2. amps-preamps
  3. 174207-10803

Can one have too many tube components in a system?

Especially if one has sensitive speakers? For myself with ZU Omen defs, I have to keep an eye on the gain of the amps I choose since my BHK runs tubes. If gain is too high, tube hiss becomes an issue. However, I see people with tubed amp, tube pre, tubed phono pre, tubed dac......doesn't the tube his (just like tape hiss every time you copy a tape over and over) intensify with every component? Or to pull this off one needs less efficient speakers?

aberyclark
wturkey's avatar
wturkey
722 posts
 

Welcome to Audiogon where everyone’s tube system is perfectly dead quiet……sans that Clark character. Lol

ebm
9,311 posts
 

Maybe 2 max.

noromance's avatar
noromance
9,404 posts
 

I’ve 18 tubes in my three box phono-preamp chain and any barely-audible hiss is well worth the liquid black and dimensional sound. Add in another 10 tubes in the monoblocs and it’s tubes all the way. Second rig is tubes too. Admittedly, speakers are not efficient but are very transparent.

dinov's avatar
dinov
789 posts
 

Tube gear has been around a lot longer than ss. I’m not getting the concern here. If it’s about hiss and gain, that’s certainly not related to the amount of tubes you have in your system. So if you feel tubes are inferior in that respect, I disagree. 

aberyclark OP
1,355 posts
 

@wturkey LOL. That's what it seems like. A few years ago I had a Nuforce STA200 class a/b amp with a solid state pre and my Zu speakers. Sounded wonderful. I purchased a new Rogue RP-5 and the hiss was unbearable. I changed tubes, etcc..same thing.  Come to find out, the Nuforce had 34.5 db of gain where most amps are around 26 db. Until I purchased my Firstwatt J2, I had to use a passive pre between the pre and amp to keep the hiss at normal range. The Rogue ended up having some issues and after going thru the pain of shipping it back for warranty repair, I traded it in on a new BHK pre. and got the Firstwatt. Quiet as a mouse now

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