Small Tube Amps and Drug-like Sound
Hopefully the examination and categorization of small tubes amps will bridge the gap between everything we’ve talked about with respect to identifying drug-like sound characteristics and actually building systems that produce drug-like sounds.
As a little refresher [I think as much for me as you all]:
We are classifying things into 4 different kinds of systems:
Boy Toy systems: make loud noises
Gee Whiz systems: use really cool technology
Practical systems: are easy to listen to music on
Drug-like systems: evoke intense musical experiences
Drug-like sounds require three things:
1) A significant complexity [which perhaps triggers latent similar patterns of associations in the brain] which can be in the dynamic, harmonic, timing [we have experienced amazing effects with delays, and there is of course PRaT, as well as melodic interplay between threads of a melody], and detail domain: micro-dynamics, micro-harmonics [or very rich and/or pure harmonics], extremely fine timing, micro-details… Anything which adds [likely fractal-like] complexity
2) Something for our practical mind to focus on so it can ignore all the things that are wrong with the sound
3) No significant bad behavior
I want to say [to make our model as simple as possible] that 2) is largely personal preference and 3) is an absolute [for our purposes here]. So, for example, people who absolutely MUST have realistic dynamics [or deep soundstages, or whatever] in their system [which is fine], will never achieve a drug-like sound if they build a system that has insufficient harmonic integrity [we are not talking lean, we are talking Sahara desert].
Most people [if they are lucky!] build systems around 2) [personal preferences – what their practical mind demands] and then continually adjust cables and components to address the resultant 3) bad behavior caused by the way they built their system [unlucky people never even get to 2)]
[We see a lot of, dare I say it, weird 2) personal preferences [absolute MUST HAVE requirements] for just ONE of the following, strangely ignoring EVERYTHING ELSE about the sound: Soundstage width, soundstage depth, punch, room pressurization, air, bass detail, soundstage behind the speakers, soundstage in front of the speakers, absolutely no room interaction, etc. And every single person thinks that their personal preference is so obviously the most important thing about the sound and that everybody is trying to dupe them into thinking it is not :-). It was this observation that inspired much of the agnostic approach in the, for example, speakers guides in the Audiophile’s Guide to the Galaxy].
One approach to system building, which we do for a lot of people who are either like us [we pretty much want everything across the board to be equally great up to the point of unaffordability] or who do not know what their personal preferences are, is to build a system that satisfies what a REASONABLE person’s preferences should be for 2), with no bad behavior 3) up front, and then tune a single piece of equipment to be awesomely rich and transparent and provide the complexity [or is at least complexity capable] for drug-like sounds.
OK, getting to the small tube amps…
In order to build affordable drug-like systems the idea is to examine the range of small tube amps and the speakers they will drive [perhaps including some of the better solid-state amps as options for some speakers] and pick one. This will take care of most of the requirements of most people for 2) with minimal bad behavior 3). Then we will figure out how to add that extra special something [or preserve what is already there if the amp or speaker is the thing with the ‘special sauce’] to get the system from being Practical to being Drug-like.
… to be continued…
On the subject of drugs 😉 and sounds 🙂 and beers (yes please) there’s a new sheriff in town: the Magico Q5. I haven’t heard this Puppy, but Stereophile just objectively reviewed it and it sounds INCREDIBLE! It has the best microdynamics and is neither boxy, nor boomy. It looks like the Terminator when you take off the grills. In conclusion it is the best speaker in the world but I’m not sure if a small tube amp would work. What do you think? Leave your comments or questions below mine thanks.
I guess that I would say that for someone who has not heard these speakers, you are making quite a few assumptions. Isn’t it an oxymoron to use the words Stereophile and objective review in the same sentence? The Q5’s would not in my opinion be a good choice for a small tubed amplifier! Likewise, is there really one best speaker in the world? I believe that Mike has heard the Q5’s driven by Spectral electronics so perhaps he will comment on their sound.
Hi Your Rich Human Uncle,
It is hard for people to tell if you are being serious, ironic, sarcastic, or just trolling. I find a few well-placed 🙂 and 😉 help immensely in this regard.
The Q5 is a speaker for Gee Whiz type systems and is not useful for drug-like (or even beer-like :-)) systems and probably not in the top 10 for Boy Toy systems [because it is sooo difficult to drive it is hard to get an Impressive sound out of it].
Take care,
-Mike
the ” best stereo system ever designed ” is nothing but a thought experiment . any normal consumer today who spends more than 65 thousand usd on a high end music reproduction setup for their private home is hopelessly delusional . certain advanced audio products manufactured in europe and japan have long since lost touch with realistic price categories making them pointless and far beyond the law of diminishing returns . for twenty grand the martin logan clx art frame electrostatics ( still made in the united states ) paired with two very good subwoofers is far superior in every way to any bloated overbuilt complex multi dynamic driver speaker costing more than fifty thousand dollars . the clx’s are ideally driven by 300 watt tube amps also manufactured here in the states by either atma-sphere or vac . add to this high end combination the quality analogue and digital front end of your choice and you will have assembled a 65 thousand dollar high end music system capable of shaming most of the overpriced nonsense being sold to gullible music lovers for more than three times this price . it baffles the mind .
Hi doggrell3000,
I don’t see how your comment is relevant to this thread, or even this blog, per se, but it is such a wonderful example of the typical insecure-audiophile high-end audio forum post that I am afraid I just must poke fun at it.
These posts are always of the form: “My system at $____ is the best that a system can be and anyone who pays more for a system is a _________ (various insulting terms)”.
Usually the $ ____ amount is less than $65K, often it is around $5K, but it is always EXACTLY equal to the largest amount that the person wants to pay for the Best Stereo System in the WORLD.
It is both very important to these types of people that they not only have the ‘Best’, but – although they have this horrible, horrible suspicion that a person who pays more gets more – that in this case of the high-end audio stereo system world, the pinnacle is the EXACT moderately-priced system they have today in THEIR living room.
And because of this horrible nightmarish suspicion that it might not be the best, they crusade around the internet trying to convince other people they have the best by that old tried-and-true method of Attacking Those Who Might Disagree.
BTW, Martin Logan all seem to have very interesting midrange issues and it is not a speaker we necessarily recommend for our purposes here of creating systems with drug-like sounds.
I think the prototypical system design for this kind of setup above would be something like putting some cheap Bryston solid-state amps on very inexpensive Magnepan wall panels along with a subwoofer or two combined with a very high-quality tube pre and or tube digital [along with some decent cables and rackage]. A very similar system a few years ago at T.H.E. Show at CES was quite good. With the $44K Audio Aero LaSource and Rel subwoofers and Audio Note Lexus cable this would be quite a bit less than $65K, and a real drug-like sound system [yeah, using a Audio Aero Capitole instead of the LaSource would save you $35K, or even a good Audio Note transport/DAC or Emm Labs XDS1 would save you $20K – or you could (should) get a better amp – all of which would also be real drug-like system contenders].
OK.
As always, but it bears repeating, we reserve the right to delete any and all stupid trolling posts here. If you really need to do it, do it at the Asylum. That’s what it is there for.