Consonance Cyber 800/845 Valve amps; how good?

Rubycon.

bartokfan i was referring to the cyber 800s if you need plenty of power. they seemed to be unflappable to beyond volumes i can bear or enjoy. the 300b is pretty much acknowledged as the finest triode and i have to agree overall even though i prefer the 845 personally. the 300b requires an awful lot of careful matching with other components due to the low power and its behaviour at the frequency extremes and nothing i've found (or could afford!) in the last thirty years has enabled me to be completely happy with this valve in my system. in the end the music is what i care about and the 845 is simply far more speaker tolerant and has weight, authority and control (especially in complex full orchestral passages) whilst still providing a very large chunk of the best of s.e.t. (i.e. 300b). it is a difficult valve to design for however which i assume is why there are not that many worthwhile amplifiers featuring this power tube.

Peter, have you compared 845s and 211s? I had always heard that 845s were better but that the tubes were largely unobtainable as NOS. I heard the Cyber 845s and 211s compared and really heard little to convince me either way. Now that I have the 211s and have heard the benefits of NOS in the amps, I am happy with my decision. RCA 211s are in my experience clearly the superior tubes and one can still find them.

I agree with you about the WE300B tube. I must say that only pre-1980 Western Electric tubes can satisfy me. Until I heard the Reimyo PAT777 300B amp, I was convinced that the tube was good only for midrange. Now with 92 db speakers, the Reimyo just does not have enough power for my use. Obviously the Reimyo while excellent is very expensive.

Peter, the 845 must truly be some kind of musical experience. maybe one day i'll have the 845 with a matched speaker as a second system. Right now I'm concentrating on upgrading my amp and speakers. I'm sticking with the KT90 tube. Its the one I've found most dynamic for orchestral, I feel no need to change. As you know every tube will have a tradeoff. The KT90 vs the 845. Am i willing to sacrifice some of the bass and treble fq's in the 90's for a certain midrange magic of the 845? No i am not. Only would consider the 845 as a second system, never as my primary. Is the 845 a warm tube or cold/detailed?
If you say the former I'm sure its not for me.