Which 300B SET for SF Guarneri Homage?


Driving my Guarneri with a Pass Aleph 3 amp(with audio aero capitole mkIISE cdp+pre), which goes quite well, but thinking of upgrading amp to a couple of 300B monoblocks...
The thing is this is a tricky change because, among other things, the Pass is built like a tank and is an excellent amp. So I want to make the decision carefully with no hurries...
Considering as an option the Coincident Frankenstein's but i'm not too informed about tube amps.
I listen to all sorts of music though fav is Opera, so my expectations with the change would go on the line of getting a more real life experience.
I wonder if anyone had any experience of driving these 87db sensitivity, 6-8ohm speakers with a SET and would appreciate opinions or suggestions
dongiovanni

Showing 2 responses by phaelon

I think that the posts between Charles1dad and Daveyf offer an excellent example of the different expectations audiophiles have of their systems. Nobody is wrong, IMO. The fact is, you don't need a lot of watts to make music if you don't place great value on those elements that are enhanced by additional watts. Fortunately, choosing an amplifier for a given speaker isn't quite fraught with the smoke and mirrors issues of say, choosing speaker cables. There's a lot of hard science behind choosing how much power to provide a speaker, and results are more predictable, based on the numbers, than they are with many of the other choices audiophiles have to make. I agree with you Charles1dad, that an amplifier's wattage isn't everything (my current 25W amp sounds more powerful than my former 75W amp), but Daveyf isn't quite shooting from the hip just because he hasn't heard this combo himself, IMO. I've seen more than a few jaws drop when longtime owners of a less efficient speakers, paired with an SET, heard what that same speaker was capable of when paired with an amp that offered reserves of power.

Dongiovanni, it's great that this pairing works for you. Congratulations and happy listening.
"heard what that same speaker was capable of when paired with an amp that offered reserves of power."

I should have written:

heard what that same speaker was capable of when paired with an amp of comparable quality that offered reserves of power.