Retirement integrated amp for a “fiscal conservative”

Thank you ALL for your thoughts and suggestions and especially the congrats on retirement (its going to be an adjustment).   Lots of suggestions … i can enjoy the thrill of doing research on then going to listen to!
My JA Perspectives only have a sensitivity of ~84 dB, but do present a pretty stable 8 ohm load. I’m thinking my current 70 w/ch doesn't provide “sufficient headroom” for these speakers.  @chenry I know there’s more to delivering dynamics and bass note attack/decay than watts, but I’m not sure a lower powered amp like the Sugden Signature, at 30 w/ch will provide the improvement I’m looking for. 
@soix , I’m definitely open to and leaning towards the Hybrid integrated architecture to play to both their strengths.

 @corelli to answer your question, maybe, with age, I’ve become sensitive to the upper register instruments. An alto sax is like fingers on a chalkboard. That was the same with my previous Vincent integrated. As a result, i avoid listening to music featuring them. 
@ghdprentice I’ve read many of your posts over the years and because of that, have kept my eye on Audio Research products looking for deals on the used marketplaces. I’m definitely in the fiscal conservative stage of early retirement making AR out of reach even used and still would have tubes to replace. 
@noromance I hear you on the cost of replacement tubes ($340 is a little on the low side for 8 power tubes though depending on the tube). As i mentioned, I’m also wanting to improve the SQ of my current all tube amp. If you’re suggesting I can achieve the SQ I described by merely switching just to a different pre-amp tube for the current 6 Primaluna label tubes then that is yet another path that I hadn’t considered. 

@celtic66 not to get off topic, but my wife and I lived in Boston 1980 - 1982. Great time to be a Celtics fan and go to the Boston Garden!

Again my many thanks to your thoughts, ideas, and suggestions!

@corelli thank you for the link to the original JA Perspective Stereophile review. I had read that back when doing my speaker research. 
 

I see a Pass Labs INT-250 on US Audiomart for $7,600 that seems to match several Audiogon member recommendations and should provide the same synergies John Atkinson described in his article. 

@dwest1023 those are very well reviewed and respected amps!  I can only imagine how fun it would be to enjoy and compare them!!  Thank you for your assessment and comparison observations from your systems perspective  

That said, I can’t imagine physically moving them in and out of a system. Other than price, the Pass’s weight is a concern at my age a 3 herniated disc surgeries over the years. However, my so played football and is still good friends with several offensive linemen 😂

@vuch I whole-heartedly agree that PL makes a pretty good amp, for the money. I also share your thought/“warning” regarding the ever present upgade-itus audiophiles tend to be aflicted by.  That said, I’ve enjoyed the PL integrated for 7 years and figure if I don’t upgrade from it now, I never will. 
I can see by your posted system that you are way further down the path to audio nirvana than I will ever be…what an awesome system you’ve put together!

Merry Christmas everyone!!

@vuch and @corelli thank you for those words of wisdom. I know my system placement and room treatment is far far from what would help get the most out of my current equipment. Unfortunately, I don’t have the opportunity for a dedicated listening space much less room. It’s in a large shared recroom that includes a pool table and play area for my now 6 grandchildren (wildest is 7 and youngest born 5 days ago).   Keeping it protected from the grandkids is a primary objective of placement.  

@re-lar-kvothe thank you and the many others who recommended the Luxman 507/509 integrated. Lots of love it seems for them. @ghdprentice I am curious why you sounded so down on Luxman when you posted your thoughts earlier?

@coltrane1 I hear you and your point. In this “last significant investment” in my system, I’m looking to improve the sound quality as I tried (hard to do with words) to explain in my original post. If I can get the SQ I “desire” with an integrated that doesn’t require multiple power tube replacements over the next 20 years I’m planning on living and enjoying music, then that’s a winner!

@mclinnguy thank you for your observations. If it’s not imposing, I would appreciate you testing to see if the NOS preamp tubes you now use did tighten the bass on your system (your system A looks and I’m sure sounds fantastic!). If you can only swap tube positions 3 and 4 as @wsrrsw suggests, that would be an extremely useful test (at least for me). 
I really don’t want to go down the cable rabbit hole right now. I currently have mid level Audioquest and Morrow cables throughout (fiscal conservative 😂). 
Again, thank you both for your time and thoughts. 

@mclinnguy that was over the top nice of you to run that experiment!  It looks like he’s selling specially matched pairs of RCA Clear Top with side getter for $99/pair. I’m going to try tube purchasing and rolling those as an initial toe in the warer trial based on youy   experiment results. 
p.s., what does YMMV standbfor?

Thank you all for your thoughts and recommendations!

Now that the holidays and excitement of welcoming our 6th grandchild (a healthy baby boy) to the world on Dec 20 have happened, I can get back to my Music appreciation/enjoyment project!

I decided to start with baby steps (i.e. lowest cost….and no pun intended) before a step function investment. I took @mclinnguy advice and ordered the ”12AU7A RCA Cleartop (side getter),SPECIAL MATCHED PAIRS” from Brent Jesse. They recently arrived and I’ve only got a couple of hours play time on them so far.  I’ve not yet done the research on # of play hours I should expect for these tube to fully break in and provide their full audio characteristics (that is next on my audio To-Do list :-) ).  My initial impressions of the these RCA Clear Tops is consistent with what @audphile1 described as sounding rather thin with unremarkable bass. I’ll do the research and let them settle in before passing judgement on their ability to get the sound I’m looking for. 
@retiredaudioguy reading yours and others, who were kind enough to take time time to provide their thoughts, I definitely have Pass Labs on my radar if I end up needing to do a total integrated replacement. I had the Pass Labs INT-250 for sale on US Audiomart for < $8,000 on my watch list but didnt pull the trigger wanting to see how this tube rolling works. 
@bluethinker if I do end up going the total integrated replacement route, do you think the 40 watt LTA you suggested would be a good match for my 84 dB sensitive Joseph Audio Perspective speakers?

@phd thank you for your observations (yes, Ive received some great and a variety of advice which is wha I hoped for with the vast diversity of audio experiences this membership represents)!

I do appreciate your recommendation of going the separates route, but a couple of aspects give me pause pursuing that route:

1. With separates providing even greater opportunities for future upgrade, that would make it harder for me to resist my goal of this being the last significant $$ upgrade to my system. 
2. As you mention, some companies have overcome the pre-amp/amp co-habitation issues and manufacture integrateds that provide A-rated sound quality. As my 68 year old tinnitus-ridden ears are far from being classified as “golden ears” I likey can’t tell the difference between a well implemented integrated design from separates. 
3. Based on #2, I suspect I’ll be able to achieve the best sound my ear/brain system, can resolve and enjoy, more cost effectively with a nice (new/used) integrated if my current tube rolling experiment doesnt pan out. 

@sro thank you for this recommendation.  From reading many reviews over the years , the Danish audio companies consistently make some very highly regarded audio equipment. I hope to hear Aavik at the upcoming AXPONA (the first audio show I’m looking forward to attend).

@kennyc doing some late night reading (and likely music enjoyment) I see.  Thank you for the suggestion. As you imply, $10K is definitely a stretch for me.  In all honesty, so is my $8K stated budget, as I haven’t talked with my wife yet about it.  She is sympathetic to my hobby though so I’m waiting for the right time and place to bring it up….

I know that “watts” don’t tell the whole story on how well an amp will drive a specific speaker design. I’m currently using a fully tubed Primaluna Dialogue HP Premium integrated with 70 w/ch driving 83.6 dB sensitivity Joseph Audio Perspective speakers. One key characteristic I’m trying to improve is tightening up the lower octaves so upright bases sound more natural/real/woody harmonic and electric bases sound less flubby. I believe amplifier damping factor plays a role in this, but also believe power headroom may as well. With the BAT VK-80i having lower power (55 w/ch than my current 70 w/ch). I’d be concerned the BAT 80 might not provide the improvement I’m looking for and its $12K 150 w/ch big brother is way too expensive. I’m not finding either on the used market, which is a sign that people buy them, love them, don’t resell them. 
Thank you again Kenny from NYC!