New Cavalli Audio Liquid Glass Amplifier - Fall Release - Page 3

longbowbbs, the LG will work with both novals and octals, but not both at the same time. Nick also listened some 6sn7s. We probably should have take than picture too so you can see that arrangement.

Morbid, based on cost of building the pre-production unit my estimate is somewhere between the LF and the LL. This amp is more complicated than the LF in that it has so many more selections, particularly the multiple heater and plate voltages that allow it to handle a fairly wide variety of tubes. 

Also... this may be a stupid question, but this is going to be standard right as in not balanced right?

quite a valid question after all the requests for a balanced amp. The LG is single ended ie standard as you say. 

..dB

+1

Would also like to know why Alex continue to stray away from balanced.

The amps are high power enough for it not to matter (at least the LF was) in which case there's no real advantage, as I understand it. I could be way off of course.

Thus, it becomes a question of -- is the need for fully balanced discrete amp there enough to support the additional cost and complexity with a bigger footprint (or stacked boxes)?

I would be very interested in feedback on this.

I do not think Alex strays away from balanced but this is my take .  EDIT - I see AC  responded while I was admiring the blue skies ;-) 

There is no simple answer but there are 2 aspects to be considered...

1. The gain of the hybrid amps is mostly determined by the tubes and for the LF and LG it would be ludicrous to double this in a balanced design.

2. Without getting into the balanced vs SE debate , if a single ended amplifier is correctly designed and implemented, there are little to no benefits of a balanced design.

another consideration would be economic, to build a balanced amplifier with the same degree of fidelity would require duplication of most of the circuitry , this would naturally raise the manufacture cost for that particular design considerably.  

just my 2c ..dB

Fair question. It's not a matter of straying away from balanced, but more a matter of how to get there at reasonable cost and size. 

It is fairly easy to make balanced chip in a small space, but balanced discrete is pretty much double everything. Even if the amp is a real differential amp instead of just a bridged amp it takes more components and size and cost.

Thus, it becomes a question of -- is the need for fully balanced discrete amp there enough to support the additional cost and complexity with a bigger footprint (or stacked boxes)?

I would be very interested in feedback on this.

No, the cost increase wouldn't be double, but it wouldn't be trivial. I have learned painfully over the last year that the bigger things get the more they cost (obvious, but a very real factor in designing and manufacturing these amps).

So, while the LG is strictly SE, I tried to incorporate other features that LF owners have been asking for, including two selectable inputs, a loop out on input #1, and a preamp out (along with the selectable heater voltages and B+).

I know. I'm slowly catching up with you. :)

One note. The power switch is an LL switch painted black for the pre-production amp. The production switch will use a white LED to match the other indicators on the front panel. The switch and knob will be anodized black, not painted.