Tube Amp (a 4 letter word): Unison Research S6 vs Belcanto C7R

[Sovereign]

I have been a SS amp man for some time, I recently tried some very good and highly rated tube amps which were just excellent. I then put my NVA A80 monoblocks back in which were better by some way which is where I have settled.
NVA amps are free of listening fatigue, which is also one of my 'issms' as well.

[Sovereign]

If you want to try an inexpensive Chinese built amp then there are just a few (quite literally) which are easy to move on if you decide against them and sound reasonable. The Yaquin MC-100B, Puresound A30 and Consonance Cyber 10S are all a decent listen. I can't really recommend anything else from the orient. Best sticking to European/USA built amps if you want quality.[/QUOTE]
Yes I had a Yaqin 100b and it was very full bodied, detailed with plenty of grunt.

[Stubies]

Guys, thanks for the great recommendations and comments!

This topic "getting back the goosebumps" is rather important for me, and im excited to be close...

I will wait on the tubes, until i can hear the soon-to-arrive Exposure XV, paired with the new old Ushers and also the Epos ES14s - after that i will see what is next

will let you know the results!

[Stubies]

Paul (RFC) and Paul (audioman),

I dont know enough to suggest that SS is a partial cause of listener fatigue - just sharing observations.

And yes, CD source is definately a suspect, though the above test both used a BelCanto CD as a source.

Here is a question. Could part of the 'listener fatigue' issue be the 'Class' of the amplifier?

So for example my NAD C340 is a Class C (or so i read somewhere - but i cant seem to verify that just now). Your (RFC's) mono blocks are Class A and tube amps are generally Class A - could that be an indicator?

Yesterday's Experiment

At one of the HiFi shops i visited in london yesterday, i listened to a Krell S 300i integrated amp paired with electrostatic Marin Logan speakers (both about 2,600 gbp each). (yes there was a CD source here too, but dont stop reading yet)



At first the 'listening fatigue' was present, though not overwhelming. In discussion with Robert the assistant, we tried another Krell, with no result.

Then... (drumroll) we switched the interconnects from RCA jack style to Balanced Line style - and guess what? the listening fatigue decreased significantly! both were excellent interconnects (a brand called Transparent - about 400 GBP each (ouch!)).

It was not completely gone, but reduced a lot. The end combination was great - not quite in the 'goosebump' league.

Thought i would share.

[The Outcast]

Great amp.

[Reffc]

The class of amp is less important than the way it has been implemented, but yes, I prefer class A providing that some feedback is used. I no longer use Class A monoblocks, I use an EAR 869 integrated as a power amp and drive that with a Croft preamp. Interconnects shouldn't make a difference to listener fatigue unless they're doing something very wrong indeed (or very poor interconnects) but the differences you heard are likely more to do with balanced circuit V's single ended for that particular amp. It may be that most of the thought and care went into the balanced circuit. Also, output might typically be 6dB up on the balanced side so perceived detail and bass for similar volume settings would be more. A proper A/B comparison would need to be level matched before conclusions could be drawn. Nothing wrong with Class A/B/C amps at all but I draw the line at Class D. I haven't listened to one I've liked yet.

[Tarzan]

Listener fatigue should not be related to solid state. I'm sure there are examples of both solid state and tube that may contribute but a well designed example of either should not be fatiguing without being too 'pipe and slippers' and thus smearing detail. Using Cd as a source certainly imparts listener fatigue especially many older or budget designs. That's one of several reasons why I stick to vinyl LP as my main source. The same is likely with a file based audio using less than optimum source and/or poor quality DAC. I call it digititus. It's true that the warm and cuddly version of valve sound can reduce the problem. I suspect this was one of the initial reasons behind the valve resurgence in the 90s.

Spot on, l have had valve amps here that have given me listener fatigue, and also SS to address the balance a little.