Thanks again all, sorry if I have not responded directly to any of your responses, I am new to this forum and not quite sure how it works, needless to say, I have appreciated all the responses and advice. To be honest, I think the Robson speakers are the problem, it sounds like the detail is in there somewhere but can’t get out, if that makes sense. There is so much more going on through the Tannoy’s, which are of course easier to drive. Somebody said it’s about synergy and think that is the key. I am in the UK, so find it difficult to get help from distributors here, even the one I bought it from. |
Hi all, thanks for all your prompt responses, it’s very heartening to know I am not alone trying to figure this out. The tubes are EL34’s. I have tried all sorts of speaker positions and basically have the same problem. I auditioned a Prologue pre amp with a Cyrus power amp with these speakers and it sounded terrific, so that’s when I decided that I preferred the tube amp sound. I didn’t want separate boxes and wires anymore, So I went for an integrated instead, thinking it would be powerful enough for a small room. There is plenty of power, or should I say volume, it’s the detail that’s missing. I have tried several solid state amps including Naim, Roksan, Rega and they all drive the speakers well enough but the sound, to my ears, is just too hard and sterile. I’ve just got myself in a mess I think and can’t find the way out. |
I must that things do sound a whole lot different through the Tannoy’s. Maybe keep the Evo 200 and sell the Robson speakers. Thanks for all your replies, much appreciated. |
Many thanks for taking the time to help me. I am sure you are right, I do love the Primaluna sound as compared to solid state. It does sound much better through my old Tannoys, which says it all really. I wish I had 10,000 dollars to spend on speakers, that’s way out of my league. I might just look out for some bigger Tannoys. Many thanks everyone for your advice. |
Thanks. I have tried Naim XS3, Rega Elicit-r, Roksan K3 and my own Naim Unity Atom. All drive the speaker well, except the Atom, which actually sounds nice but lacks power and mid range detail. I didn’t like the hard sterile, almost unrelenting sound of the others. The best I heard was a PL Prolougue pre-amp with a Cyrus power amp. The sound was amazing but out of my budget, hence I saw the Evo 200 and thought it might sound as good. It nearly does but the lack of mid detail is just so obvious. The Evo 200 has a 30 day return policy, so I have the option to return it, or try and sell the Robson’s and start again. |
Thanks for all the great responses, if I could figure out how to answer them individually,I would. Some great suggestions and a lot to think about and work on. Just to say, the Robson Acoustics speakers are beautiful, as you can see on their website, they are just so difficult to partner and the Evo 200 just can’t do it. It is so frustrating because I think I have two excellent products but they just don’t like each other. I don’t feel that I should tweak with the Evo, since it is still in its 30 day return period and they have agreed to take it back for a full refund if I am not happy with it. Sadly, I think that is the way to go and then trade up to something else. Many thanks for all your help, you guys are awesome and I am absolutely hooked on the tube sound. |
Thanks again for your comments and suggestions. There is a lot to take on board, so please forgive me for not replying to each response, I am not sure how to do that but I appreciated every one of them. There seems a lot more to owning a tube amplifier than I ever could have imagined. Thanks. |
I will have anther go at swapping the input tubes, they solid though. Apparently the was ex display and never used, it certainly looked untouched out of the box. Just answer an earlier question, the Robsons sounded great through a PL Prologue Pre amp with Cyrus X Power amp. In hind sight, maybe I should have gone for that combo and it may have been a whole different story. |
Thanks for digging up the info on my speakers and also for the mismatch info. I have tried to swap around the input tubes as suggested and I can’t budge them. I am frightened to use too much force incase I damage something I thought they should easily pull out but I seriously can’t move them. |
Thanks and I am sure you are right, it’s hard to make the right decision sometimes and we always seem to be looking for something, whatever we have. That’s the nature of this hi fi disease. |
Thanks guys, that’s good advice. As advised by another responder, I tried the Evo through my Bose headphones and they do sound amazing. So clearly the info is there but not through the speakers. I can’t afford to change the Robsons, they were not cheap, and I know eventually I will tire of the Tannoys in my small listening room. So I have made the decision and arranged to send the Evo 200 back, while I still can. Amazingly, in comparison my Naim Uniti Atom sounds pretty good but having had a taste of the tube amplifiers sound, I know what I want. It’s been a good exercise though, and I have learned a lot from all you guys, that will put me in good stead for the future. So happy listening everyone and many thanks. |
