2 Ohm Tekton Pendragons

Hey there.

So yeah, impedance matters, in big and subtle ways.  Of course, in the big ways, the current draw can overtax an amp or limit the output voltage severely, or just blow it up.

In the subtle ways, impedance drops can alter the frequency response.  The amplifier's output will start to emulate the impedance chart.  Look at almost any tube amp review in Stereophile and the simulated speaker load for an example. It can also be why some cables sound different.

Having said all of this, Tekton often leaves me scratching my head.  While I find the use of many tweeters truly innovative, possibly derivative, but still very interesting I also find at times really questionable crossover design choices.  2 Ohms for 98 dB sure seems like one of them. 

Best,
E

My question is what consumer-positioned brand makes an amp circuit that is happy at 2 ohms and lower? That’s all.

My question would be who makes an amp circuit that has any emotional feelings, happy, sad, or otherwise? Seriously. If I were you and my amp had the impertinence to express any opinions whatsoever I would fire it on the spot. When it comes to amplifiers I hold the same opinion as Justice Thomas: "Mine’s inanimate."

Whole bunch of guys here swore up and down, went on and on about the superiority of high impedance loads. How I should get the 8 ohm Tekton. 4 ohms just won’t work with tubes. 4 ohms nominal means yada yada blah blah blah. I read it all. Until I realized it is all bunk. A guy who makes amps and probably knows a fair bit about amps, but does not build speakers and so what are the odds the guy who does build speakers knows more about speakers?

I am the last person to ask about circuits. I could not possibly care less what circuit does what. All I care about is does it sound good? What’s the difference? The difference is if you come hear my system you wind up posting comments about how the sound was so freaking good you had a hard time getting your mind around it. More than one, that is pretty much what they said. That’s the difference.

(Oh, and those comments were long, long ago! It sounds WAAAAYYYY better now!)

I seriously, seriously doubt that Eric Alexander went to the trouble of coming out with a new design and was so out of it he never bothered to notice nobody makes an amp that can drive it. That is really what you are saying. He doesn’t know what he’s talking about. Right.

I find it infinitely more likely that a bunch of armchair engineers can’t get their mind around the fact that if a speaker is 98dB sensitivity you can drive it just fine with just about anything, even a little flea watt amp, and impedance hardly even enters the picture. That’s all.

LOL not at 2 ohms MC it just won't happen with a valve amp. A Mac will do 2 ohms in series or paralleled. BUT only in mono. At 4 ohms in mono they sound OK at best.  2 ohms, you could fry eggs on it.. I have no doubt.. The older MC275 get HOT.. @ 8 ohms.. Every Mac I own runs better at 8-16 ohms.. same power, little difference from 2 ohms to 24 ohms, same wattage or very close.. They just sound better, because of the bandwidth, and distortion.. They run 1/2 the heat index too, @ 12 - 16 ohms. Tough to beat a MC240 all dolled up.. They really don't like 4 ohms.  HOT!!!!

Idol worship is an interesting phenomenon.

why 2 ohm? Shoot for one. Zero.....sure why not as long as it’s high efficiency. Loads are overrated.  

With a tube amp, the issue is not only whether or not the amp can drive the low impedance load.  Because tube amps often have a high source impedance, the speaker impedance at all frequencies must be high enough so that frequency response is not affected significantly by the high source impedance.  Also, because the speaker voice coil is moving in the magnetic field or the driver, it develops a "back EMF" that can be absorbed (damped) by the amplifier if there is a sufficiently high ratio between the speaker impedance and the amplifier impedance.  Tube amplifiers, because of their high impedance provide less damping and this becomes significant if the speaker impedance is too low.  The extent to which such "ringing" or lack of damping is deleterious to the sound is a matter of taste.  This is why tube amp fans generally prefer their speakers to have a high impedance.  

I tend to find that, while there are theoretical reasons for avoiding low impedance speakers for tube amplifiers, in practice, even 4 ohm speakers can be mated with suitable tube amps.  But, I wouldn't push it to such an extreme as a speaker with a nominal 2 ohm impedance, unless I have an opportunity to audition the pairing.