"Do NOT use high powered transistor amps - you are asking for trouble."
The ASR Emitter is known as an excellent match for PK-restored 57s. (With, of course, the clamp boards.) Considered the very best match by some gentlemen out east who have spent months or years auditioning dozens of amps of all types on them.
Of course, this is a matter of taste as always.
The Emitter is indeed a great match, but I have found that OTL tubes in the 20-30 watt range are also superb and really do give all the speaker is capable of in terms of dynamics. Which is actually quite a lot - the PK-restored Quads being around 90 dB/W. There is a Graaf GM20 for sale here now - unfortunately from Asia, though, so risky shipping perhaps. That is a fine amplifier.
Tranformer-couple tube amps of course can be great as well and most people do find 20-40 watts to be enough power (in a high-quality amp with stiff PS, anyway). But, OTL architecture seems to be tailor-made for the Quads' rather peculiar impedance.
The ASR Emitter is known as an excellent match for PK-restored 57s. (With, of course, the clamp boards.) Considered the very best match by some gentlemen out east who have spent months or years auditioning dozens of amps of all types on them.
Of course, this is a matter of taste as always.
The Emitter is indeed a great match, but I have found that OTL tubes in the 20-30 watt range are also superb and really do give all the speaker is capable of in terms of dynamics. Which is actually quite a lot - the PK-restored Quads being around 90 dB/W. There is a Graaf GM20 for sale here now - unfortunately from Asia, though, so risky shipping perhaps. That is a fine amplifier.
Tranformer-couple tube amps of course can be great as well and most people do find 20-40 watts to be enough power (in a high-quality amp with stiff PS, anyway). But, OTL architecture seems to be tailor-made for the Quads' rather peculiar impedance.