Tubes vs Tubeless
Hi,
Very, very (did I say "very") new to this adventure. I had a nice lower end, high end system 30 years ago and life got in the way and I had to part with that system. I now have a basic set up with a Belles Aria integrated amp with Vandersteen 2ce Signature speakers and a Linn DAC with a basic turntable.
I'm thinking of an upgrade and going full in on a dac system and leaving the vinyl to the side. I love albums but my collection is not huge, I'm getting older and I enjoy the simplicity of streaming music at the touch of a fingertip.
I have never owned a system with tubes and read in one of the forums about the Aric Audio systems and it really piqued my interest.
So, the question is, will there be a considerable difference in sound quality with a tube system of the Aric quality paired with a DAC or is the tube system a better advantage with vinyl?
Thank you
@bahston Fortunately electronics including speakers are not musical genre specific. If you go with separates a tube preamp with solid state amp is very popular. There are class D amps now that rival tubes in terms of sound quality. So you have a wide range of equipment from which to chose. |
If you plan to keep the Vandys, I wouldn't recommend most tube amps. The 2ce is already a very "laid back" speaker and anything other than an Audio Research tube amp might push them a little too far in that direction. They need something with a little more "snap" to be engaging. As always, IMHO and YMMV...... |
There are countless Audiogon threads and posts over several decades about pairing up Quicksilver Tube Amplifiers with Vandersteen 2CEs. Here are just a few, LOL :) -------------
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I had the Vandersteen 3A Signatures paired with an Ayre V-5xe amp and ARC Ref 3 pre, the synergy so good that I still miss that system at times. Live music was special. Small or large venue, I was there. Unforced and natural with amazing timbre. I’m doing horns now with the band playing in the room, my old ears no longer supporting any kind of finesse (hearing aids). |
