My first Tube Amplifier


I have a 40 years of audio history starting with Garrard Turntable, Fisher Intergrated(SS), ADS bookself speaker on 1978.

But I started using tube amplifier on 1999.

Since then I had been using only tube amplifier in my main system.

My last SS main amplifier was Krell KSA 150 to drive Apogee Duetta Signature speakers.


http://www.jadis-electronics.com/photos/ja500/45/3/ja500.jpg

My first tube amplifier was Jadis 500 which comprised of 4 pieces weighing 120 lb each.

B&W 801 driven by Jadis 500 gave most deep and powerful bass at my home.

But it generated too much heat so it was hard to use during summer.

It was memorable experience to use it for 4 years.

I may not go back to such monster tube amplifier again.



How about you?

What is your first tube amplifier?



I bet two cents on no one had used larger one as the first tube amplifier than mine.


128x128shkong78
Marantz Model 9 - purchased used in 1975 for $300. Really solid with those EL-34 tubes set in pentode, but truly beautiful when set in triode. Just a lovely amp.
My first tube amplifier was a pair of Marantz Model 2 monoblocks, ca. 1958, which I found and purchased locally in the early 1990s.  When operated in triode mode, which provided a maximum of about 18 or 20 watts, and with speakers having benign impedance characteristics, they were one of the best sounding amplifiers I've ever heard.

I sold them after about a year or so, mainly because they were not powerful enough for my purposes.  Although I made what at the time was a nice profit on the sale, today I believe they would go for something like 10 to 15 $K, many times what they were worth then.

Regards,
-- Al 
If tube preamplifiers qualify for this discussion, then my first "tube" component was acquired a couple of weeks back :-)
Pretty sure that thing was a Marantz...certainly not a McIntosh...I remember it was absolutely tubed. Marshall Majors were pretty rare I think...a local (Honolulu) sound company had one and that's the only one I ever saw.