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China built tube amps

Well I had an interesting conversation today. I contacted a large dealer and let him know I would like to buy a certain integrated tube amplifier that is made in China. I was told he wouldn't sell me one. He said they are all junk.  Prima Luna, Line Magnetic, Cayin, etc, etc, he said forget it. If you want a tube amplifier buy an American or European built unit that can be serviced.

So, I am new to valve amplifiers and I want to try one to understand what they're all about and sort of get my feet wet with tube rolling etc. I don't want to spend a lot of money at first which is why I was looking at Chinese built integrateds. So my question is, without getting into any particular brand other than what I have already mentioned, what is your experience with Chinese built tube amps? As a whole are they reliable? Am I wasting my money if I buy one according to this dealer? I have to admit I was rather taken aback by how adamant he was. Thoughts anyone?

128x128falconquest
re-lar-kvothe's avatar
re-lar-kvothe
156 posts
 

I went the Amazon route as someone already mentioned. I bought the Muzishare KT88. I set it up with my Focal Kanta No.2s and a Rega RP8 with an Ortofon Cadenza Blue and Hegel V10 phono preamp. It sounded good. I was going to allow it to break in and see if it would sound great. I had it two weeks and got my hands on a set of Rogue M-180 monoblocks and the rest is history. I sent the Muzishare back to Amazon. Not a fair comparison I know but my point is go with the Amazon tube amp as you can send it back after a test drive if you are not happy with its performance. You won't be able to assess longevity but you will know if you prefer tube sound to SS.

jrwaudio
331 posts
 

My Tube amp, tube pre amp, speakers and source were all made in the USA and bought 25 years ago They are still going strong! I'll stick to USA made, thank you very much

noske
783 posts
 

@billzame I think the biggest problem is warranty and service: If something goes wrong,

Like what

billzame
69 posts
 

@noske Like *anything* that might be under warranty other than a tube dying.    

sns
3,003 posts
 

Chinese audio products improving by leaps and bounds, some reaching into reference level quality.

 

And rather interesting, I'm seeing parts sourced from all over the world in some of their equipment. Nearly every single audio component is world sourced these days, get used to it.

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