I Find Primalunas Ugly. How about You? Is there an alternative?

So put on your fav tune,turn off all the lights and bask in the glorious orange glow man!!!

I am thinking of PL's myself (leaning toward Quicksilver though) and I would just remove the cages if the look does not suit me. I believe if one uses a kt150 tube, the cages must come off anyway

@donjr 

So sorry to hear you bought a defectively designed product.

@defiantboomerang and what would that be? I hope you don't use John Atkinson as your Consumer Reports guide for audio. 

The OP and madavid0 are conspiring to rule thought.

@donjr  

So sorry to hear you bought a defectively designed product.

+1 eric_squires
Not sure why people are so juvenile and petty. Be positive, find other things in your life you enjoy if you think tube amps are ugly...

My apologies for resurrecting this thread. I personally like Primaluna.

@defiantboomerang Were you bothered by the fact discovered by JA in the Stereophile -- that the Hegel amp he analyzed did not have good thermal management?

lol, not at all. I didn't even read what JA wrote and it was probably after I bought mine. I don't IR gun my gear. 

The curved cage on Primaluna amplifiers is extremely ugly. Their shiny cases do not help. Visually, they are worse than forgettable. I like the look of Line Magnetic amps, but they sound terrible. Is there a decent alternative?
Just put a bag over her head .... ;)

if you place KT150 in there.  The cage won't fit anyways.

justinm... If you want to bring your preamp to the next level,try some nos tube rolling. This is where the preamp will really show its quality of sound...

I think they look nice,  but I was skeptical..... until I heard their el34 integrated..... nice amp.   

I just purchased a new PL preamp a couple months ago and have to say that I really love its looks. The fit and finish is superb and the paint job is flawless. I have to admit it wasn’t very impressive looking in the adds and I really purchased it based on what’s inside for the price. In person it’s a completely different story and I have completely gotten used to the look of the cage with what appears to be real glass side paneles. 

mbiestek ...Could be said of your KEF Blades also. Not the most appealing looking speaker, but I’m sure they sound great...

Totally agree.   As hideous as they are, the opposite is true for their bang for the buck.  I couldn't live with one.  

Photo of the Jadis

http://www.bluebirdmusic.com/sections/integrateds.html

Looks like Jadis has a nice little integrated. I haven't heard it.

Jim

Dealer, not for Jadis 

@donjr 

Were you bothered by the fact discovered by JA in the Stereophile -- that the Hegel amp he analyzed did not have good thermal management? 

I used to own some Hegel gear that I thought was ugly but it sounded very good. I sucked it up because I liked the sound. Then I had the misfortune of listening to a class A  Accuphase amp and that was the end of the Hegel (and luckily not my marriage). This is the first time in 30 years I haven't thought about audio at all. I happen to think this Accuphase gear is stunning and timeless but if it wasn't, I'd still own it. If the Primaluna Dialogue HP is as good as they say it is, I wouldn't think twice about buying one. The praise is too hard to ignore. Do you have small children so the cage would be required? My kids are all older so the cage would be in the box it came in for me.

i would recomend you the elekit amp and pre amp, less money for a great equipment!! made in japan.

The thing is, Primalunas offer a lot of options that many other amps do not. They are auto biased, you can use a multitude of tubes, they are remote controlled. They have high quality parts inside, etc.

I haven't really found comparable options in other tube amps, if they are matched on one thing, they lack something else, and so on. 

Defiant.  I agree with an earlier post that suggested they look better in the flesh.  I've seen a few and I agree.  That breadbasket cage is surely removable.  

3D printing -- now that is a brilliant idea for modifications, not just regarding Primaluna.

I agree, they are trying too hard and that's a bit sad/annoying.

3D print a metal box for your chosen amp or use wood

I find the Primalunas to look like they are trying hard to impress ( a negative) and I find equipment that is limited to SE with no balanced in/out to be not serious.  But I've heard they do sound good.

@mdeblanc , I use the ZOTL40 to power my 87db sensitive Janszen zA2.1 hybrid electrostats and I have plenty of headroom. You could probably use the ZOTL10 and have enough power. LTA has a nice trial policy so you can send it back. I also use the MZ2 as a preamp for excellent synergy.

Lance

@lancelock  My speakers are 92db efficient. What's your opinion on how well the ZOTL40 will drive them?

I own both the PL Dialogue Pre and the HP power amp. The sound is enjoyable for the price point. With all the comments about the LM 518 I really wonder now if I am missing something. Good thing with the PLs is the tube rolling options to fine tune.

@soundermn 

I am a rather visual type. It it does not look good, I keep thinking about the looks and it completely spoils the experience. 

Buy what SOUNDS good to you. Then put it in a cabinet. Itlll look great!

The EAR912 and the Zesto Tessera are very versatile. Just added the Zesto line. 

jjaudiosolutions.com

@lalitk 

Thank you for the recommendation and I am excited to see you enjoyed our setup at RMAF.

@defiantboomerang:

For me the 845 tube is king.  I can say unabashedly that the MastersounD amplifiers are absolutely noise free.  Clients who come to listen actually point this out not only when no music is playing, but also comment on the black background that rivals high quality SS amps.  The secret to their amplifiers lies in the high quality transformers they design and build in-house.  The Compact 845 would be a good option and power all but truly demanding speakers.

To the OP: can you describe the set-up you heard that leads you to conclude that the LMs "sound terrible"? I've heard quite a few. I've no problem if someone were to prefer, say, the ARC or Manley house sounds; that's simply a matter of taste. But "terrible"? I can only imagine they were being asked to drive low impedance multi-driver speakers, or the source was poor, or a tube was failing, or something else. 

BTW, I would also hesitate to necessarily blame an amp for humming -- if there's DC on the line, the transformers will probably hum...

Hey 1241. The operative word is " guessing " The final decision as always is yours. 

Sounds bogus...dealer agenda maybe? I could say I love the sound of Primaluna and would put Sophia Electric to shame. Assuming something does not make it a fact.

I love the sound of the Sophia Electric. Guessing it would put Prima luna to shame

See I am not a fan of LEDs on my Tube amps. ;-) That would be a deal breaker for me on the VAC.

I do like the CJ CAV-45.

However I do feel the Decware amps are the best looking amps of the bunch. Lifetime warranty, great customer service and design - and they sound damn good too!

Moral of the story, all of this is subjective! :-)

Keep the wax spinning.

-Ron

Yes some Amps are quite ugly. 
However the EAR V12 seems to have the right balance of looks and performance. Check it out

Many nice suggestions. Thank you very much.

@corelli
You are right, I was too vague in my original post. Tried to make it more precise, though.

The VAC Phi 200 looks spectacular.

So does the Conrad Johnson CAV-45.

And the SLI-80 is just almost perfect (don’t really like the tilted output transformers too much). But didn’t the Stereophile measure a Cary Audio amp some time ago and found it to be so bad from the technical perspective that they called it a joke? (https://www.stereophile.com/content/cary-audio-design-cad-300sei-integrated-amplifier-measurements-p...)

Not to be offensive, but how in the heck can I guess what YOU think is beautiful.  Beauty is in the eye of the beholder as the saying goes.  You're going to have to figure this one out yourself.

@defiantboomerang - you're entitled to your opinion.

Now on to my opinion on what are some alternatives:

Conrad Johnson - http://conradjohnson.com/cav45-stereo-control-amplifier/
Decware Torii - http://www.decware.com/newsite/TORII.htm
Decware ZMA - http://www.decware.com/newsite/MYSTERY.html
Cary Audio - https://www.caryaudio.com/products/sli-80/

I am a big tube supported, and I personally own a few Decware pieces that I absolutely enjoy listening to. You could call my a fan boy but man to me, they just sound so damn good. Transparency, unbelievable detail and slam in spades.

i think line magnetic makes great looking and sounding gear at a primaluna pricepoint. exceptional build quality to boot

Like soundwatts, I have a Rouge Cronus Mag. II and am most happy with it. In all respects, the KT120s outperform the KT88s, particularly with less efficient speakers. As mentioned, both the Rouge and the PrimaLuna are about half the cost of some others mentioned. If you are considering up to $10,000.00 you might consider the VAC phi 200 - one of the nicest tubed amp I've heard, especially when operated through the balanced section. And it looks very nice - day or night....Jim

Check out Raven Audio out of Texas.

Lower the bias a bit before installing.  Then, when warmed up, check the bias again and adjust to the recommended level.

@soundwatts 

Thank you. Can I just plug in my KT88's and it will work? Do I have to do anything else to adjust for different tubes?

@defiantboomerang 
Yes you can run the Rogue with kt88 

@facten 

Thanks again. You know a whole lot about the audio community. 

defiant

Jonathan Halpern of Tone Imports is the US distributor for Line Magnetic - here's his email address - shindo.usa@mac.com - possibly he can satisfy your transformer questions .

I have found him responsive to emails

@facten 

Many thanks, your help has been invaluable.

One factor in buying an amplifier, besides the aesthetics, is the customer service and warranty. Beauty is often very subjective but quality service not so much. I had a failure of a transformer on my LM Audio 216ia after around 3 years. The dealer shipped it back to a US distributer for repair at no cost to me. So that told me Line Magnetic backs their gear. Many audio companies fail to back their warranty and make the buyer pay for parts and service, if they agree to fix a component at all. I have gone done that road with much regret....