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Never Owned a Tube Amp and Want Advice

Hi All, 

I have never owned a tube amplifier before and am planning to purchase one with a minimum of 50 watts per channel to mate with 8 ohm 88 dbl speakers.

My hope is experienced audiogoners will share their expertise regarding how to approach this. While I realize listening is the best way to learn about sound and compatibility; I want to learn a better understanding about brands with less maintenance and longer tube life, how to decide between mono or stereo,can a newbie play with bias or is auto biasing a better first choice, etc.

I would also appreciate what to look for in selecting a used tube amp to identify one that might be in need of repair. For example, with solid state depending on the brand, capacitor replacement can be more of a concern. Any advice on what to look out for or ask about with used tube amps would be appreciated.

A big question I have is how to understand the relationship between power tubes like E34's, 120.s, etc. and, I guess the driver? tubes like 12au7's and 12at7's. That  is to ask which is more critical to the overall sound of the amp? FWIW, I routinely tube roll with my preamps.  

I 've read through a number of threads but maybe someone can point me to good ones I may have missed. 

Thanks for listening,

Dsper
dsper
dsper OP
657 posts
 
You should check with Tyler, but a 50-60 wpc push pull amp should be fine with those speakers.
As I recollect prior discussions with Tyler, he indicated that he has customers using 50 watt tube amps but also mentions that he thinks 100 watts solid state is a good number to consider.

FWIW, I have also run a Coda CS (300 WPC) with them, just to see, but went back to the  DNA 500 because I hear more textural detail and pace.

Dsper 
wolf_garcia
6,598 posts
 
Tube watts are NOT more powerful than SS watts, they simply can present distortion in a more pleasant way. I suggest a Black Ice (formerly Jolida) tube amp as they're well made, sound great, and inexpensive even when new. I owned a 502p amp and it served me well...great stuff.
dsper OP
657 posts
 
What you will/may notice when a tube amp is driving a speaker with low impedance dips is an uneven frequency response, e.g. the speakers may sound "bright".

I think that is exactly what worries me about a tube amp. Can it cover the low frequency impedance dips.

With solid state, one can form, at least, a preliminary sorting by learning the  8/4/2 ohm and watts specs; but it does not seem to be that easy with tubes. A few tube amp suppliers claim a 2 ohm load capability but most of the websites I have reviewed are silent on this topic. 

Maybe I am worrying too much about it based on my Thiel CS5 experience.  

Thanks for listening,

Dsper
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atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
11,574 posts
 
The decibel reading at my chair is averaging 80 dbl with peaks at 92 dbl.
@dsper

50 watts should be enough unless your room is really big.
Can it cover the low frequency impedance dips.
Our amps are some of the most sensitive of amps to load, and even they would be fine on a speaker like this. You’ve no worries about a dip 6 ohms with any tube amp made!
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