good SS amp for model 19?

[beathunters]

hi and happy 2k14 for you and yours! health, happiness and good musical vibes!

i'm new here and got model 19 for about 2 months. i'm pretty sure they're the best i ever had (from various vintage kefs, rogers to vintage tannoys)
love that 15" groove. my small heathkits EL84 amps do wonders on them but i'm still searching the best SS match for them, that i could leave on all the time and play in and out.
i've already tried: small SMSL class T chip amp: amazingly good but needs beefier DC power, luxman M120A: ok but not very exciting, various vintage amps and receivers (sansui, kenwood), quad 303: bassy/muddy, crimson 620: actually ok but..., sugden A21: bassy/muddy (should bypass that bad preamp section)
a friend has great results with a vfet sony amp which is my next try but we know vfets won't last forever... all tips and advice are welcome
phil

[fpitas]

What's your budget? And, are you up for a DIY effort?

Happy New Year!

Francis

[JuniorJBL]

Without knowing your budget it will be hard to say.

I have just recently moved to some Mark Levinson 33X series and they are just fantastic. They have more dynamic range (headroom) than any other amp I have tried.
They also image extremely well. YMMV

[beathunters]

budget, yes of course i wish i could find a good match around $700... i'm totally unable to do any DIY but can ask a tech friend to perform if total cost keeps reasonable

[fpitas]

If I only had $700 to spend, I'd look at building one of Nelson Pass's DIY designs like the F5 turbo:

http://www.firstwatt.com/pdf/art_f5_turbo.pdf

There's a thriving DIY community that Mr. Pass assists in building his designs, found here:

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/pass-labs/

[beathunters]

i actually had nelson pass camp amp complete kit in view, but they're actually out of stock
f5 turbo is better?
p

[fpitas]

i actually had nelson pass camp amp complete kit in view, but they're actually out of stock
f5 turbo is better?
p

The F5 Turbo will give you 50W, or more, which is more like what you need for the Model 19. If you think you can live with less power, and you don't listen particularly loud, a regular F5 has 25W output. The Amp Camp amp is great for learning the rudiments of amplifier design & construction. An F5 is getting into the big leagues in terms of sound quality, especially for the money.

[beathunters]

ok thanks, do you have a direct link for the F5/turbo, can't find it on the diy site

[fpitas]

Here are some pertinent DIY Audio threads:

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/pass-...ml#post3762768

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/pass-...posted-61.html

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/pass-...it-boards.html

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/pass-...ld-thread.html

[fpitas]

If you can't find all the information you need in those threads, I suggest you PM the member 6L6. He usually knows where parts, PCBs etc. may be obtained.

Another pertinent link:

http://www.diyaudio.com/store/f5t-ci...oards-204.html

[tomt]

a friend has great results with a vfet sony amp which is my next try but we know vfets won't last forever...

https://blog.sony.com/press/sony-dem...fet-amplifier/

[Ducatista47]

I am very familiar with the First Watt F5. I own a Nelson Pass built example. The F5 yields otherworldly clarity. It has no capacitors in the signal path and the parts are very inexpensive to build one. The dual mono power supply & transformer will cost more than all the other components combined. That just leaves the casework. It is one of those circuits so well designed that expensive parts don't improve it. In my humble opinion, having witnessed some local dealers/owners trying amps on the model 19, 25 watts would be plenty. The 19s are very efficient. If you can stay in the room with a Model 19 pulling ten watts you are wearing earplugs. For any high efficiency speaker that has a crossover, the F5 is my first choice by a mile. That said, I consider the 19s to sound a bit harsh and the clarity of an F5 with it might put off some listeners. Just my opinion.

Nelson has the corner on new power SITs and JFETs. The company that made them for him went out of business. The power JFETs are great, but the F5 proves MOSFETS will do the job too if the design is clever enough. His SIT (VFET) amps are expensive - for a First Watt amp.

As an historical aside, from the beginning the JFET was seen to be much more linear than bipolar transistors. The team that made the first transistor wanted to make a JFET but it was not feasible yet, so they settled for a bipolar. BPs do make great switching transistors, but they suck at analogue ampliflication. Every trick in the book was used to harness them for the task. As much design work was initally needed to avoid thermal runaway as was applied to sound quality. When someone didn't do their homework you got Flame Linear type failures. I am a bit tired of hearing how Carver is a genius. That would be Nelson Pass. He started by designing the Threshold, if memory serves. His modern amps never break. At least no First Watt has yet.

[dezmond]

Try some mac stuff, the ma5100 is a sleeper .

[dino]

899$ . Unbelievable sound quality. 300 watts RMS. This beast weighs 75 pounds did I mention the quality of craftsmanship. I don't know how long the price of these units will stay at 899.00 but they're unbelievable

[Dave_72]

899$ . Unbelievable sound quality. 300 watts RMS. This beast weighs 75 pounds did I mention the quality of craftsmanship. I don't know how long the price of these units will stay at 899.00 but they're unbelievable

What flavor is the kool-aid? haha.