Dang1624705818 Posted October 31, 2006 Posted October 31, 2006 Hello bros, anyone using tube amps for their Thiels ? Hope to get some suggestions on which int. tube amps to consider. A little worried that the power of these amps might not be sufficient...... Looking for something below 1K. Mainly listening to Jazz, Bossa, vocals etc..... Thanks in advance ! :)
kwhv Posted October 31, 2006 Posted October 31, 2006 My impression of thiels are that they need power for perform well. What are you using now?
Chowbotak Posted November 1, 2006 Posted November 1, 2006 I don think the 1.6s need so much power. Can even try with 300Bs, serious. ;)
Dang1624705818 Posted November 1, 2006 Author Posted November 1, 2006 My impression of thiels are that they need power for perform well. What are you using now? Just got these speakers off Mr. Chowbotak yesterday so yet to pair them with anything yet.... Plan to just hook them up as my Front LR for my HT using my Denon 3805 first before I slowly gather info. on what to get as amps.
bolts1624705732 Posted November 1, 2006 Posted November 1, 2006 I got the older model, the 1.5. These are not as sensitive as the 1.6 and require significant power to sound well, at least 50Watts per channel on the amp to sound good.
Dang1624705818 Posted November 1, 2006 Author Posted November 1, 2006 Are you using tubes or SS to drive your thiels ? How's the sound ? :)
kwhv Posted November 1, 2006 Posted November 1, 2006 The Thiels may sound good with some relatively low powered amp but it will sound better with more power. Got this from sound stage review, "I’ve also been playing with a Marsh Sound Designs P2000b preamp and A400s amp (reviews forthcoming) that are, to say the least, impressive and made for an absolutely sublime match with the CS1.6es. The A400s, at 200Wpc, offers double the power of my reference McCormack DNA-0.5 (Rev. A), and the Thiels definitely opened up a bit more and improved dynamically with the more powerful amp despite the Thiel’s relatively sensitive nature. The Thiels also sounded smoother overall through the Marsh siblings, making everything sound a little more musical and little less analytical. In short, everything just seemed to gel better. It’s a synergy thing, and the main point here is that if you really want to catch this fish, you gotta use the right bait." Synergy is the word. Perhaps you may not need much power for the kind of music you listen to. At that budget, you're limited to chinese tube amps.
kwhv Posted November 1, 2006 Posted November 1, 2006 I don think the 1.6s need so much power. Can even try with 300Bs, serious. ;) Does it sound very good? But you sold off the 1.6 and the 300B amp ;)
bolts1624705732 Posted November 1, 2006 Posted November 1, 2006 Are you using tubes or SS to drive your thiels ? How's the sound ? :) SS, 180w per channel. Sounds sweet and smooth on my system. Thiel 1.5 got no sonic character. It's neutral. It will take on the character of upstream components.
Chowbotak Posted November 1, 2006 Posted November 1, 2006 Does it sound very good? But you sold off the 1.6 and the 300B amp ;) I have no chance to drive the 1.6s with 300Bs as I have offloaded it prior to the 1.6 purchase. The 300B was suggested to me by an expert (trust me, I aint lyin). The 1.6s are transparent. Easy to tweak. They sounded too clean and analytical (to me) when I was using VDH THe 1st from source to pre. Klotz 107 did the trick for me. IMO a very good pair of speakers but I greedy, want more slam! ;D
Charcoal Posted November 4, 2006 Posted November 4, 2006 since you listen jazz, bossa and vocals, within yr budget, you should be able to find nice budget tube amp to push ...... but jsut forget abt the slam .... the 1.6 should be more easier to push than any other Thiel's speakers, but then again the more (power) the merrier. listening Thiel without turn up the volume, then you should listen to other speakers ... they are clinical & netrual, some people just don't like it (without coloration), others love them as it shows the differences between everything single equipment or accessory you change in the system, i.e. you can have a new system by means of changing yr source or amplifier ! I don't have the luxury to use high power tube for my 2.3, but using a class-A int amp. I would like to hook it with an int tube amp for fun as well. cheers
Dang1624705818 Posted November 7, 2006 Author Posted November 7, 2006 Thanks for the input Charcoal ! Heard the Sun audio 2A3 at a fellow echoloft bro's place last week and absolutely love the sound ! It's really sweet and lively. I know it will burst my budget by almost 100% but...... I'll need to seriously consider this amp and hope to audition it for a few more times before taking the plunge. May want to audition the CAYIN A-88T also to make a comparison. Saw some good reviews on this amp. Anyone has any comments on these 2 amps ? Is it good enough to drive 'difficult' speakers like Thiel ? :)
Charcoal Posted November 7, 2006 Posted November 7, 2006 I strongly recommend if possbile to borrow one from fellow forum members or shops even just a day or weekend to compare before to part your hard earn money. may be you can have a open house to invite them to bring their gears for A/B session.
Dang1624705818 Posted November 8, 2006 Author Posted November 8, 2006 I strongly recommend if possbile to borrow one from fellow forum members or shops even just a day or weekend to compare before to part your hard earn money. may be you can have a open house to invite them to bring their gears for A/B session. Noted. I'll try talk to the guy who owns a Sunaudio over at echoloft and see if he is willing to lend me his amp for a few hours. Thanks. :)
2100 Posted November 8, 2006 Posted November 8, 2006 Noted. I'll try talk to the guy who owns a Sunaudio over at echoloft and see if he is willing to lend me his amp for a few hours. Thanks. :) How will the SV-2A3 be able to drive you 1.6 man? :o Or you listen to the 1.6 at 1m away and only pure vocals with guitar kinda music? And btw it is a power amp, not integrated. Only SV-PM200 is integrated, and its only 4.5Wpc. These belong to the horns and fullranger driver (eg Lowther, Fostex) territory. Or at least a Primus 360 or Cabasse Bahia for multi-driver dynamic cone drivers. I think the best bet would be to get a 2nd hand Cayin like the A-88T and change the caps at Frankie's (he will be able to advise you on the "flavours"....Auntie Vong nearby sells the full range of Auricaps too so no issue) and tube roll a bit. Already will be very enjoyable. Die die want to enjoy SET magic, cheapest would be the mingda MC-805, but be sure to give it to Frankie to mod first (don't even try to operate with stock components, do a goggle and you will know). You can also try the Almarro 318B, lots of Jap components with a touch Chinese touch. I am not sure if that L-auditore 805 with 300B as driver integrated amp at 7-11 labs has been sold or not. 1.28k, moderately modded power supply + coupling caps with Mundorf Supreme Silver/Gold caps (expensive, damn transparent too). Confirm can drive your 1.6 if not nothing could liao. I have heard it, sounds pretty good. http://pachome2.pacific.net.sg/~teocc/UM_casea.htm The 4 mundorfs there already cost like 300+ http://www.echoloft.com/cgi-bin/buysell/YaBB.cgi?board=hifi&action=display&num=1162662380&start=0 number 3.
kwhv Posted November 8, 2006 Posted November 8, 2006 Thanks for the input Charcoal ! Heard the Sun audio 2A3 at a fellow echoloft bro's place last week and absolutely love the sound ! It's really sweet and lively. I know it will burst my budget by almost 100% but...... I'll need to seriously consider this amp and hope to audition it for a few more times before taking the plunge. Anyone has any comments on these 2 amps ? Is it good enough to drive 'difficult' speakers like Thiel ? :) Hmm.... It would be an interesting match. I assume you have listened to a modded Sun 2A3. I'm constantly surprise by how much drive this amp have. I have used it to drive monitor audio speakers with 88db/m/w and 8ohm impedence before. It's has no problem driving it. Excellent vocals, pace and timbre. However bass and dynamics were compressed at loud volumes. To unleash and enjoy the full glory of the Sun, you have to pair it with a good preamp and high efficiency speakers. 90db/m/w seem friendly but I dun think the Sun will be happy with the 4ohm nominal (3ohm minimal) impedence.
Dang1624705818 Posted November 9, 2006 Author Posted November 9, 2006 Thanks 2100 & kwhv. Will certainly check out a few more amps before committing. Hope to be able to go down to 7-11 lab these 1-2 weeks to check out their stuff. :)
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