[Necrolic]

Considering getting a pair of T1s, and because of this I'm just doing some research ahead of time to prepare. Now while I understand that my C2 will more than likely power them quite well, that a tube amplifier well get the job done a fair bit better.

What would be my best option for a tube amp sub-$500 to pair with them? If it makes a difference, I primarily listen to any and all types of rock, including a lot of acoustic stuff.

Also, I've never had a tube amp before, and I remember reading something about them needing some warm up time before they sound their best after you turn them on. Is this true, or am I just imagining things that I think I read?

 

[gbacic]

You're right about the warm up time, but it isn't very long. About 30 seconds for my 332.
I've heard that Darkvoice amps work well with Beyerdynamics (880 etc), so maybe you can find a used 337 for <=$500. The 332s should be good, too, and it is less than 500 new.

 

[Necrolic]

I was looking at both Darkvoice and Woo Audio right now, I don't know about many other companies in that price range for tube amps.

 

[debitsohn]

i sold my kidney for a WA6 to power my T1 when they get here.

 

[Necrolic]

The problem I have with Darkvoice is that their good models all have dual-volume controls, and it seems like it'd be a massive pain trying to keep those even all the time, so I may just go with Woo unless somebody has a better suggestion in that price range.

 

[gevorg]

I would start here:

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f5/rev...e-amps-402585/

 

[Necrolic]

If I were to up the budget to $750, would I be best off going with a WA6 w/ Sophia 247B upgrade, DV337, or saving some money with an Audiotailor Jade (could always get a tube upgrade here).

Now the first 2 sound great, but the Jade is also very highly regarded, and about half the price leaving room for tube upgrades. What would you guys recommend? If you recommend the Jade, are stock tubes good or is there something in my budget I could upgrade with?

 

[tintin47]

I think that you should up the budget to at least the league of the headphones. If you are buying high end dynamic headphones it seems like you should have a high end dynamic amp.

If you don't have the money to go big now, I think that you should buy a decent used amp (so you can sell it w/o loss and buy a better one) or just use the amp you have for a few months until you get the money to buy a great amp.

 

[mrarroyo]

I would look for an used amp to power this or other cans. For example:

1. Mapletree Ear Purist HD
2. Musical Fidelity X-Can V2 or V3 specially w/ the PinkFLoyd Mods
3. Used Monarchy Audio NM24, and use the line stage w/ an RCA to 1/4" adapter cable to power high impedance cans like the Senn or the Beyer. Currently there are two being sold in Audiogon for under $850. Since the NM24 has a fantastic sounding tube and solid state output dacs you could sell your Audio-GD to help pay for the NM24.

Good luck, although ideally you should attend a meet to listen to the candidates.

 

[Necrolic]

Yeah unfortunately no meets tend to happen near me.

I'm really liking the looks of the WA6 right now. Can anybody comment on whether it is a substantial improvement over the Jade or not?

Also, my C2 is said to be a pretty good amplifier, and a few T1 owners said they think it would do just fine with the T1s. How big of an improvement do you think I'd see with an OTL amp over the C2?