variant Tungsram really was that different. They included two sets when I bought the power amp, so I took out the Tungsram I had bought and put in the upgraded version that I got as a spares with my amp. At first it was hard to tell just what was happening. They had to break in. But now with two sets of Tungsram broken in I can go back to back and the Super variant is superior by far to my ears.
Now I'm wondering if I should have bought the 300's. Upscale will give me full credit if I do it soon. I have two sets of speakers and neither are hurting for power. Kevin said that power is not the issue. Then got a bit over my head. I'm looking for input.