BTW - I bought mine used years ago for $4500 used...
Run them in triode...
you need amazing interconnects as well...
I note that the last reload for the 12 NOS Telefunken EL34s was about 2K though.
Amplifier for Sonus Faber Amati Homage?
Looking to get amplification for my new Sonus Faber Amati Homage speakers. I use a Thor TA-1000 preamp and listen to mostly vinyl (Sota Star Sapphire, Koetsu Rosewood Signature. Half jazz, the rest split between blues, classical and rock. I am quite allergic to any treble brightness but appreciate treble extension if it doesn't create fatigue. That said, I prioritize a rich, real midrange, and like a somewhat laid back stage perspective. I am not a neutrality guy... looking for musical and involving.
Stereophile described the Amati load as "The speaker is a moderately demanding load, however, as can be seen from its plots of impedance magnitude and electrical phase angle against frequency (figs.1 and 2). With a maximum of 7.8 ohms, but a value below 6 ohms in the midrange and below 4 ohms in the bass and high treble, a good 4 ohm-rated amplifier will be called for."
Any wisdom on amp choices? Budget is under $4000 used. Tube only please. ;)
Thanks!
Stereophile described the Amati load as "The speaker is a moderately demanding load, however, as can be seen from its plots of impedance magnitude and electrical phase angle against frequency (figs.1 and 2). With a maximum of 7.8 ohms, but a value below 6 ohms in the midrange and below 4 ohms in the bass and high treble, a good 4 ohm-rated amplifier will be called for."
Any wisdom on amp choices? Budget is under $4000 used. Tube only please. ;)
Thanks!
7 responses Add your response
Not certain if this will help, given the impedance swings of those speakers, but- you could contact either Speltz(or Ralph Karsten, at Atma-Sphere, who offered something equivalent, once) and inquire. http://www.zeroimpedance.com/zeroimpedance_007.htm Regarding your taste for a, "rich" midrange: whatever tube amp you choose, find some NOS, British valves(ie: Mullard, Brimar, Ediswan, etc), to use in your input/driver stage. Generally speaking, they will warm things up, quite a bit. |
You need a tube amp with output impedance less than 1 ohm for flat response into the Amati's varying impedance. See georgehifi's response. An older Audio Research tube amp might work. Why not try a hybrid amp like a New York Audio Lab (NYAL) Moscode 150 (75 wpc) or 300 (150 wpc)? A 4 - tube (6CG7, 6FQ7) front end and MOSFET output stage. I own a 150 and it is an excellent amp capable of driving difficult loads like the Amati's. Available on the used market for about $1K. It will give you the best SQ of both tubes and transistors! |