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Why not more on 845 SETs?

As a brand-new owner of a Bel Canto SETi40 int amp,(bought used) I was intrigued to see very little in the fora on the subject of 845 SET amps an A'gon. It seems that this provides the best of both worlds -adequate power to drive most moderately sensitive speakers- 40 Class A SET WPC with SET sound. What is the downside to this approach and why don't more of the SET groupies have higher powered amps, giving them much more latitude in speaker selection? I drive 4 ohm 87 db sensitivity Totem 1 Signatures quite adequately with this amp. Is it beacuse of transformer issues, difficulty in finding adequate designs, size or the feeling that this is not a true "SET sound"?
I would like to hear SET-owners' reasons, if possible.
springbok10
budrew
467 posts
 
The 845M tubes are bright (light-wise)! I understand from the Supertnt.com web site that they are no longer available. There is a lengthy explanation about this; from the clunky Chinese-to-English translation I gather they are redesigning them.
711smilin
513 posts
 
Which 845 tubes, do you guys recommend?
gunbei
2,327 posts
 
Thanks for the welcome Zt000. I'm definitely open to more elation, heheh.

The tubes that I have in there right now are a pair of standard 845s I purchased from Upscale Audio. I plan on looking into the 845B as well.

In the past, I've spent a lot of cash on NOS 6SN7s and 6922s for my other components, but was hoping to stay away from the NOS 845s because of their even higher cost. However, one thing that makes me feel better about this tube is the long life expectancy I've been reading about.

What are some of the 845 variants I should look into, and what are their corresponding prices? What are their sonic charactersitics?

Thanks!
zt000
30 posts
 
Gunbei, first, I'd recommend that you get the best 12ax7 you can get. Mullard, Telefunken or Amperex are good place to start. I'd recommend paying extra for premium-matched quad. They sound better and last longer. 845s are kind of sensitive to input tubes. Once you settle with input tubes you can play with 845s. I recommend Billington Gold as a very good starting point. Both 12ax7 and 845 will last 8000 to 10,000 hours. Once, you settle on tubes, you can forget about them for many years.

http://www.bel-tubes.co.uk/gold.htm
abrahavt
101 posts
 
1. There is the standard 845 tubes
2. There is the 845B tubes which are supposed to sound better than the standard 845 tubes
3. There is the 845M or metal plate. It seems the production of these may have stopped till modifications are made. Be careful when using these tubes as the current requirements are different and some amps may not be able to handle without modifications. In the Dehavs they have to be biased a whole division lower on the scale.

4. 845 NOS Tubes. They cost a fortune and sound a bit better than the chinese 845s.
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