New to tubes

Thanks to all for the great response and info!

I've been meaning to upgrade my trusty old Denon for some time now - I like the sound of my Monitor Audios, but they may be a touch bright on the top end. Originally considered SS seperates, but then I decided to go wholly different and give tubes a try - I love idiosyncracies, I have plenty of them myself. Also love tinkering, tweaking, and the occasional fiddling. Also have much preferred the 'thick' sound of my Fender tube guitar amps vs. various SS guitar amps so I look forward to the same experience in my audio setup.

Ok so I'm adding Cayin and SoundQuest to my list for research. Can't wait to join the club!

•Hi and welcome to the tube World
•To get your feet wet try used 1k units from AgoN.
•Many to choose from ( make the list - set priorities. That is start.)
•Prime Luna is a great starter. Consonance 15th Anniversary int-amp looks quaite good - by any standards.
•And lastly, SQ 88 is not made by Consonance.
It is a brand of SQ (sound quest) - it is also good choice for "beginers".
That SQ88 was my best buddy's first tubey-glowey amp. A year latter he went through CJ used (new $7000) and now settle down with Consonance Cyber 211 (around 5k new)mono-blocks and loves it.

Ones you get a lick .....that is it, you'll be hooked.
Just a warning pal.

Yes that is one thing I have noticed - there is a almost overwhelming sea of variety in tube manufacturers, tube types/characteristics, modifications/tweaks, etc. Lots to learn - I guess I'll just pick one to start and see what I like from there. I live in the NYC area so I figure I can demo a few things as well. I went to look at the offerings from Consonance and I noticed the Cyber 10 Multi Integrated SET amp - neato all in one option for my lossless-encoded music files along with class A operation to boot. Not sure if it's enough juice for my MA's though....

I is a nice piece but your speakers might be under powered with only 12wpc.
It might be enough but I would not take the risk of recommending it base only on company's reputation or features. IMO, Prima Luna might be a the sefer choice. However, contacting qualify dealer will most likely answer your questions or recommende other alternatives within your budget.

Thanks for starting this thread Bfrank. I was going to start one almost identical to it. I too have some Monitor Silvers, though mine are the 9i set, just taller and a little deeper on the freq response (30Hz-25k I believe is their range). I have been using them with a B&K ref20/Sunfire Theater Grand for 6 or 7 years now. But they are getting an upgrade and moving to greener pastures since I have a full HT set hooked to the Sunfire now.

I am only beginning my research, but I like the idea of tubes. I think it would be fun to have a voltmeter and bias tubes every 3 to 6 weeks. Call me a kook. I really like the idea of experimenting with multiple different tube brands and discover which sound I like best. I listen to a pretty eclectic mix of music myself. A lot of British rock, indie rock, some classic American rock, some classical, some jazz, some hip hop, a tiny bit of rap, even a touch of country (Lucinda Williams is a badass). I am not sure a tube setup will be the best setup for a rock n roller, but the more jazz I buy (Ellington, Davis, Bassie, Adderly and Mony are my favorites atm) the more I buy, lol.

I have looked at and read about integrateds, separates, SS pre with tube amp, tube pre with SS amp (which seems like a nice balance), and even a Tube integrated with pre-outs to a SS amp to Bi-wire my 9is. And this is all just for pre/amp solutions. I haven't even scratched the surface of a source unit yet. I still have to decide if SACD and DVD-A are worth putting money into (Modded Oppo?), or if I just want a great redbook player (leaning toward MF A5 if so).

So, I would love to hear from you on impressions of the Monitors through a tube setup. It would help me better prepare myself for what I want to look at next. And anyone else here that wants to make suggestions to a mostly rock listener (I would guess ~80%), I am all ears. Thanks.