Hi,

Having only been bought up in an SS environment I am a 'tube virgin'.

So if I want to 'dip my feet' into the world of 'tubes' what would you recommend as a starting point.

Not knowing how this works, is it sacrosanct to mix 'tube' & 'SS'.

Can you point me in the right direction, please.

willie

not at all. tube players, amps and pre-amps can all work well with other types of ss gear. a case in point is biamping speakers with ss driving the lows and tubes on the highs. i did this briefly with my speakers when i had a tube amp on loan. the combo makes for some very good sound.

Most generally available and well loved would be some Push-Pull EL-34 based power amp.

Then, of course, you have triodes, especially of the SET variety. Can be quite expensive, though.

In between, you have KT-88´s, 6550´s, 6A6´s, etc....

As for pre-amps, you can hardly go wrong with anything 12AX7 based.

My main system comprises a lot od SS and tubes, and I just love it.

Jorge

You also have Hybrids with the tube input and SS output They sound good and are a little cheaper.

IMO, Push-Pull valve topology is a good start. I've been dealing with tubes for a long tme because in my audio setup i have a Musical Fidelity X-10D ( tube buffer ) for a long time now, but in fact I'm really a newbie in tube amps since i bought my first tube amp two and a half years ago at ebay: A chinese clone of the Sophia Baby for cheap. It's became a very good little amp after i'd made a few simple mods.
You can find a lot of these little EL34 Push Pull amps on ebay UK, or you can try to find them in some European retailer. IMO, they are a good way to start.

A example of a hybrid sweet little amp:
http://www.ornec.com/Bada_PH-32_mini_amplifier_QQC101700C

6SN7 Tubes
Toshiba J200/K1529 Mosfets
Solen High-grade Capacitors
Alps Volume Control

KT66 monoblocs!

If you were in the states I would sell you an amp cheap. It is an A-34. It is dented.

Great going Greg.

Those are about the hardest amps to find...

Hi,

Thanks for all the replies.

Whenever I post a post & I get replies I always 'google' things if you mention a piece of hifi, etc, that way I get a mental picture & if need be I can print the article off for future reference.

I had looked at the KT66 monoblocks & I already knew that they were like 'rocking horse s..t, but thanks bolly, you have the same sense of humour as me, nice one!

Clint e, can I please ask what you mean by 'push pull valves' please & could you look at these aswell, please.

http://www.pinkfishmedia.net/forum/showthread.php?t=66672

http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue15/shanling.htm

http://www.usatubeaudio.com/shanling-stp80.php

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...e=STRK:MEWAX:IT

Have also scanned Ebay.co.uk today for tube stuff also like'rocking horse s..t!!!

Thanks,

willie

PS Forgot to ask, when I was on Ebay there were a LOTS of tube stuff for sale from China, is this worth looking at, I know clint e has a 'chinese clone', but I'm not 'street wise' yet re valve gear, just a thought though!!

i dont understand the concept very well, so for me this was a good explanation that helped;

from http://www.tpub.com/content/neets/14180/css/14180_41.htm

Thanks Dingus,

Went straight to that link, but I couldn't see the diagrams, I must have a programe missing on my PC, it crashed recently & I must have missed installing something.

Thanks,

willie

Willie,

There are two main output topologies for tubes, Single-ended and Push Pull.

Read chapter 6.6.1 and 6.6.2 of this Wikipedia link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tube_sound#Push-pull_amplifiers

You might also consider one of Grant Fidelity's B-283 tube" buffers". You can run it through a tape monitor loop and see if you like the results.

Hi itlldue,

Thanks for that input, from what I can see 'tube gear' is used more in the states than it is here in the UK!!

Have looked the b-283 up, interesting concept & not too pricey!!

This is one in the USA,

http://tradingpost.sweetwater.com/24724-us...-tube-processor

I need to listen to something played via tube to appreciate how they sound!

Thanks itlldue appreciate yours & others help.

willie

I have bought from this guy.http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Rich-Ton-Audio__W0QQ_armrsZ1