Why no threads on OTL amps?


I looked through the old thread list and didn't find anything on OTL amps. How come? Does nobody like them? Is there something wrong with them? Would you buy/notbuy one, and why? If you would buy one, which one do you like best? I always thought OTL was the best, but there doesn't seem to be much interest here on this forum for them.
twl
Hello Kenl,
I am going to try to answer the last two messages. Kenl, Preference Audio is a brand new company which is from Quebec. I had a chance to listen to these speakers(which are appropriately named "Baby Bears" as they are large 175lbs each) and they were quite nice. They use a Horn Loaded tweeter and a ten inch woofer. They were extremely well built. They are also quite efficient. 93db, so the Berning was really driving them with utterly no strain. I was able to get a card as well. The designers names are Claude, and Guy, and can be reached at (450)349-0021. These speakers were wonderful.
In reference to the question about coverage of Berning products at the show, I doubt you will see any. Though it was by far one of the best sounding rooms in the show, David Berning does not advertise, and therefore most likely will not be picked up by many of the magazines. I did see Audio Asylum in the room taking pictures however, so maybe something will show up there. For any other information including reviews refer to the David Berning website, or Allan@Hellosimplymusic.com Allan would answer any questions you might have. I Hope this has been of help.

Kris
I think OTL is alive and well but many are put off by the incredable heat these amps put out except for Transcendent and I also think that the low watt/ high efficency lowther type horn speaker crowd is taking over big time. You can't beat the dynamics of this type of system with any normal speakers/ high power amps period. I'll take a Art Audio Px25 (6 watts)amp and a pair of $400 Loth-x speakers over any 40watt and up system just for the musicality and emotional impact.
Definitely include the Berning 270 for OTL's which put out little heat, the 270 puts off very little heat, in fact less than any other OTL I can think of. It also does not use much power from the AC - 100W@idle & 300W max. and increases output power into lower impedences which no other OTL does. This is really breakthrough technology for OTL tube amplifiers.

Regards,
Chris
I took my ZH270 to my local high end dealers' for him to listen to. It was sitting on a rack, and a customer came in and saw it and asked the dealer how he could cook anything in such a small microwave! Later, a little kid came in with his parents, saw the 270, and said "Wow! An EZ-bake oven!" True stories, but may also illustrate why the 270 sometimes doesn't seem to "get any respect"--it just doesn't look as impressive as some of the others, with rows and rows of output tubes in each mono-block.
Regarding Berning, my dream amp is the Seigfried: a 300b ZH type OTL w/12wpc and dual volume pots to allow direct input. It's killer. And like the ZH270, it will drive low impedances with authority. Talk about perfection, a 300b, pure class A single ended triode, ZH type OTL,with low heat/low power consumption, 20 year tube life, direct input capable, and drives difficult loads and is extremely reliable. And I believe, auto bias adjusting. I think it's around $7500. I'll bet it will squash the Tenor amps flatter than a pancake. Looks really cool, too. BTW, I have the Berning MicroZ OTL(1wpc,pure class A triode) and it is a jewel. I have NOS tubes(Mullard 6201,Sylvania 6sn7wgt) in it and there is no way I could describe the performance level(that you would believe, anyway). You have to audition one of these, with good single driver high-eff. speakers. It will knock your socks off, and you will never think the same way again about low power amps. All the accolades spoken above about the ZH270 also apply to the MicroZOTL. If you choose your speakers to match it, you will never need more amplifier.(Maybe a separate sub/amp if you like that set up). Also, it makes a great bi-amp system with one on each side for inexpensive OTL bi-amping if you like 2 way speakers, or even a crystal clear tweeter amp for multi-amp systems. It even has a headphone output jack. No one that has listened to mine believed it is only a $750 amp. Very highly recommended.(It will also run on a 12vdc battery which completely eliminates power grunge problems and the entire 120vac power supply section, or you can just plug it into the wall if you want, no wall-wart, uses IEC connector so you can use the super duper power cords, too.