Ralph,
Yes, there are studies that show even-ordered harmonics as musically consonant, but I do believe some of them or other also showed lower amounts - like 3% - to be inaudible.
It is very easy to keep THD down well, well below 3% - more like .1% or better - with copasetic speakers at moderate volumes. That's why I can't accept that the differences in HD spectra explain *everything* about why single-ended sounds different than push-pull.
As for the number of gain stages, most low-power SETs have one plus the output stage - just like your amps - right? I'm quite admittedly not an engineer but your OTLs do have two stages of gain counting the output tubes, right?
As for the lack of a phase splitter, that sounds like a plus, but please tell me, does crossover distortion still exist? I've always thought another of the big benefits of single-ended operation is that there is (obviously) no such thing as crossover distortion - because there's no 'crossover' - and distortion is *proportional to power output*.
Push-pull amps, all of them if I'm not mistaken, do suffer from the fact that crossover distortion is *inversely* proportionate to power, meaning the tiniest nuances are lost.
Not that your amps sound like they are missing nuance - they don't.
They also, incidentally, have some of the best low-bass control I've ever heard, even on 4 ohm speakers - an OTL myth shattered.
Yes, there are studies that show even-ordered harmonics as musically consonant, but I do believe some of them or other also showed lower amounts - like 3% - to be inaudible.
It is very easy to keep THD down well, well below 3% - more like .1% or better - with copasetic speakers at moderate volumes. That's why I can't accept that the differences in HD spectra explain *everything* about why single-ended sounds different than push-pull.
As for the number of gain stages, most low-power SETs have one plus the output stage - just like your amps - right? I'm quite admittedly not an engineer but your OTLs do have two stages of gain counting the output tubes, right?
As for the lack of a phase splitter, that sounds like a plus, but please tell me, does crossover distortion still exist? I've always thought another of the big benefits of single-ended operation is that there is (obviously) no such thing as crossover distortion - because there's no 'crossover' - and distortion is *proportional to power output*.
Push-pull amps, all of them if I'm not mistaken, do suffer from the fact that crossover distortion is *inversely* proportionate to power, meaning the tiniest nuances are lost.
Not that your amps sound like they are missing nuance - they don't.
They also, incidentally, have some of the best low-bass control I've ever heard, even on 4 ohm speakers - an OTL myth shattered.