[tbdoah]

Other than the MKII's external PSU, are there any other differences between the two?

Thanks much

 

[tbdoah]

C'mon, nobody?

The knob and switch are in opposite position positions as well.

 

[gsferrari]

My knob and switch are right where they should be...

AFAIK none of the girls have complained so far...

OK seriously - I am eager to hear more about the comparison between these amps because you can get a nice used "old" MG Head OTL for almost half the price of the new one...if the new one is NOT significantly better then i'll be happy with the old one...

 

[tbdoah]

Well, in my response from ASL, the outboard PSU is the only difference between the two.

 

[Born2bwire]

The external PSU was added to address some of the drawbacks to the MG Head design. The most notable is the fact that the power switch is in the front and the AC lines from the outlet go directly to this switch passing near the left channel power tube. This often creates the hum heard in the left channel. You could do things like twisting the wires (or in my case removing them and replacing them with coax) but generally if your unit had the problem you couldn't get rid of it completely. So Joe first tried to lengthen the chassis to allow for more clearage (he did this in the OTL ver2) but this didn't help in my unit. In the end Joe just moved the whole power supply assembly outside of the amp. He may have changed some of the components used, but I don't recall if he did do this. He generally had a habit of changing a few things between versions. I believe the Jensen Multicaps were one change and he's also changed the potentiometers once or twice. If the unit doesn't have any of the technical problems then I would get it. You're correct in saying that your getting a great deal, hell these amps are a great deal at MSRP.

 

[tbdoah]

Well, the guy who is selling it says he's never heard the hum in the left channel....so I guess his is okay.

Thanks for your input, knowing you have the OTL and OTL -H.

What the heck, is $350 shipped to me from Canada a good deal then on a brand new MKII? Or should I opt for an MKI with better tubes for less?

 

[Born2bwire]

I haven't sat down and compared the two amps side by side. I have heard the OTL MK II and I did own the MG Head DT (man, I just can't get away from this amp) but I never got the chance to compare them all side by side (and seeing how mine's modded with upgraded parts it wouldn't be fair). Tubewise, I think a great set would be a pair of Ei EL84's (matched) and a GE 5751WA Triple-Mica Blackplate. The Ei can be had for like $20-$25 and the GE $25-$30. If the amp doesn't have any technical problems, then the only thing I'm aware that would be different is the external power supply. But as of yet I do not think that Joe Lau has released an upgraded power supply (He does plan to sometime) so for the moment the ability to change the PS isn't an advantage. In fact, you can change the power cord for the older amp and not for the external power supply. So it's really up to you, I don't think there's any downside with going either route.

 

[tbdoah]

Thank you very much

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