When to Amp it Up?

Turntables are generally good enough to do just fine buying on looks. Anything else however and, good luck. The best value in speakers currently made are some of the least good looking, and if you want to try and buy amps based on how they look, well the best I can say is flip it around. Buy whatever sounds the best and take however it looks as small and relatively unimportant. Either that or plan on a lifetime of, "Here look at this picture of my system. Really wish it sounded as good as it looks, but I guess you can't have everything, eh?"

Why/how do you all have the amps you have? What got you there?

I started young in the 1970's with a Kenwood integrated, then built a Dynaco ST400 power amp. Being a kid didn't really understand very well yet just how useless watts are. In fairness a lot of things back then made it harder to hear a lot of quality differences that with better speakers, cables, etc are easy to pick out today.

After college, head stuffed full of the usual blather I went looking for a better power amp. Read a ton of reviews and auditioned a slew of them before buying a McCormack DNA1. Then went looking for a good preamp, because well this is what they tell you, separates, etc etc yada yada. 

Until I heard a 60wpc Aronov tube integrated that was better in every way than the McCormack and cheaper too, way cheaper than buying a preamp, cables, etc. Separates are just hugely handicapped in reality. Seen it over and over many times since.

When the Aronov turned out to have some hidden reliability issue it started blowing fuses, and so transitioned to first a Jungson SS class A integrated (nightmare) and then Melody integrated, another KT88 tube integrated this one 50 watts.

At this point 30+ years of experience is telling me you don't need more than 60 watts (you do need speakers of at least 92dB sensitivity), tubes beat SS and integrated beats separates. 

So last year went looking to up my game and wound up buying a Raven Blackhawk. Easily the best sounding amp I have heard so far, another integrated, this time only 20W. More would be better but quality over quantity and besides you should hear how loud it can go with 98dB Tekton Moab. 

This brings up another thing learned over the years. Big companies can stay in business churning out so-so products making up the difference in advertising. Small companies however the product is their advertising and so must be not only high quality but high value as well. The best of the best it seems take this to the extreme by being sold direct. No wonder then I have gravitated to first Herron, then Tekton, Townshend, Raven. 

Not because they are tiny little companies selling direct. Because they make the best stuff I can afford to get my grubby little mitts on! 

Which brings me to Steve Deckert. Couple weeks ago put my name on the list for a Decware Zen Mystery Amp. 40 watts of end game tube power amp. 

And so it goes.

More power better? If the first watt isn't any good why would you want 200 more of them?

Bi-amp? If the first amp isn't good enough don't add, replace.

Pique peak, then than, watt's the difference?