Please Help me selecting the appropiate Tube amplifier

mahiruha

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Hello guys,
I have made my mind to go along with Lyrita audio amp. But my problem is which one to get. My main preference would be listening to vinyls and my room is 25 ft by 16 ft without any accoustic treatment and a full size snooker table in the middle. I am planning to get Harmony one speakers and Lync phono pre amplifiers. Have to check if the single driver of the speaker will be located above the snooker table otherwise I have to think of a different solution.Now my problem is the amp selection. Well Viren has 2A3 SET WHICH IS 3WATT/ CHANNEL , 6C33C SET integrated amplifier Single-ended stereo amplifier, 15 watts/channel and Reference Monoblock power amplifier Push-pull mono power amplifier, 30 watts ( should I go with two of these). Could you please suggest from the above three which will be best suited in my situation. I have to rely on you guy's opinion since I can't go to delhi to audition them.
Thanks in advance,
Mahiruha.
 
I might visit Viren this weekend (haven't fixed an appointment yet as I am not sure about myself either).
I will try to listen to harmony one with SET amp - do you want me to compare with the russian valve 15wpc amp? What music/ tracks would you like me to listen to? I may not have those tracks though as my music collection is very limited at this time.
What is your music pref? If you thought like me, I would preserve my SS system for "party" music, while using valve system for most music listening.

regards

Edit : also I was after the power myself when considering this amp, but now that I have a decent SS setup, I am not after power and mix match of speakers that much. So if you have a decent solid state rig, going for purer sounding SET may be a good idea.
Also - I think the best person to consult is Viren himself.
 
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Vinyl, 400ft room, tube amp and a snooker table to top it all. Seriously, you have some life, do you stay in Raj Bhavan or something.


On a different note, can you let me know what made you choose Lyrita. I am looking at good options for indian classical music and film music. This forum seems to recommend Lyrita as one of the options. I would like to know more about your experience.

Regards
 
I might visit Viren this weekend (haven't fixed an appointment yet as I am not sure about myself either).
I will try to listen to harmony one with SET amp - do you want me to compare with the russian valve 15wpc amp? What music/ tracks would you like me to listen to? I may not have those tracks though as my music collection is very limited at this time.
What is your music pref? If you thought like me, I would preserve my SS system for "party" music, while using valve system for most music listening.

regards

Edit : also I was after the power myself when considering this amp, but now that I have a decent SS setup, I am not after power and mix match of speakers that much. So if you have a decent solid state rig, going for purer sounding SET may be a good idea.
Also - I think the best person to consult is Viren himself.

Hello Anm,
thanks for your offer. Actually my dilema is since my room has this snooker table so the speakers are placed at one side of the table and I have to sit other side of the table due to space constraints. Hece the distance between the speaker and my listening position is roughly 20 ft. Now with vinyls I have noticed that I have to listen to 0 to -5 in my onkyo ( Max is 15)
for the sound to fill the room. that's why I want something which provides clarity as well as power. I am not after party music volumes I just want clarity that can fill my room. Regarding music choice I listen to everything that sounds good. You can try SUR , swadesh and slumdog millioare which has some techno music or anything that has good vocals and something with complex music signature.
thanks,
Mahiruha.
 
hi mahiruha,

as a user of viren's products and as someone who knows people who use his preamp and based on viren's suggestions this is the end result:

1. preamp - highly musical preamp, makes a brilliant partner with a solid state power amp for those who want rich tube sound and bass slam. also, one person has the preamp with viren's tube monoblocks and quite likes the combo.

2. the SET amps. viren suggests the 2A3 is better than the 6C33C amp. for those who want the ultimate sound pick this amp and pair it with the single drivers. as a bonus you can buy a 45 tube from ebay for bout 7k including shipping to india and you'll have a killer amp. (do some research about the 2A3 tube and the 45 tube and you'll know what i'm talking about. practically everybody on every forum raves about the 45 over the 2A3 and having heard it, i've seen it's justified 100%.)

3. the 6C33C amp will be good if you want SET sound with more conventional speakers that have lower sensitivity. the most famous amp with this tube is the lamm amp, russian made. you can google it.

4. i'd avoid the push pull amps and i think viren would recommend you do that too cos the sound of the SET is way ahead of a push pull amp.

5. you can always try the 2A3 amp going for quality first and if the volume is not enough with the single driver speakers you can change them for the 6C33C amp.

the best thing is to decide what you want and ask viren for his recommendation. mine was best sound hence the 2A3.

regards
 
i asked someone who came over on the weekend how many watts he though the amp was with volume at 11 o'clock and he said 60. he was quite surprised to find it was only 1.5 watts :D
 
On a different note, can you let me know what made you choose Lyrita. I am looking at good options for indian classical music and film music. This forum seems to recommend Lyrita as one of the options. I would like to know more about your experience.

Regards

hi srramanujam,

1. highly musical amp. lots of reviews on the forum you can just scroll through the threads.

2. good choice of tubes (2A3) and extremely affordable pricing.

3. very knowledgeable designer (viren) who is also very accessible. i regularly pick up the phone and talk to him, clarifying points i've come across on the net.

4. support, availability of tubes quickly, repair should anything go wrong, upgrading parts as and when he progresses in his designs. some of which you can do yourself under his guidance. eg i've replaced a capacitor, changing to a paper in oil one sent by him. i just did the soldering as per his instructions.

5. upgrade path to a better amp by trading in your old amp at very good value for money prices.


regards
 
so will the drivers be above the table or below it? Maybe Viren can measure the height of drivers from ground. The other issue is - sound will probably not reach your ears directly, but bounced off from table top and sides. As I can imaging your room. There should be absolutely nothing between you and the music :)

Is your current setup too in the same position and you find it satisfying?

Can you post pics/ youtube video of your setup?
I have SUR with me, swadesh and Slumdog CDs I don't have. Let me see if I can buy them before going there. Have you heard the Kandisa album from Indian Ocean? Viren has demoed it to me and I find it quite good on both his system and mine.
Clarity wise, I don't think there is an issue. Power wise also there shouldn't be an issue.

regards

Hello Anm,
thanks for your offer. Actually my dilema is since my room has this snooker table so the speakers are placed at one side of the table and I have to sit other side of the table due to space constraints. Hece the distance between the speaker and my listening position is roughly 20 ft. Now with vinyls I have noticed that I have to listen to 0 to -5 in my onkyo ( Max is 15)
for the sound to fill the room. that's why I want something which provides clarity as well as power. I am not after party music volumes I just want clarity that can fill my room. Regarding music choice I listen to everything that sounds good. You can try SUR , swadesh and slumdog millioare which has some techno music or anything that has good vocals and something with complex music signature.
thanks,
Mahiruha.
 
i will agree, if it is purely for the music, 2A3.

but, closer to the real world : 6C33C SET (i mean best of both).

viren is also into professional sound management for rooms (mostly commercial, of course and unfortunately). he would be in a position to guide on placement, damping, etc.
 
Hi stevie,

Can you tell me if the lyrita amp (1.5w) will pair with the wharf 9.2s i have? I am a complete noob, so pardon my ignorance. If they can, can you please pm me the app price of the amp?

Thanks,

Regards,
ash
 
hi ashwin,

it wont be an idea pair cos of the wharfedale's sensitivity. also the wharfedale's drivers are a woven material hence a little stiffer therefore a lot of the music signal will be wasted trying to make the driver move. all in all, not a good pairing. you'll need speakers like the mordaunt short ms902i bookshelves which, although they are 89 or so db sensitivity they seem to have a simpler crossover and will go quite loud. or monitor audio bronze bookshelves which are 91 or so db sensitivity. even tannoy mercury custom F1s ought to be good. stay clear of floorstanders unless they are single driver speakers. check pm for pricing.

regards

EDIT: the amp is 3 or 3.5 watts with the 2A3 tubes it comes with. 1.5 watts i was referring to the 45 tube which i've got separately.
 
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Hello,
Below are few pics of my setup and the view I get from my listening position. Is it absolutely essential to be able to see the speakers to listen to good music. Please suggest if it is a hopeless case regarding speaker position or there are some ray of light behind those cumulonimbus clouds.:)

Thanks.
 
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so will the drivers be above the table or below it? Maybe Viren can measure the height of drivers from ground. The other issue is - sound will probably not reach your ears directly, but bounced off from table top and sides. As I can imaging your room. There should be absolutely nothing between you and the music :)

Is your current setup too in the same position and you find it satisfying?

Can you post pics/ youtube video of your setup?
I have SUR with me, swadesh and Slumdog CDs I don't have. Let me see if I can buy them before going there. Have you heard the Kandisa album from Indian Ocean? Viren has demoed it to me and I find it quite good on both his system and mine.
Clarity wise, I don't think there is an issue. Power wise also there shouldn't be an issue.

regards

Hello Anm,
have posted the pics. If you have SUR that is enough. No need to get other cds. Its has some very nice songs. Jab sham dhale is one of my favourite song.
Thanks.
 
hi mahiruha,

where do you sit to listen to music? there doesnt seem to be a chair only speakers then pool table.

regards
 
hi mahiruha,

where do you sit to listen to music? there doesnt seem to be a chair only speakers then pool table.

regards

well the picture is taken while seated in the chair which I use to listen to music. Basically I have tried to capture the elevation(In civil engineering terms) I see When I listen to music.
Thanks.
 
hi mahiruha,

so basically even in your current setup you cant see the speakers and there's a huge pool table in the middle! maybe you use the section after the pool table and orient your speakers with their back against the left wall in the pic? you'll have a wall to your right and open space to your left but at least you wont have a big blockage in the middle! or simple shift your pool table back and put your chair in front of the pool table, in a clear line with your speakers?

regards
 
Hi - I have fixed an appointment with Viren for tomorrow morning 9am and will be taking these pics to him. I think since you have a pool table, you can't just push it to a side - you need space all around to be able to play pool.
I think it is a space to play party music :)
I think there is a big roadblock between you and music - that table.
I have located the Sur CD and playing it right now. I am really liking it on my JBL + HK6550 - I can hear a lot of details - though I do not have capability (yet) of reviewing in terms of soundstange width and depth (though I can feel there is some distance between instruments some are in the middle some are to the extreme left or right. Kavita Krishnamurti is singing in the center.

Do you have another room to place your "reference" valve system in? A study or something that has free space between you and speakers?
 
Hi - I have fixed an appointment with Viren for tomorrow morning 9am and will be taking these pics to him. I think since you have a pool table, you can't just push it to a side - you need space all around to be able to play pool.
I think it is a space to play party music :)
I think there is a big roadblock between you and music - that table.
I have located the Sur CD and playing it right now. I am really liking it on my JBL + HK6550 - I can hear a lot of details - though I do not have capability (yet) of reviewing in terms of soundstange width and depth (though I can feel there is some distance between instruments some are in the middle some are to the extreme left or right. Kavita Krishnamurti is singing in the center.

Do you have another room to place your "reference" valve system in? A study or something that has free space between you and speakers?
Hello Anm,
it is really kind of you to be asking Viren about this problem. Moving the snooker table is out of question as it weighs almost 1000 Kg and its not really a monolithic structure. I guess another possible solution is to get a custom made single driver where the driver will be located above the table and I guess it will work just fine. There are other rooms in the house but believe me listening music in a big room adds another dimension to the music. I don't know much but I feel it gives a bigger sound stage. Lets see if a speaker can be devised in that fashion.I will also talk to Viren tomorrow about a plausible solution.
thanks.
 
Hi Mahiruha,

Can the speakers be placed nearer to your sitting position on the two sides of the table by side of the longer walls (as nearer to you as possible to avoid any blockage from the table sides)? This arrangement will require long speaker cables, so you have to use high quality thicker cables. Just a thought.

Regards.
 
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