Oh Boy, here we go!
LETS COMPARE TUBE AND SS AMPS. TECHNICAL
I am seeking some very technically minded people to chat about differences in sound quality, dbs, and power ratings. I have not dived into this much yet but in my past study, I find that some SS amps are uniquely rated (lie about it). Maybe there is special "sound watt" used when comparing input fusing and wire size to rated output. When looking at tubes, their rating for power is much lower. 50-120wpc seems about right. However, I hear people say it comes down to "current" BUT, current and watts are directly related. Since the voltage or wave amplitude depends on the sound to be reproduced, it only makes sense that the only variable is the current, thus the wattage. I run a Rotel RB1080 on my RF-7s at 400wpc. I have to wonder the difference in dbs from a comparable tube amp.
Sure sounds like tube is way more expensive but can really give some nice sound. My experience with tube is only on guitar amps and I would not touch a SS guitar amp now!
Has someone compared tube with SS directly for dbs, accuracy, THD, etc??
Sure sounds like tube is way more expensive but can really give some nice sound. My experience with tube is only on guitar amps and I would not touch a SS guitar amp now!
Has someone compared tube with SS directly for dbs, accuracy, THD, etc??
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- 12 posts total
I would suggest some background reading. I would seek out the chapter on amplification in Robert Harley's "The Complete Guide to High End Audio" for a general and relatively easy-to-understand discussion on amplification and some of the differences between solid state and tube amplification. I'd also read the section on speakers (because amplification is simply driving a load). Then, I would go to the Atma-sphere website and go to the "Papers" section to read the paper titled Debunking Common Power Amplifier Myths and the other titled Competing Paradigms in Amplifier and Loudspeaker Design, Test and Measurement. Knowing how tube amps create their "power" and how transistor amps create theirs, and understanding how speakers present a load to each particular kind of "power" will make things easier to get through the Atma-sphere papers though they may be able to be tackled on their own. |
- 12 posts total