New speakers but old Rotel Amp
I'd also suggest that you consider one of the Raven Audio tube amps. Give them a call to discuss your options before you bust a move. https://www.ravenaudio.com |
I think Rogue would be a wonderful choice. The Stereo 100 is a nice amp for pure tube. Countless great reviews and it is a first rate company. The Hydra is spectacular for a hybrid but the stock tubes leave something to be desired. If you opted for the Hydra, you want a pair of Cifte NOS tubes as that will deliver incredible clarity and add to the soundstage. I personally own a Hydra and have used it to drive a variety of speakers. |
You can easily tweak / modify / damp the chassis of the RB981, eliminate the ringing of the internal heat sinks, replace the stock power cord ( I am aware it is not a removable cord ) with a quality, heavier gauge cord, change the feet, upgrade fuses, etc. If you are not familiar with doing any of this, or are afraid of opening it up, I can help you. MrD. |
suggest you stick with a good sounding (better than rotel) class a/ab solid state amp, especially since you have tubes in the linestage already harbeths (and esp. the monitor 30) can, imho, use good bass control that most lower cost tube amps have trouble with many out there to choose from, but i suggest considering: hegel pass ayre luxman mccormack |
I read Herb R's Review on the previous Harbeth 30.2s. He liked the Pass, but it appears that he preferred the PrimaLuna and more, but it's kind of hard for mo to decode the end of the review– what does his "But" and the following other "But" mean to me since I equally love to listen to the music in the background, engage with the music with my ears and play along with my guitar, and listen to the music in its entirety. I listened to Riders on the Storm three times. The first time was just hearing it while I was in the room, the second time I was seated, focused, and really listened to the song, and the third time was sitting and listening to the instruments. Right now I'm listening to a lot of Aaron Copland's music, pieces I heard Mr. Copland play on my grandmother's Steinway with my grandfather In their house as a kid. I can still see and hear it, he was such a nice man. Too bad I was too young to appreciate it to the extent I do now. |
"the dealer I bought the speaker from said I could have done better, and
is suggesting a BAT-56 (non SE) or a Rogue, or a Bryston 3B3 amp." DONT DO IT! Why are these three brands the ones?? I for one do not like the sound from BAT, others really do, this is a BIG decision, I find Prima Luna to be very soft and luxurious sounding if that is appealing to you then I would start by testing out a PL AMP. Manley labs plus Harbeth equals Magic (just saying). Matt M |
They're probably the ones because they're what he sells, I would guess. I have a second Rotel RB-981 I was using for the kitchen that isn't in use, and I was looking at the manual because I always wondered about bridging them. The manual states 8 ohm minimum and my speakers are 6 ohm. Is it really a minimum, or just keep the volume lower? |
@mattmiller i agree that primaluna amps are luscious sounding but i would add that the tonality and extension can be managed and altered quite a bit via choice of tubes... one of PL’s design advantages is its flexibility in use of different power tubes as well as triode vs ultralinear operation... using these levers can swing the sound signature a significant amount also pertaining to my earlier comment on solid state amps and bass control, the PL with the right output tubes (KT88 or stronger) gives very nice bass control for a tube amp op should know that the monitor 30 is by far the most mid-rangey of the full size harbeth speakers (the mini monitor p3 excepted)... others have significantly more bass response and sparkly treble... in this respect the monitor 30 is more of a true monitor as used for broadcasting etc etc... vocal accuracy/prominence is prioritized |
No experience with the 30s but I have the C7s which are plenty *midrangy*.You probably don't want to go with a lusher sounding amp as that would begin to be overly euphonic and obscure detail. If you are happy with your Rogue talk to mrdecible about your idea to bridge them. Something to think about anyway. I run mine with a 60 watt Aric Audio tube amp and am very pleased with the sound. It won't play at rock concert levels but still really good dynamics and bass,especially with KT150s. |
my wife heard so many new layers of the music she actually said the speakers were definitely worth the money and was interested in it sounding even better.Hot damn! You married well. Would be most helpful in making a specific recommendation if you could share what you’d like to improve upon further and what aspects of sound/system performance you value most. |
If on a budget great design and build active preamp the Marantz KI ruby ,successor is the new Model-30 a power house integrated amp dual mono direct coupled Ncore 500 amplifiers compare with Any $5 k setup , this new integrated $2500 and just sounds like a very good class AB amp, I have owner many systems ,this easily compares with any McIntosh integrated as well as Simaudio ,Hegel ,Yamaha,each ones has its own sonic character .I never would say this if not knowing the Marantz pm Ki ruby which this is a 2 year design even with a excellent phono stage.check it out before commenting , it just came out ,look at early reviews. It says 100,200 wpc it true power 170,8 ohms 280 into 4. |
For a tube amp I think you’d be thrilled with Don Sachs KT88 amp, and he offers a trial period so you can try at home, which is obviously huge. For solid state, there’s a McCormack DNA-125 on eBay for about $1k. Have it sent to SMcAudio for full mods and you’ll have one hell of an amp. Hope this helps, and best of luck. |
