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Tube Amp for Martin Logan Speakers

Hi, I love tube sound through my Martin Logan Aerius-i fronts and Cinema-i center. I currently have a Butler 5150 which is a hybrid, but it busted on me and would cost $700 to fix. I've had china stereo tube amps that were pretty good and gave true tube sound, but not enough drive for higher volumes. I live in condo, so not like I can blast music anyways but still. I got the Butler because I wanted 5 channel tube sound for home theatre (The piercing sound from my Denon 3801 receiver was not pleasant to my ears). It appears there are only three multi-channel tube amps around, from Mcintosh, Butler 5150, and Dared DV-6C. The latter two are hybrids, and the last one was one of the worst tube amps i've ever heard. I have no clue why 6Moons gave the Dared a 2010 award, but maybe it's because it produces only 65W.

So since multichannel tube amps are hard to come by, and they tend to be hybrid, I was thinking maybe it would be best to get three true tube monoblocks to power my fronts. Thing is I wonder if they will be underpowered for my speakers, and not sure which ones are decent for the price. Maybe China made ones would suffice, and they still go for pretty expensive price. I'm wondering if anybody knows of a decent powerful tube monoblock that is affordable, because I can't pay $3000 per block. or maybe best to just repair my Butler. Thing is, I'm not confident that it is reliable. The tubes are soldered in which is weird, and i've taken it to a couple repair guys who both said that the design is not good, because it's very tight inside and more susceptible to being fried from DC voltage areas. it's too sensitive.

Any suggestions for tube monoblocks, even if china made ones? the holy grail for me would be Mcintosh tube amp, but they are hard to come by. Thanks.

smurfmand70

Showing 3 responses by tradeontheweb

tradeontheweb
43 posts
 
I have been following this thread and feel it’s time to post, seeing you have now called George a troll for the second time.

George has nothing to gain from these posts, as he does not build amps or speakers, AS YOU DO! He has presented nothing but facts, and left out statements of linked reviews you presented.

And as for my own experience with the Zero Autotransformer, I’ve tried them many times, and on a matched amp/speaker combo’s, they are a big step backward in sound quality IMO. They are as George puts it “a band-aid fix”, for people who have a mismatched amp/speaker combo that cannot be driven correctly - yet have no desire to change either to correct the mismatch and fix the underlying problem.

Sure, they can live with what they have using the Zero, but that will introduce another set of problems that then affect the sound quality. Is it worth $1140 for a band-aid fix??????? Or should they fix the mismatch problem, THAT is the real question????
tradeontheweb
43 posts
 
I have been following this thread and feel it’s time to post, seeing you have now called George a troll for the second time.

George has nothing to gain from these posts, as he does not build amps or speakers, AS YOU DO! He has presented nothing but facts, and left out statements of linked reviews you presented

And as for my own experience with the Zero Autotransformer - I’ve tried them many times, and on matched amp/speaker combo’s, they are a big step backward in sound quality. They are, as George puts it, “a bandaid fix”. For people who have a mismatched amp speaker combo that cannot be driven correctly, yet have no desire to change either and fix the mismatch correctly.

They can live with what they have using the Zero, but they will then introduce another set of problems that affect the sound quality. Is it worth $1140 for a bandaid fix??????? Or should they fix the mismatch problem, that is the real question????
tradeontheweb
43 posts
 
Atmasphere. I have indeed used the Zero's on many occasions, as I mentioned in my post. So my opinion IS based on experience, not on any wish to derail this thread, as you insinuate. My experience with them was as I indicated - yes, they allow amps that would otherwise struggle, to drive speakers that present too hard a load for them. An analogy would be saying that your standard 4 cylinder commuter car is capable of 200+mph. But only when towed by a Nascar ! Then claiming that there's no difference in the experience vs not being towed. By their very nature, the Zero's must add/subtract something from the sound. I'm sure their are many happy Zero owners out there. There must be, as they sell. But, I suspect those owners would be better off educating themselves, then spending the money on a better matching between components in the first place. I have yet to hear a system that benefitted (sound-wise) from their use. Your assertion that they "solve a problem" is correct, technically. But at the cost of sound quality. If sound quality is not a priority, then sure, buyers have indeed got their mismatched components to "work" together. But only that. The degradation of sound quality is obviously secondary to them. As a manufacturer, I would have thought your emphasis would be on making sure your amplifiers were matched with speakers that show them at their best ? Surely you're doing your products a disservice, by suggesting the Zero's as a bandaid panacea for buyers ? Just my 2c worth !
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