EL34 in triode vs 300B/845 SET


Hi All,

    I thank you ahead if some of you already helped out with my previously related post.  Quick story, I currently use a Dared VP-300B SET and just loving the sound but since I'm using B&W805 D3 I keep wondering if better higher current/watt amp would further impress me.  The best SET in the market seems to be 805B driven by 300B, very very expensive (thinking Line Magnetic 219ia).  I've been reading that EL34 due to it's design gets very close to 300B SET when wired in triode mode.  It seems far more economical to get the romantic lush sound and lots more power (relative to SET) with EL34B in triode then going 845/805 tubes (especially considering high heat).  Any anyone can share experience with above since there're lot of EL34 triode/UL amp out there these days?

    I'm also wondering since Dared VP-300B is a very entry level 300B SET, if upgrading to more expensive ones like Line Magnetic or AudioSpace or Cary...etc would make big difference with fuller body sound?  Or maybe SET is SET and won't get too huge leap of a difference.

Thanks.

hifineubee
So what solution did you end up with? If none so far, then let me be your humble advisor. I’ve been an hi-fi audiophile for 50 years and I’ve had a lot of medium priced gear. Tubes as Well as ss. You have a nice set of speakers, but in order to get The Best out of Them, my advice would be to go for a
chunky second hand quality ss integrated Class A amp. Here you get The warm Sound Combined with The muscles your speakers deserve. As you Americans say ...nothing beats cubic!

I have 805 D3's.  I drive them with a clone Firstwatt M2x (from diyaudio.com) using the Ishikawa input stage (genuine Toshiba JFETs).  For a pre, I use the Korn Nutube B1 (also from diyaudio.com).  I use SoundID from Sonarworks for room correction, because my room is a very odd shape and forces me to have one speaker in a corner and the other not.  Most of my listening is near field.

I have loved SET using a homemade 300B (from tubelab.com) driving Foster full range kits from Madisound.  I loved SET so much, I will return to it when I have room for large horn speakers.

The sound from this current system has much of the depth and all of the imaging I loved from the SET.  It lacks a touch of warmth; the kind of warmth that's so magical, it makes one forget they're missing an octave or two on the top and bottom :)  However, this may be an avenue you wish to pursue with your speakers, as total cost will be under $3k and comes with the satisfaction of building it yourself.

As someone who started out with tube experience in guitar amplifiers I have always found EL-34s to be a good tube to drive to power tube distortion in a cranked Marshall amp. They lack bass compared to a 6L6GC.....anyway never have been interested in them for hifi stereo.

I have a chifi 300B/845 amp (Muzishare R100 845) that I tried out for a while. Definitely more bass punch than SET 300B amps. But the heat that thing thru off could heat the house and too much in the California climate. And I did not find it more resolving or any other benefit other than more power. (I will gladly sell it if anyone wants and amp around 100lbs!) It's basically dual mono blocks fit into a single chassis (4 transformers).

For 300B I ended up with the Icon Audio Stereo 300 MKII which employs a quartette of 300Bs in what I believe is parallel single ended mode adjustable fixed bias...not sure maybe it is some kind of push-pull...have not seen a circuit diagram. The manufacturer just says the 6SN7s run is cascode mode.

Well it has plenty of power and good grip on the bass. I use it with Klipsch Forte IVs and rarely turn it up past 10% unless I want my wife to start yelling at me.

I think there are a few other 300B quartettes out there...maybe Cayin. Check them out. I prefer to the larger space heater 845 or 805s (you need to add solar panels on your roof to run them unless you want to pay $1k for electricity every month).