SET amp comparable to First Watt SIT 1?

Thank you very much for so many comments. I read all the comments several times and added all the amp recommended here to my list. I have never heard of the most of brand name listed here, but they all look nice to me. btw, I would like to narrow my choice down to 300B SET only, because I have been already confused by way too many choices of tube amps... It would sound ridiculous for you guys, but "300B SET" has been a magic word for me for a long time.

What I still would like to know is, how I choose the right one from this list for the purpose of comparison with First Watt SIT. Do they all share the same 300B SET character enough for this purpose? And is it OK that I just (rather blindly) pick up one of them for demo?

I really appreciate the suggestions that I find them very helpful. I put the Border Patrol at the top of the list. I just read 6 moons review about their SE 300B. Should be an excellent amp.

Thank you for more replies. I heard the 2 different types of Volti at different audio shows, and both sounded great to my ears. I have not decided which Volti I would choose. And I’m actually still researching the other horn speaker possibility.

I walked in high end audio world only a few years ago with a rather conventional system (B&W 800D and Classe, etc. ), which I chose based on the store recommendation and the magazine reviews. I still think they are not a horrible choice, but more I listen to the other system, I’m less happy with mine. So this time, I decided to follow my instinct and I’m trying to choose things by my ears as much as possible. The problem is, there are so many interesting equipments on the net, but I have almost no chance to hear them. More I research, I find myself more confused...

Charles, thank you for your encouragement words.

arthursmuck, thank you for the recommendation. I'll put Sophia Electric to my list.

Hi Charles, thank you for another great advice. I really wanted to try 300B SET, so I know I should just go for it, at least for my first SET amp.

The reason why I have not contacted any manufactures on the list is I feel my candidates should be narrowed, and I don’t want to bother those people with my ignorant questions, also I don’t want to be biased by them. I’m planning to contact all manufactures when my candidates are finalized. and I’ll do it very soon. I have learned a lot from this thread already, and I’m much more confident what I was trying to do!

Thank you so much for the precious comments again.

Regarding the rooms size, my rooms size is 15ft x 30ft, ceiling is 8-10 ft (room is a bit irregular), and listening position is about 10-12 ft (3m) from the speakers. I mostly listen to jazz, classical (piano, chamber) and vocal. I usually do not listen to orchestral or rock, but I’m afraid that my current normal listening level would probably be a bit louder than the other SET people, considering the level that the SET exhibitors play at the audio show. It is definitely louder than Audio Note demos, but not loud as those loud solid state demo rooms. I start wondering if 300B SET is really powerful enough for my propose, since several people mentioned it... I also wonder if 100dB or 105dB speakers make a big difference.

Thank you for a lot of precious comments again. Many interesting read as well.

I feel that I should tell you guys my question has been already answered by great members here at Audiogon, thank you!. I wanted to know which 300B SET would be the best candidate to be compared with SIT-1, and I got a lot of (too many?) great recommendations. This holiday season, I’ll research more about SET and horn speakers (it’s a fun time), and I’ll report what I finally choose. (or I’ll have to post the other questions...)

Happy holidays!