Hey Bob and Brian. Don't fight, you're both right! :-)))
The Campaniles respond to high quality upstream equipment; the better the equipment the better the sound (though better is up to the ear of the beholder). I think Fred's Wolcotts, though very nice for specific speakers, are not up to the task to driving the Campaniles to their best effect and so he is finding the JC-1 works much better. And, though the head designer of Acapella likes EL34-based tube amps on his speakers, I know the Lamm ML1.1 (and I bet the WAVAC that Brian uses) has more finesse and control that no EL34-based amp that *I* know of can touch.
So, in conclusion :-), the 'best amp' works 'best', regardless if it is solidstate or tubed or hybrid, as the Acapellas are very revealing and, though quite forgiving in my experience, they do expose the quality of the amp (and other upstream components) without seeming to prefer any kind of technology over any other.
-Mike.
The Campaniles respond to high quality upstream equipment; the better the equipment the better the sound (though better is up to the ear of the beholder). I think Fred's Wolcotts, though very nice for specific speakers, are not up to the task to driving the Campaniles to their best effect and so he is finding the JC-1 works much better. And, though the head designer of Acapella likes EL34-based tube amps on his speakers, I know the Lamm ML1.1 (and I bet the WAVAC that Brian uses) has more finesse and control that no EL34-based amp that *I* know of can touch.
So, in conclusion :-), the 'best amp' works 'best', regardless if it is solidstate or tubed or hybrid, as the Acapellas are very revealing and, though quite forgiving in my experience, they do expose the quality of the amp (and other upstream components) without seeming to prefer any kind of technology over any other.
-Mike.