Will tubes rock?


I have to get a new amp, my acurus A150 was destroyed in a recent move (don't ask). What survived of the move were my spicas, acurus ACD-11 and parasound pre.
I keep seeing great deals on tube amps, and wondered if as a class I should be auditioning these during my search. I've heard some Cary and VTL products in systems that sounded wonderful but were way out of my league. 70% of my collection is rock with less than stellar recording...the rest is jazz, folk, and orchestral. Any thoughts?
pinetop14a89e

Showing 2 responses by dekay

Pinetop: How large is your listening room? This will help determine what amps may and may not work. And yes, I feel that tubes do rock when paired with the right speakers (my 7 watt per channel 300b tube amp does anyway). I also have an inexpensive Musical Fidelity SS amp that has a wonderful midrange. I dont agree with many of the sterotypes :-) given to both SS and tubes as long as the components (including the room) are well matched.
Given the room dimensions (though it's pretty square which can be a big problem) you could feasibly rock with a little 2A3 3 watt/channel amp if you paired it with efficient speakers. Most any linear (as neutral as you like it) push/pull amp would widen your speaker options. I have already experimented with different tubes (output and driver) in my 300B amp and can extend the frequency extremes, though with losing some midrange roundness, just by changing the 6922 tube.