OTL amps with Wilson Watt/Puppy 6s

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

Hi Will,

Thanks for your note, I think your curiousity about the Berning products is absolutely valid in regards to how it compares sonically to other OTL amplifers on the market. Aside from the information I have read in various articles and columns I have not yet had the opportunity to listen to another OTL amplifer. Very soon however, a friend of mine and myself are going to Chicago to listen to the Atmasphere MA 1 Mk11's on a pair of Soundlab U1's and we are taking along 2 Bernings with the channels strapped for comparison. I think this should prove interesting and make for an excellent comparison of two different designers out to achieve what they believe is possibly the best sound attainable from audio amplification today. It should be a very intrigueing adventure :)

Chris

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!

Chris, please keep us informed. I would love to hear your comments on this comparison. Thanks much.

I agree with you completely Will about sticking with the OTL sound once you have heard one with the right gear. I have never felt so strongly about any other amplifier I've owned or heard thus far as I feel about the ZH270. I'll bet the Joule's with the Merlins would be great indeed, I would like to hear that combo sometime.
I will report about our experiences in Chicago with the OTL's as soon as we return. It should be an audio day to remember, this is certain :)

Chris