Rowland Capri SS preamp into Audio Mirror tubed power amps into Zu speakers turned up to 95 on the preamp scale causes a barely audible hiss with my ear about 2 inches away from the tweeter. The midrange driver doesn't make a sound or vibrate to the touch. These speakers are very efficient and with a normal input signal, if the amps could take that gain, my ears would be destroyed at the 95 setting. Nothing could be heard from the listening position. Is that quiet enough? BTW, with the preamp set at 75, this system is very loud. I would never attempt playing it at 95.
Can tubes ever be as quiet Solid State
Recently I have had a major frame shift in my view regarding new production tubes which are getting to be pretty darned good over old tubes which still have marvelous sonic attributes but are often plagued by unwanted noises.This has resulted in my preferring certain current production over old stock more and more.
My question isn't are older tubes even NOS better than new production rather the question is are any tube systems able to match the noise floor of the quieter solid state amps? I was thinking in particular of gain stages in a phono stage. Opinions please
My question isn't are older tubes even NOS better than new production rather the question is are any tube systems able to match the noise floor of the quieter solid state amps? I was thinking in particular of gain stages in a phono stage. Opinions please