I heard the Atmosphere and the Berning in the same system but not at the same time(A/B). In purely sonic terms, the Atmosphere edged out the Berning except in the bass. I thought the Berning had more PRAT. Otherwise, in all other matters--heat production,tube replacement,tube biasing,electricity bills,and especially compatibility with a wider range of speakers, the Berning wins hands down. Since I live in Florida, heat production was a crucial factor(I mean ALOT of heat). I ended up with the Berning and enjoyed it very much. If heat and speaker compatibility weren't major issues, I would have bought the Atmosphere amp. You won't go wrong with either amp. Enjoy listening.
Atma-Sphere M60 or David Berning ZH270?
Hi, I need some helps to decide which one of these two amplifiers to go with my 14ohm Coincident Super Eclipse (SE).
The Atma-Sphere seems a perfect match for the SE at least in impedance matching and at 14ohm, may get more power than 60 watts. The ZH270 may get less than 70 watts @14ohm. However, I have the following concerns for the M60:
1. 8 6AS7 output tubes per side generates a lot of heat and it does not have cage protection. This is quite a problem if you have young children at home like me. The ZH270 has tubes internal (like a Tube preamplifier) and thus safer for young children.
2. 16 6AS7, though last long time, can be more expensive than ZH270's 4 6JN6 if I try to replace them.
Pro for ZH270 can run without a preamp and is auto-biasing.
On the other hand, ZH270 is more expensive ($4995) than M60 MKII.2 ($4250) (current still have a few left).
As far as the most important factor: sound? I have no idea at all. I have not heard either one anywhere. I have owned ASL Hurricane for over a year and like the sound very much but disappointed for the constant re-biasing and QC problem.
Does any one have Reliability problem with either one?
My listening room is 13Wx8Hx26L and I listen almost only classical music from solo violin, piano, to chamber music to 20 century's big symphony orchestra works (Mahler, Strauss, Stravinsky, etc.).
Thanks for the helps.
The Atma-Sphere seems a perfect match for the SE at least in impedance matching and at 14ohm, may get more power than 60 watts. The ZH270 may get less than 70 watts @14ohm. However, I have the following concerns for the M60:
1. 8 6AS7 output tubes per side generates a lot of heat and it does not have cage protection. This is quite a problem if you have young children at home like me. The ZH270 has tubes internal (like a Tube preamplifier) and thus safer for young children.
2. 16 6AS7, though last long time, can be more expensive than ZH270's 4 6JN6 if I try to replace them.
Pro for ZH270 can run without a preamp and is auto-biasing.
On the other hand, ZH270 is more expensive ($4995) than M60 MKII.2 ($4250) (current still have a few left).
As far as the most important factor: sound? I have no idea at all. I have not heard either one anywhere. I have owned ASL Hurricane for over a year and like the sound very much but disappointed for the constant re-biasing and QC problem.
Does any one have Reliability problem with either one?
My listening room is 13Wx8Hx26L and I listen almost only classical music from solo violin, piano, to chamber music to 20 century's big symphony orchestra works (Mahler, Strauss, Stravinsky, etc.).
Thanks for the helps.