2. amps-preamps
  3. 1014275857

Carver Silver 7t's

WOW! WOW! and WOW!

I have listened to several amplifiers in my 6 years of this passion and I must say, for a solid state amp, the 7t's are dynamite! At about 16 pounds, these little babies kick out 585W @ 8 ohms, some ridiculous amount with the speakers I am running!

I have owned and listened to several amplifiers from McIntosh MC-300, MC-352, and MC-500, to Citation 7.1, Krell KSA-250, Plinius 250III, BAT VK-500, PSE Studio V's, and I must say I do put the 7t's right up there with the best of these!

I am using a Runco LJR for my CD and believe it or not, the Chiro C-800 as my preamp all through the B&W 801II (for what it is worth, I prefer the II to the III).

The 7t's are VERY warm, open, and a HUGE soundstage. I am not sure how this amplifier functions so well, but it is very light and has incredible power, quick, and very accurate and truly raises the stage!

Anyone else have these impressions or have I listened to the music too long and too loud, now heading towards deafness?

Dan
Ag insider logo xs@2xporschecab
4 responses Add your response
ldurante5b8b
1 posts
 
I got two of the amps. Since I got the kids the have been sitting in my closet for 12 years. There pristine.
Ag insider logo xs@2x
porschecab OP
336 posts
 
JAMESWEI and SEAN !!

Thanks for the GREAT insight! These amplifiers have a very warm sound and it makes sense now. I am pleasantly surprised that years later these amplifiers can still sound so good.

I also understand he tried to make his $40K amps into a commercial one to compete (with mags?) and is the 7t's that amplifier?

How does an amplifier that weight about 16 pounds do it?

Thanks again!

Dan
sean
6,231 posts
 
The amps that he chose to emulate were C-J tube amps if i remember correctly. The "T" stands for "Transfer function", as that is what he was trying to duplicate i.e. the overall performance or "transfer function" of the amp in question.

In order to prove that he had achieved this, he set up what is commonly known as a "null circuit". If any differences between the two circuits existed, the difference would be reproduced by the speakers connected to it. From what i can remember, his amps with the "T mod" passed the tests with flying colors. Sean
>
jameswei
883 posts
 
Some of us still remember the old "Carver Challenge," from the 1970s. Bob was a precocious, brilliant young designer of amplifiers, a magician with circuits. (By the way, he still is.) He challenged Stereophile to nominate any really great sounding high end amp, and he would match its performance characteristics and sound with a specially-tailored (solid state?) doppelganger. He claimed it could be made to sound exactly identical. The resulting circuit characteristics were memorialized in a commercialized product -- the Silver 7s. One unfortunate aspect of this publicity stunt was a dismaying degree of heated controversy that resulted in Bob falling completely out of favor with the high end community. He still does great work, but he and the main mags have apparently agreed to stay away from each other.
Log in to respond
More to discover
80x80
AudioControl The Director 4600
80x80
Ayon Audio AYON CROSSFIRE P/A STEREO AMP
80x80
Ayon Audio Spheris III Tube Pre-amp
REFERENCE TUBE PREAMP