Croft.

[southall-1998]

Hello,


Those Croft Croft Series 7 poweramps sure look tempting.

One day I will like to hear the Croft 7 poweramp with Micro 25 preamp. Any particular interconnects & Speaker cables that work well with this Croft combo?

Hope it's OK asking this? How does the Croft Series 7 sound? Do they have a ''euphonic'' sound? I have to admit, I do like euphony and musical etc.

Kind Regards.

[hifi_dave]

The Crofts are very revealing but not fussy, so anything good and sensible will do the trick.

As to the sound - if you can tear yourself away from sunny Southall, they are here for your delectation.

[southall-1998]

The Crofts are very revealing but not fussy, so anything good and sensible will do the trick.

As to the sound - if you can tear yourself away from sunny Southall, they are here for your delectation.

Hehehe, I can do with getting away from Southall.

Will love to hear some Croft soon. I've read very good things about them here.

[DSJR]

Shane, they don't have "sonic character" to speak of at all and that's why they're so good! The fact that they're hand made by the "master" gives them the added vibes you need..

The thing about Croft stuff in general is that they measure properly too, so you're not paying for added distortions or other trickery to give a nice "effect" like you used to get with vintage Conrad Johnson or ARC products for example.

I've already had one Crown amp go down on me recently (the headphone one) and if anything happens to either of the others and if my income stabilises, I may just sell the Quad 303 and put it towards a Series 7. HiFi news gave it a very positive review a few months ago and I suspect that as long as you don't give it a silly, Linn Sara kind of speaker loading, it'll be as good as many of the very best amps out there. it just won't look as "posh," thats all :lolsign:

[southall-1998]

I will like to see that review.

[Marco]

As a long time Croft user, I'd echo the above comments.

What makes Croft equipment sound so good, as well as measure well, is the simplicity of the circuits used.

When you take the lid off of a (genuine, built by Glenn) piece of Croft equipment, there's nothing in there other than what is absolutely necessary, and what's in there (quality components are always used), is hard-wired point-to-point - so no nasty, sonically degrading PCBs!

Therefore, to put it simply, if there's less in way of the signal path, there's less in way to colour the sound :)

Also, from a 'tweakers' point of view, Glenn's designs are an absolute joy, because as the circuits are simple and well thought out, upgrading any of the (already good) components used for something of the same electrical value, only of better overall quality (one must remember that all commercial equipment is built to a price), results in one simply hearing more of what the circuit is capable of - and with it, more music.

This is the advantage of having equipment using a circuit designed on the basis of achieving maximum audio performance, produced by an experienced artisan, rather than equipment built via the cost cutting mass production techniques of a large commercial manufacturer, and so often sonically compromised as a result (and therefore will sound pants in comparison, no matter how much tweaking is done), but yet is often much more expensive.....!! :rolleyes:

Therefore with Croft equipment, you can choose either to enjoy Glenn's designs 'as is' (and be guaranteed of superb sounds), or like me, modify them, as described above, to create something truly special, which will outperform most so-called 'hi-end' designs costing many times more - SPPV again at its very best, which is what we all love here on AoS! :cool:

Marco.

[southall-1998]

Cheers Marco.

Just out of curiosity, what speakers match very well with the Croft Series 7?

Regards.

[Marco]

Hi Shane,

That's a question probably best answered by the likes of hifi dave, as he stocks the current Croft range, and so will know what speakers work best with it. It's an important consideration, though, as the electrical 'relationship' between a valve amplifier and speakers used is VERY important.

From experience, however, Harbeth and Spendor designs are very good - basically anything which doesn't present a difficult load and allows the circuit in the amp to 'breathe' :)

Marco.