No. Some do but not all. System matching plays a big role of course. Do you find your BATs soft and lacking treble? |
"Do all....".
Nope, not all, by a fair margin. Its all stereotyping.
Some tube amps can be fairly competent in both highs and lows, depends a lot on the interface with the speakers to which they are attached. In pre-amps and CDP's its more about a different type of sound than bass or treble energy.
I could as easily ask the question do all SS amps have exagerated damping which prematurely removes the trailing edge of signals making the bass seem tight but concurrently creating a cold clinical sound thru the mids and etched overly bright seeming highs.
But FWIW, as a gross generalization, its as tough a trick to buy inexpensive tube products with tight bass as it is to find inexpensive SS stuff that doesn't sound cold and clinical.
Hope that helps a bit. |
Aball, You posted while I was typing.
I find your question interesting and your observation about 'matching' right on. I've had a BAT DK5 for some time and I always was less than happy with it, not unhappy mind you, just thinking it wasn't worth all of the loot. I recently picked up a Cary amp, warm in the bass and detailed in the upper mids & highs, but not 'bright' - great midrange. Perfect sounding combo? Not quite, but FWIW does it ever float my boat. Now if I could just get the bass from the Cary a tad tighter! Clearly its all about synergy. :-) |
Agree totally with youz guyz..especially re: the BAT...not BAT knocking here, but less than happy would be a good sumation. Great mids..deep bass..but always seemed to roll off the upper mids/high no matter which tubes graced the equip.
Matching ( impedence and load) wise is key like mentioned..there are quite a diverse sound to tube components and how they ultimately sound in your syst.
Ken |
its just the 'nature' of a tube vs a transister. some hit bass botes better than others, but tube gear is genrally pursued for audible virtues other than that low note. |
Try an OTL for great bass and treble as well as a superb midrange in a tube amp. Atma-sphere does the entire spectrum very well. Bass is not "Krell-like" but is deep and tuneful. Highend shimmers and the mids are what you expect from tubes. Add a fast rise time for a great transient response with the OTL configuration and you get a great all around amp. |
This is just my feeling but: To me Bass slam is great but its not the most important factor . My guess is many tube guys/gals feel the same way. They probably pursued and stick with tubes and will give up a touch of slam and consider the whole musical package vs. bass slam only...Not sure if that makes any sense to you.For me its all about a system balance..... |
Tubes have just as much bandwidth as transistors. The idea that tubes give up bass slam or anything like that is really nothing more than urban legend. |
Do you find your BATs soft and lacking treble?
Aball (System | Reviews | Threads | Answers)
Not so much soft but compared with my other amp the Ayre V-1xe which I will post as well soon. Yes, the treble is not as detailed in the BAT 75se. But I will say that the BAT more then makes up with its very impressive sounding midrange. The bass with the 75se is excellent, but lacks the slam.
The problem I have (I believe) is more with my CD player the BAT Vk-D5se. its a very EZ sounding player but not in the same league as my turntable. The turntable has better dynamics and is way more detailed.
I have been reading up on some of the other CD Players out there like:
1. C-5xe Universal Stereo Player
2. Reimyo CDP777
3. Esoteric X-01
4. Dcs P8i
I dont ready care about SACD I just want a one box CD player if any of you have any experience on how one of these players can improve my system without losing that analog magic please step in. (around 8k used). |
Add the Audio Aero Capitol to your list. I just got one and can honestly say that although I have not had a vinyl set up in more than 10 years, the Capitol comes as close to vinyl as any CDP I've ever owned. BTW, much less than 8K used! |
the bat rolls off the treble ??? no way. the bat tube amp is very open and detailed, verging on the edgy. i have heard bat systems many times and have asked the questions why don't bat amps, preamps and cd players sound like tubes.
however, the real problem is most amps, preamps, cd players fabricated in 2006 using today's digital recordings as sources have too much energy in the upper mids and lower treble. i have been looking for an amp for 2 years and i have not found one amp offering 75 watts or more that i would want to own.
i am currently looking for a cj mv 125, the best amp i have ever heard.
it's a problem out there finding components with subtractive coloration. manufacturers are mindful of reviewr's comments about that kind of coloration. consumers are taught to believe that resolution is the epitome of sound quality. |
If your willing to spend a lot less, Njoe Tjoeb. I like the stock unit sound for my cd mix of a bit of everything (a bit forgiving but not carried away with it). The upgraded dac version of the Tjoeb is supposed to be more detail oriented if that is your thing. |
The Audio Aero Capitol is a very good player, and I have to add that I only heard it a shows, but IMHO that would more of a vertical move, with my setup. |
Please understand that I like the sound of the BAT player and if I never when back into vinyl would be very happy with it. I just wanted to know if in fact, does tube player roll off the highs and limit deep bass in addiction I want a CD player with just as much detail as my turntable, and still have that analog sound of the BAT. |
Many tubes will do more aggressive sound than solid state.. Many think the tube nature is to roll of etc.. some tubes have wider bandwith and more attack than several of the widely used transistors on the market. Thats where tube rolling and synergy get sticky to know what direction you need to take things to make enjoyable music. |
Maybe its time for you to think outside the box a bit. First I doubt that you will ever successfully optomize one system for both digital and analog, at least I haven't. Up until recently the digital always took second place. Until recently.
Short story - I bought a Wadia 302 ran it thru my main system - it was very good but really was not a great improvement just a little different. Then I connected it direct to a tubed PP amp. Huge difference! Slam, detail, dynamics, etc all without an apparent downside. I now have two seperate systems and one set of speakers. One system for digital and one for analog (and other sources). I now actually prefer the simplified digial system over my analog system. Maybe I need a better analog system now, but/or I can probably even do better with a better CDP or amp, but I'm happy as hell as it is. FWIW! |
