[AppleheadMay]

Did anybody here hook up some speakers to the WA5?
I wonder if it could drive speakers like Tannoy Autograph Mini, SF Cremona Auditor, SF Minima or B&W 805.
Also, floorstanders from these brands seem to have a higher efficiency on paper than the 2-way models. I can't imagine the Woo driving floorstanders?

Really interested in this since I seem to use my speakers for nothing more than background music since I got into headphones. That said I still do want them to be driven properly and sound like they should. A WA5 with a couple of quality 2-way speakers would save me the cost of a power amp. And rack space for another headphone amp.

 

[monsieurguzel]

I bought a Woo 5 for this very reason...I mostly listen to my headphones but sometimes would like to put on some speakers in the background. To me the Woo 5 fit the bill perfectly since it is a pre amp and power amp both in one, plus people pay killer money for good 300b amps, which the WA5 is(but not top tier). As for speakers, i would go for high efficiency speakers of at least 90 db+' whether it is a full range or two way monitor. A few that come to mind are the Zu Essence, Zu Druid, Klipsch Horn, Rethm Saadhana, and Omega Super 6 or 8, which are all great high efficiency speakers of difference price range.

 

[mikeymad]

I am with monsieurguzel....

I have hooked up my WA5 to a couple speakers (B&W 802, Mission bookshelf), but nothing efficient, and the sound was pretty much crap. But I tried it out on a horn loaded speaker I make, based on the Klipsch La Scala (over 100db/watt) and it did great.

Any of the speakers you mentioned - Tannoy Autograph Mini (88db), SF Cremona Auditor (88db), SF Minima (84db) or B&W 805 (88db), Are just not efficient enough for the wa5 to power, and ohms drop to around 4.

Don't really worry too much about how big the speaker is. look at the ohm rating across the frequency band (some speakers drop to 2 ohms - not good for this amp).. and an efficiency rating well into the 90s+... As an example I was going to look into a pair of Klipsch speakers to play around with that has 96dB @ 1watt/1meter and 8ohm... woo wants to see 8ohms.

Cheers,

 

[AppleheadMay]

Thanks for the info both.
I will have to look around a bit keeping in mind the spec requirements you gave me. Nice to see some brand names mentioned too, gives me a good place to start.
But apart from finding them on the web I will have to check out what can be found here in Belgium too. I really can't order a pair of speakers on the web without hearing them first.
And then there's looks. Sound is more important of course, but my wife wants good looks too. She does like the look of big speakers though, she prefers the 802 to the 803 look for example. And we both like something woodie, preferably not too modern looking.

On another note, any idea how hot these tubes get?
Would it be possible to put the amp in an open rack with a wooden shelf only an inch above it? Or will that give me the fine scent of a nice bbq?
I have a little tube amp myself, a LD MkIII and I find the tubes don't get all that hot even after hours of playing. I wonder if those bigger tubes get really hot.

 

[monsieurguzel]

The tubes on the Woo 5 get pretty hot but nothing abnormally hot compared to other tube amps. I find that the larger tubes like EML 5U4G dissipate heat better than the NOS rectifiers and thus stay cooler. Also the top of the transformer boxes can get quite warm but never to the point of being unformoftable to touch. I would personally as Jack at Woo Audio about whether he thinks the dimensions of your rack will be enought to accommodate the heat of a Woo 5.

 

[AppleheadMay]

Ah, thanks! Doesn't sound all that bad.
I have a Marantz PM7200 KI that can be switched to Class A and when I run it like that for a while it gets pretty hot too. I think a tube amp won't be much of a problem either.
Anyway, I'll have to wait for a while with the tube amp, just found me a Stax SRM-717.
You wouldn't have a nice pair of black O2's that you want to get rid of by any chance?

 

[monsieurguzel]

Haha I'm glad you were able to find another 717 finally...where did you end up getting it? You'll have wait for the black O2s...haven't even received them yet but I surely do hope that I'll really like them

 

[AppleheadMay]

I got one from a member here, from th US. He'll change the voltage for me.
Still has to ship though. Can take a coiuple of weeks.
Now I'm watching out for an O2. Can't really hook my earbuds to the Stax can I.

 

[AppleheadMay]

Could the WA5 drive these Tannoy Glenairs? (Specs below)
Sensitivity and impedance looks good, the recommended amp power is another story.

Glenair
PERFORMANCE
Recommended amplifier power50 - 225 Watts
Continuous power handling135 Watts RMS
Frequency response32Hz - 25kHz -6dB
Sensitivity95dB (2.83 Volts @ 1 metre)
Nominal impedance8 Ohms
DRIVE UNITS
Dual Concentric™ high frequency33mm (1.75”) aluminium alloy dome with Tulip WaveGuide™
Dual Concentric™ low frequency380mm (15.00”) treated paper pulp cone with HE twin roll fabric surround. 52mm (2.00”) edge wound voice coil
Dispersion90 degrees conical
CROSSOVER
Frequency1.1kHz
TypeBi-wired, hard wired passive, low pass 2nd order LF, 1st order HF
CONSTRUCTION
Enclosure typeTwin rear ported
Volume115L (4 cu. ft.)
Dimensions1100 x 460 x 448mm
(43.50 x 18.00 x 22.00”)
Weight45kg (99 lbs)
FinishCherry veneer with solid cherry trim detail

 

[n3rdling]

How big is the room and how far away are you sitting?

 

[mulveling]

Quote:

Originally Posted by AppleheadMay /img/forum/go_quote.gif Could the WA5 drive these Tannoy Glenairs? (Specs below) Sensitivity and impedance looks good, the recommended amp power is another story.

I've heard the Glenair, both 10" and 15" versions. They're AWESOME speakers, but you'll be doing them a disservice with only 9 Watts (even at close-ish range, say 7-9 feet). It's not that it can't be done. At 95dB/Watt, even 9 Watts can go pretty loud with pop recordings lacking a large dynamic range, and it should sound great at moderate volume levels with most recordings.

However, these speakers (especially the 15") have the capability for outstanding dynamics at left-like levels - and they like to be driven by amps with the power to provide that. Furthermore, they're plenty resolving enough that you WILL hear the compression, higher distortion levels, lowered bandwidth, and loss of detail from driving a tube amp near its rated power. The more headroom you have - the cleaner these speakers will play. When a good recording takes on a life of its own, it's really something to behold.

I agree completely with the recommended amp power in the specs. 50 Watts is really a starting point for these speakers.

 

[AppleheadMay]

@n3rdling: 5m deep by 8,5m long by 2,4m high. I'm sitting 4m from the speakers.

@mulveling: that is more or less what I read in a review I found yesterday too.
Probably not a good idea to underamp them. Also, I read these speakers benefit of amps, preams and sources that are not warm sounding since they seem to have a pretty warm character themselves.

 

[mulveling]

Quote:

Originally Posted by AppleheadMay /img/forum/go_quote.gif @n3rdling: 5m deep by 8,5m long by 2,4m high. I'm sitting 4m from the speakers. @mulveling: that is more or less what I read in a review I found yesterday too. Probably not a good idea to underamp them. Also, I read these speakers benefit of amps, preams and sources that are not warm sounding since they seem to have a pretty warm character themselves.

It's a relative thing. They sound pretty darn neutral to my ears. Given a choice I still wouldn't pair them with warm gear, though. Neutral-ish does it all the way

I haven't heard them together, but something like a PS Audio GCA250 (now discontinued) on the used market might be the way to go, amp'ing the Glenairs properly on a reasonable budget. I love good tube gear but it gets kinda pricey at the > 100 Watts level.

To be fair I'd driven my 93dB/Watt Tannoys with a pair of 25 Watt tube monoblocks for much of the past year - and it can sound really great (they WILL clip on high dynamic range orchestral, they WILL compress when pushed hard) - but my new 250 Watt tube monoblocks are just that much better

4m is a pretty healthy distance (though the ceiling is kinda low) - you'll be down 12dB from the 1m spec for distance, though you get to add back in for stereo (+3dB) and room gain (maybe +3dB?).

If sticking with the Woo 5 as a speaker amp, I'd stick to UPPER 90dB speakers at least (like, 98dB/Watt at absolute minimum). I dunno, maybe Klipschhorns

Generally though, I believe that it's best to pick your speakers first, and THEN find the right amp to drive them.

 

[AppleheadMay]

Now, my wife is pretty easy when it comes to speakers and all that.
But when I showed her the Klipschorn she said: "If you dare come home with something like that i'll kill you and bury you in it."
Somehow I fail to see the fun in there for me ...

I guess I will give up on the idea of powering speakers with the Woo.
There aren't that many high efficiency speakers around and I don't like what most of them look like.
And those I do like (the Tannoy Prestige range) seem to benefit from quite a bit power anyway.
The whole idea was to cut down on the cost of a power amp and expensive speakers since I only seem to use them for background music.
But it might be easier and less expensive to buy a lighter power amp with some 2 way monitors I like.

 

[mikeymad]

There is the Idea of speakers like the Heresy from Klipsch. They are pretty living room/wife friendly, not too pricey they have a good 99db rating. I spent some time with Voltrons setup and I liked them a lot. Not the best speaker out there. but they sounded nice, and I enjoyed the presentation.

Or there is always this:

Cheers,