Tube amps under $7500
Ready to experiment with combinations never before (or not recently) tried. Step one requires a tube amp. Now looking at Prima Luna EVO 400 which sells for 5K. Any other tube amps I should consider in this price/feature range? Must come in silver with balanced input. For pairing experimentally with various tube and SS preamps. Efficient 4 ohm Legacy speakers (and the room/setup) are the constants.
You want romantic, bloomy tubey sound? Audio Note, Leben, and Triode have those characteristics. At your price range, Audio Note Cobra, Leben CS600X, and Triode Evolution KT88. But all these are not silver and do not have balanced input. There is a demo Jadis I-35 for $2950 at USA Tube Audio, I think that is a really good deal. Jadis' house sound lean towards more realistic 'live' sound. Not as romantic but equally addictive. |
@mdalton I would use the word 'vivid' to describe my Lab12 and also Jadis. They give a bold first row live music experience type that demands your listening attention. I agree that more niche brands tend to give incredible value of money. I still think my Lab12 is as good or better than anything in the market below $20000. @larryi You are correct that Lab12 Suara (and Integre 4 MKII2) do not have balanced input, despite having XLR input. There are a couple more options that OP can consider. An used Air-Tight ATM-1 would be exactly what he is looking, minus the balanced input. I've heard good things about Luxman MQ-88UC as well. |
