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Thinking of buying a solid state amp

I will be moving soon, my BAT 150SE might not work in the new environment due to hotter weather and smaller listening room. My speakers (Aerial 20T) requires lots of power so I can't go BAT 75SE route, I have not found other tube amps physically smaller to sound anywhere as good as BAT either.

So I have two options. Buy a good solid state and sell my BAT. Usual suspects are Pass 350.5, Bryston 14B-SST, McIntosh 501, etc. Question is will I be happy with anyone of them coming from BAT?

My second option is to buy some class D like Bel Canto or Nuforce and keep my BAT to use during cooler days.

I will rather have 1 (or 1 pair) amp than 2, but will any of the above (other suggestions welcome) make a tube guy happy? In my 20+ years of audio journey, I have owned 10+ solid state amps but they never lasted over a couple months.

Pre amp is an Einstein.
semi
larryi
3,783 posts
 
Smaller listening room probably also means less power required to reach high volume levels. If you like the BAT sound, why not at least try the smaller BAT or some other smaller tube amp?

A lot of people over estimate the amount of power needed to drive a pair of speakers. To achieve high output for either tube or solid state amplification, some sacrifice in terms of sound quality is inevitable. Often this comes having to parallel a lot of output devices (more of an issue, to me, for tube gear than solid state). Perhaps a small compromise on available power for the few instances when really high sustained power is needed will yield greater rewards for the vast majority of your listening.
guidocorona
4,298 posts
 
Semi, if you seek a warmer sound, between the NiuForce and Bel canto Ref 1000 Mk.2, you may want to consider the latter. I have used both in my system driving Vienna Mahler speakers, and BC sounded a little warmer. . . NuForce may have been overdamping the bass among other things. I have reviewed BC Ref 1KMk.2 on Positive Feedback at:
http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue43/bel_canto_ref1000.htm
My reference amplifier is the Rowland 312 which I adore, but it is significantly more expensive than the BC.
If you get any class D amps, be prepared to be very patient with break in. . . BC is relative benign at about 600 hours, NuForce seems to require about 1000 hours to settle down, and so do most Jeff Rowland amplifiers. BC is listenable out of the box, but NuForce and Rowland amps will sound pretty dry for the first couple hundred hours.
travis's avatar
travis
239 posts
 
I have the Innersound ESL-300 (600 WPC @ 4 ohms). After about an hour warm up it is very tube like, no edges exposed. This amp does not come up on the 'gon very often, usually for <2K. Roger Sanders founded his own company (again) http://www.sanderssoundsystems.com/ and sells the updated version of the Innersound. 30 day in home trial, money back. But, here's the deal, whatever SS amp you may decide on, please make sure it's broken in before you make a decision. I feel many of the newer amps that come up on the 'gon are not even close to being broken in when the owner gives up on them. HTH.
semi OP
649 posts
 
Larry, you have a good point. The new location will be smaller but not significantly smaller to warrant a lower power amp. Heat is the major issue, ambient temperature there is in the 90+ degree 6 months out of a year with high humidity and the thought of turning on two big tube amps is daunting.

I like BAT tube sound, but from what I read Pass X.5 or XA.5 has an edge over BAT SS and that's why I am leaning toward Pass if I was to go SS only.

I have limited exposure to Rowland 501. Like what Guidocorona pointed out, my negative impression of Rowland 501 was probably due to break in time. I will give BC or NuForce a chance and this time around I will make sure they are fully broken in.
rtn1
535 posts
 
Karan's having a sliding class A circuit, so they are barely warm to the touch.

Pass Labs put out significant heat while they idle. They sound good when fully powered-on for at least several hours. My A/C could not keep up during the summer when I had the x600.5. The 350.5 is 1/2 the heat of the 600.5, but it still alot of heat (think 6 - 100 watt light bulbs).

Class D - try before you buy. This is a very polarizing topic, as you are well aware.
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