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Well after the fact, I just wanted to chime in to say that I ordered a Vincent PHO-500, which supposedly is the the PHO-8 with a USB output. I know subjective opinions are to be taken with a grain of salt here. But I read this review and thought, well, how bad could it be? IMO this phono pre...

He felt it got unreasonably hot with the tube stage employed, and was concerned about the longevity of the internal components. He's comfortable with tube equipment but this made him uncomfortable.

A friend of mine, a very sensible audiophile, liked the Freya+ but sent his back for this very reason.

I'm a long-time tube guy--DIY Williamson tube amps, Aikido preamp, even a DAC with all-tube output stage--but I bought a Freya S on a lark, and because I've always been curious about Schiit equipment. I have to say that I'm impressed. For $600 (or $500 for B-stock, which I bought) I can't...

Well, he's got *some* of it right. Current feedback and voltage feedback--yes, we know that. It is most decidedly NOT a Williamson topology. It's a Mullard topology. The reason the amp uses tiny OPT's is to reduce the weight while employing some tricks to make those OPT's behave well enough...

A house where you can't walk on the roof? Crazy.

Good luck! ;-) Seems pretty harrmless all the same. BTW, I am FAR from an audio objectivist but I do enjoy your site and have bought several satisfying components based on your recommendations. I find your evaluations, especially when it comes to budget gear, very useful. Nothing like a good...

For comparison, here's a recent technical review from Stereophile. Baseline testing is typically done at 1 watt, then the amp is put through it's paces. Note the difference in performance between a fixed resistive load and a simulated speaker load. At the end, notice the real-world power...

Ah, well. Speakers too large for the room is a very common problem with a lot of audiophiles, IME. And I've heard a lot of very expensive systems that sounded "just okay"...or worse. Dealers who constantly upsell, well beyond the customer's ability to even begin to understand what he or she...

Interesting! Now compare all those to the original Williamson I posted above, tested at the same output level (2.8 volts RMS or 1 watt). The Williamson, despite it's low power and hefty weight-to-power ratio, was an astonishing achievement. Of course, you got a lot more for your money...

Wolcott!! I'd forgotten all about him. Now there's an esoteric designer who pretty much delivered what he promised.

Oh, and BTW, that Sprinkle and Sarser article I linked to is another example of HONEST marketing back in the day--even when they had nothing to sell! The specs they cite are completely realistic and will correspond to any measurement you want to make of this amplifier. They treated their...

This is marvelous! :)

Oh, and here's a pic of the products--Delrin top plates on my "inimitable" home-made oak bases (I am NOT a woodworker). ;-)

Well, It depends on what you mean by "commonly tested parameters." Are there tube amps that measure well? Sure there are--lots of them. You're almost always going to get higher THD and S/N ratios, to some degree, but I don't think that's a disqualifier. They're also very ineffiecient, of...

Here in Oregon, I believe only for kitchen, bathroom, basement, garage or outdoors. I dread the thought of updating the rest of the house. With all the remodeling and add-ons over the years, it's mess. There's no telling what breaker connects to what, and it's taken me years to figure out the...

Oh, interesting.

Nice. I've taken a couple stabs at PP 300B but it's hard to pull off due to the drive requirements. Looks like a Mullard circuit.

Are those homebrew PP 300B amps?

Well, that's the way a long-tailed pair phase splitter is constructed. https://www.aikenamps.com/index.php/the-long-tail-pair ETA: Or maybe you mean there's a better way to balance the pair, like a negative supply or current source?