Good budget tube amp?

Seakayer, you are incredibly knowledgeable about this vintage gear. This year, though I've not acted on it, I've been more than a bit curious regarding the Eico HF-87 you mentioned. My hat's off to you...

I happened to recommend the "original" Dynaco circuit as I find there to be a purity in that Concertina front-end that is overlooked/underestimated by most. Rather, I see it as one of those situations where simpler can be better. I fully admit that mine represents the minority opinion, and that more elaborate (VTA/Latino, KTA, Dynaco's own 1990s tubed ST80, etc) front-ends, most of which employ a classic Mullard long tail pair driver stage are considered to be a major improvement by most. As you said, budget played a huge role in design, and obviously, less parts translates into an easier fit into a budget.

Again, tipping my hat to you, your point on the 7199 is spot on. With Sovtek tubes, I consider the Dynaco to be, at best, an average product, and I'm not even sure it reaches that level. Install a pair of Sylvania or RCA, and the amp comes alive.

But, to answer your question, while the individuals should be contacted, the impression I get is that some of them are more oriented toward a new build. That said, there are a whole lot of folks out there who can get an old Dynaco right.

By the way, one final point - I often see folks make the statement that today's circuits are the reason for the superiority of today's tube amplifiers. That is absolutely incorrect. With an incredibly few exceptions, today's amplifiers employ the circuits of yesterday; there are no two ways about that. The difference is the implementation of today's products, both parts and things like higher bias (we are not as conscious of the economics of tube life today). This is why a Dynaco ST70, built with today's metal film resistors and better caps can outclass a lot more current tube amplifiers than most would believe.

Rossbernstein, the three main sources for Dynaco kits are Triode Electronics, Bob Latino, and Dynakit Parts. All of them are a different implementation, and as such, will sound unique.

I also own a Dynaco ST80, but not the more ubiquitous solid state product with that moniker. It's the rare tube version from the early 1990s that was a redo of the ST70, addressing the myriad criticisms of the original. It features a regulated solid state power supply with much more capacity, driver section using 12AT7 and 6922 tubes in Mullard long tail pair configuration (like the VTA/Latino, KTA, etc. upgrades), individual biasing of the four output tubes with two color (green = low, red = high, out = OK) LEDs, and triode/ultralinear switch.

But, I think it's good to begin (and, possibly end?) one's journey with the original, so I recommended the version from Dynakit Parts, as it is the true Dynaco ST70, updated with modern parts and a bit larger power supply capacitor can. While it does not possess the power of larger tube amplifiers with more output tubes, and there is a looseness in the low frequencies (there are a few simple/easy tweaks for this), I find a certain beguiling purity of sound, along with an astounding degree of resolution, detail, and overall refinement. One thing about the ST70, presuming you don't partner it with a speaker that pushes it out of its comfort zone, it's just an incredibly pleasant and easy to listen to amplifier, and you can stay up with it long into the night. It seems equally happy with rock, jazz, or classical music, and does proper justice to all three. I own amplifiers that cost a whole lot more ($5K - $15K) than my ST70, but I'm more happy listening to it than most of them; I think that's the biggest compliment I can pay it.

The point I made about new products using the classic designs directly applies to most of the Chinese tube amplifiers. For several years, I was the importer for one of the largest Chinese high-end audio companies, so I have some background and opinion there. They normally employ the Mullard long tail pair driver stage with an ultralinear (sometimes, with switch for triode operation as well) connection output section. They usually sound nice enough, but apart from one or two companies, for several reasons, the vast majority of these amplifiers have exceptionally poor resale value.

Also, I wouldn't be in a rush to move away from your Totems, and I certainly wouldn't sell them before coming into the tube amplifier. You might find the combination makes you happy. That doesn't mean I think they're the friendliest match, but I'd at least give it a chance.

Mezzanine, while I've not spent a lot of time with the Granite integrated, I owned the monoblocks as well as the tube output CD player. They were incredibly nice components, always made me happy, and Don Hoglund was a terrific guy to deal with.

There are a lot of good suggestions here.

However, I would encourage you to check out a true blue Dynaco ST70, either used, or new and available through Kevin at http://www.dynakitparts.com If you need someone to build it for you, he has a network of folks to provide that.

For all the criticism leveled at the ST70 over the past half centure, it remains one of the touchstone products in audio, and possesses a magic that most high-end audio components never come close to. The only real negatives I find with it are 1) lack of power compared to a larger amp and 2) subpar performance in the low frequencies. It took me 25 years of overlooking them, only to discover as one of the finest, most engaging products I've encountered.