Super Amp?

The folks at the Decware forum are a good bunch, on the whole. Several of them have moved on to or have experience with other amps. Perhaps someone there has heard the Cary and the Zen, side by side. I have not, though I am familiar with the Wright and the Fi 2a3's.

The Select was my first tube amp, and I enjoyed it while I owned it. It's light on it's feet, has great imaging, good detail and strong presence. Even when paired with 4ohm 96 db speakers, I found it to have limited bass extension, and not much weight at all to the bass that was present.

It responds well to tube rolling in all positions, so you can tailor the sound quite a bit. I found it sounded most pleasing with a Bugle Boy at input, Mullard GZ34 rectifier and the stock 6bq5 output tubes.

Upon first installing my Korneff 45 into my system, it took all of twenty seconds of play of the first cd I tried to realize that, to me, the Korneff is laughable superior to the Zen in every conceivable way. The Korneff is better extended, more detailed, and more realistic. It sounds like real music in my system. The Zen never did.

The traits I recognize in the Korneff seem to exist in some degree in all dht designs I've heard, and they are absent in the Zen. Now that I'm more experienced with tube amps, I feel the Zen is a good value and is a good amp for someone that prefers their music to be lightweight and analytical. If you like your music to sound like a live event, the Zen may not be ideal.

This is all my opinion, of course.

Hi Guys,
thanks for all the response..Faugusta. I love the sound of my Cary 2A3 and never have any experience with a 300B nor 45 tube before,well i used to have a pair of kr-audio 300b,but i think it s a SS sounding amp.To make a long story short,i ve been surfing the decware forum and see that people just go on and on about how good the amp is and make me kind of curious about it and the price is affordable help..thanks

Tt,

What is it about the Cary 2A3 that you want to change? Have you ever heard a 300b SET? What attracts you the Decware?

I like the Welborne DRD300b. You get to hear more of the tube and less of the circuit.

Try a Art Audio Symphony II. It will be your last amp! It's the best Art Audio offers. If you can find one used,you better jump on it! There is nothing like a 300B tube,Western Electrics,of course! The Decware is a fine little amp. I have one I use as a back up. But, it can't compete with the Symphony II. With those speakers you will hear the difference.

I have heard several systems using the Decware Zen Select amp and they can sound very good. However, the Zen prefers a 2 ohm load and may not be at its best with your speakers.

The Decware Amp is very inexpensive relative to your speakers. It may be a good match, but it may be outclassed by your speakers.

If you are looking for a great low powered amp, I heard the Moth Audio 45 based amp in the same system as a Decware Zen and it is probably the best low powered amp I've personally ever heard. It is in the $2000 range brand new which is about triple the price of a Zen. Depending on where your budget falls, either of these may be a best value.

Enjoy,

TIC

Focus on the TUBES you like not the hype. Keep your 2a3's and aquire a 300b also- keep both and never sell except to change models. This is no oppinion on the Decware! great co. in my mind. But even different companies have different sound using the exact same tubes so audition first allways.