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 Now online (1)recycle ...and 97 guests Last 5 registered Oplandisks nothingstar N_loop yipe foxtrotromeo Browse members... |
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I'm outta the loop on Tube Amps and what all they actually do for your listening experience. I've just recently sold the only speakers I had for my laptop/Ipod etc etc and am saving up for something great, Fatman Itubes caught my attention but I really dont understand what all the Tubes will do for me. Ive heard they really thicken things up and make it all warm and liquidy. Are Tube amps worth it for making an amazing soundsystem? Also was wondering if any of you own the Harmon Kardon Soundsticks II and if you could give me a review on their performance. IF you have any other suggestions to a multimedia speaker system your'e running on plz give me the name and I'll check it out. I'm just tired of shit sounding slightly off... |
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If you like blasting your music, I'd stick with a solid state amp. If you have a nice turntable and a medium/small listening space, I'd consider a tube amp. Like you said, they have a warmer sound and they look cool. If I had some money to build an accurate sounding system, I would probably get a mid-priced solid state integrated amp and some decent bookshelf speakers (subwoofer later). I picked Axiom Audio speakers and a used NAD amp when I was going to build one. Instead I got a pair of good headphones and saved a lot of money. Here's a link that might help you out: Also, I had a Harmon Kardon CD player that was garbage. I don't know what sound sticks are. |
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Both the soundsticks and the itube are for pc/ipod, and let me tell you right now: Don't waste your money. As he said, if you have analogue gear like a turntable, you could consider tube amps. It could also work if you have a really really good cd player, but if you're going to be playing stuff from your ipod or computer, you won't need much, as the sound won't really get much better than it is at the source. If I was you, I'd get a proper system, a good amp, some good speakers and a turntable and/or cd player. Then I'd delete all my mp3s and buy all the albums on cd or vinyl. |
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Thank you all for the input. Tubes can wait till I've got nothing better to spend on. Still want to know your systems of choice// |
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My hifi system is made of: Technics 1210 mk5 turntable Rotel RA6 Integrated amp Bowers and Wilkins 683 speakers Sony crap CD player (gotta change it as soon as money comes) Some good advice already given... If your source is a computer and MP3 player... well... compression artifacts will be more noticeable... You basically need a good source (mine is the ttable). Then the amp. Integrated amps are a less expensive solution. Whatch out for phono pre, because if not included, u will have to buy it separatedly. And the speakers. Multimedia speakers are crap. Those "sticks" look like crap... IMO... Go for bookshelf or columns. Mines are columns, so they go down enough to avoid the cost of adding a sub. You could also consider the option of amped monitors (Genelec, Mackie or if u r on a budget, Behringer truth). |
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Oh, and forget about the tubes. They add distortion. They have to be replaced. Solid state is nowdays better. Think of TVs. First ones used vacuum tubes, but nowdays that technolgy is so outdated... Same for audio. Tubes give some colour to the sound, and that's not what u need in a good system. U need fidelity, high fidelity... |
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What is the actual difference between the mk5 and the mk2? The specs vary from shop to shop... |
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I think it's improved quartz speed lock, power button redesigned to avoid accidental turn off... and... hmmm... dunno! |
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Hmm 'cause I've seen some specs (on the actual technics page) saying it's got 16% pitch, while others say it only has 8%. Then, some have been claiming you can adjust the brakes to get slower/faster braking, but others don't mention that at all... |
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Pitch is 8%, but adjustble braking is there for sure... |
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The mk5G has extra pitch and added bling features. It costs a lot more. I use the mk5. The improvements are dipless pitch so when moving pitch slider there isn't that horrible bump at 0. If you want it to be quartz locked exactly at 0% press the button. As unabomber also suggested, power switch is slightly recessed to avoid accidental power down. The cue lamp (pop up light) uses a white LED instead of a filament bulb for a much longer life. There is a small adjuster under the platter for the brake. Spin the platter until the hole in it lines up with the adjuster and tweak it with a screwdriver. I found that the factory settings were spot on anyway. You can make it brake much more, but it spins the platter backwards it brakes so much! The mk5 has corrected the tiny annoyances of the mk2. I would say it is the ultimate 1200/1210. 8% pitch as mk2. If you want the extra pitch and bling (like blue LEDs and crap like that) and want to spend a lot more, get the mk5G. Technics 1200/1210 are actually great for audiophiles, they just don't know it yet! |
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Yeah, I know the mk5g has it, but some sites claimed the mk5 had it as well... I've seen the 5g in a window.. haha, gold! Haha, if you're a true audiophile, belt drive is the way to go, but then you can't do any of the fun stuff. |
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Do belt drive tables have a way of measuring the angular velocity of the platter? Direct drive ensures the motor is on speed and doesn't fluctuate and since the platter is directly coupled to it, the platter is too. With belt drive the coupling is in-direct. Sounds like they need a detector on the platter to correct the motor speed. I doubt they have this. I tend to think that audiophiles suffer diminishing returns on their expensive kit and try to convince themselves their rip off stuff is worth it. Maybe I'm wrong. |
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Well.. as the really high-end players are belt drive, I'm pretty sure they somehow manage to make it work.. it wouldn't be high-end if they didn't; it's probably possible to engineer the platter and support structure so that you'll get exact speed on the platter even with a belt drive. The problem with direct drive is that more "mechanical noise" is transferred directly into the platter -> record -> stylus. |
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There are in fact some boxes to control the rotation speed on belt drive turntables... And as Mastah says, audiophile turntables try to put all mechanical stuff outside of the platter, for example, there are some with deatached motor and power supply... |
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It also seems rotational stability is another perk of those thick heavy platters: More mass needs more variation for its speed to vary than less mass; the platter in itself helps keep its own speed stable. Then there are optical sensors on some turntables. |
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I can see a super heavy platter and isolated motor being an improvement, but my point was about diminishing returns. By that I mean the relationship between money spent and performance increase is not linear. As one spends more money, the performance initially increases, but levels out then reaches a point where spending more money only gives marginal performance. I believe that most audiophiles from the general population (i.e. not very rich) would be best off with at technics turntable. If people have silly amounts of money to spend then they can probably do a lot better, but they would need to spend lots getting a good preamp, power amp, speakers and making them selves an anechoic chamber or whatever is in vogue these days. I guess it depends on your definition of audiophile. Surely a true audiophile lives away from tectonic fault lines, in a house built on rubber foundations 10 miles away from any neighbours and an amplifier that goes up to 11! |
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the guy who gave the sonic t-amp a massively positive review said he wouldnt be able to distinguish it from his tube amps or something. it could just save you a few thousand bucks. |
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Yeah, you need a lot of money to get something proper, but even in the lower price classes, if the turntable is only for listening, the belt drives are better.. like the clearaudio emotion or the project rpm-5. The emotion costs about the same as the 1210, but it's just tons better for listening (I have listened to one, yes, and, granted, that was in a store on electrostatic speakers, which kind of automatically "opens up" the music, but it did indeed sound very very clear and, as they say, transparent. |
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