[Eiron]

Bear wrote:
In article , Catman
says...
Bear wrote:
http://www.logic3.com/details/?prod=581

Ever since I saw a video of one I want one, and I bought myself a new
120 gig iPod today to replace the one I gave to L (my 60 gig "classic"),
and I really fancy buying myself the valve thingy for Christmas, but I
can't help but think it's not going to be all that.

Has anyone heard one? Are they as good as they're cracked up to be?

And, even at maximum bit rate sampling, would one even notice the
amplification when the source is just an iPod?
Looks sexy, but it's only £300 so it's not going to be that high end is it?

It may well make the iPod sound warmer, and impart all those other valve
characteristics, but equally (and my money's on this) it'll just blur a
load of detail and make you *think* it sounds more valvey.

YMMV of course.

The thing is, they don't (vary, that is).

That was precisely my thinking, almost word-for-word.

The thing is, what I was after was someone who *knew* that, rather than
suspected it, IYSWIM. Ie had tried one.

How much 'valve sound' do you think you will get from a single triode
cathode-follower?
We should ask the experts on RAT.

--
Eiron.

[BretLudwig]

For one thing, some people don't want tubey, they want accurate, which
tubes or solid state (either one) deliver when used correctly.

Secondly, it's a transparent gimmick on the face of it.

--
Message posted using http://www.talkaboutaudio.com/group/rec.audio.tubes/
More information at http://www.talkaboutaudio.com/faq.html

[Andre Jute[_2_]]

On Dec 14, 12:49*pm, Eiron wrote:
Bear wrote:
In article , Catman
says...
Bear wrote:
http://www.logic3.com/details/?prod=581

Ever since I saw a video of one I want one, and I bought myself a new
120 gig iPod today to replace the one I gave to L (my 60 gig "classic"),
and I really fancy buying myself the valve thingy for Christmas, but I
can't help but think it's not going to be all that.

Has anyone heard one? *Are they as good as they're cracked up to be?

And, even at maximum bit rate sampling, would one even notice the
amplification when the source is just an iPod?

It may lay some warmth on your iPod sound but it's a pretty expensive
way of making your iPod less accurate to the source than it already
is. No one with experience of good valve amps will be fooled. The
point about a good valve amp is that it sounds closer to "the window
on the concert room" than anything else; valve amps, for the true
afficionado, are thus about accuracy, just like any other amp, not
some laid-over warmth caused by added second harmonic.

You'd do better to learn to solder and building a cheap but decent
valve amp. I publish such a design free of charge precisely for people
like you who want a taste of valves before they take some big
expensive leap and then find they don't like it all that much. See my
netsite
http://members.lycos.co.uk/fiultra/JUTE%20ON%20AMPS.htm
and in particular the very simple circuit at
http://members.lycos.co.uk/fiultra/Jute-EL34-SEntry.jpg
which you can easily build for under STG300 including all the
necessary tools (soldering iron, sidecutters, DMM). That's a complete
tube amp with a first class sound (single-ended, zero negative
feedback, all triode, Class A1 operation, if you already know some
buzzwords). Read here and there on my site, and particularly at The
KISS Amp project
http://members.lycos.co.uk/fiultra/T...mp%20INDEX.htm
to get an idea of why the SEntry is designed the way it is. Suitably
inexpensive speakers are The Impresario which I designed to go with
much more expensive equipment but which is cheap to build, see the
plans he
http://members.lycos.co.uk/fiultra/K...Impresario.jpg

HTH.

Andre Jute
Visit Jute on Amps at http://members.lycos.co.uk/fiultra/
"wonderfully well written and reasoned information
for the tube audio constructor"
John Broskie TubeCAD & GlassWare
"an unbelievably comprehensive web site
containing vital gems of wisdom"
Stuart Perry Hi-Fi News & Record Review

[mick]

On Sun, 14 Dec 2008 16:57:34 -0600, BretLudwig wrote:

For one thing, some people don't want tubey, they want accurate, which
tubes or solid state (either one) deliver when used correctly.


Do they? Some of them want a particular sound, whether it's accurate or
not. Some people *love* the sound that they get from out-of-the-box
iPlayers - see what I mean?

Secondly, it's a transparent gimmick on the face of it.

Oh yeah - almost certainly! :-)

--
Mick (Working in a M$-free zone!)
Web: http://www.nascom.info
Filtering everything posted from googlegroups to kill spam.