Amplifiers to partner Tannoy Monitor Gold 15s

Mikeb said:
I personally use Manley Snapper valve monoblock amplifiers (100wattts per channel) with my 15inch Tannoys and they sound superb, I believe Tannoy's are one of the favourite speakers of Mr Manley, I also use an Aragon 8008BB (bipolar push /pull transistor design with plenty of voltage and current, voltage rails are around 72volts I believe with a massive 2KV transformer) with great success, both these amps provide much better bass extension, control, and attack than any of the other smaller amps I sometimes use eg 300b SE and mini class D amps, one of the better lower powered valve amps I have used is a small Norh SE9 amp this uses a single EL34 in single ended configuration producing around 9 watts I believe, and this sounds great with the Tannoys aside from just missing out on the bass extension and authority of the bigger higher powered manleys and aragon amps, I think you need to also bear in mind what type of music you enjoy and play most.
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Hi,

It is in fact Miss Manley.

Eveanna Manley owes Manley. She uses a few pairs of Tannoys. She has a pair of Tannoy Westminsters & a pair of Tannoy Churchills.

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http://www.stereophile.com/floorloudspeakers/317/

SCIDB
 
My brother uses Cary 805 SETs running 211s on his Monitor Golds and that is the best I have ever heard them sound.It is an immense sound.
 
Dev said:
My D700s are not an easy load but the Leak Stereo 20 drove them well. The Luxman SQ-N100 has similar output, so it may be OK. It may not have the headroom offered by more powerful amps such as WAD or (my favourite) the Rogue but let's see what hifipete has to say after his testing.
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Still haven't heard back from Luxman distributor regarding a demo in a local dealer near me. I don't like my music loud so the 'bass' issue with lower output should not be an issue.

Keep the suggestions coming guys. Woud love to have sometning set up soon before the budget is spent on a domestic appliance by the other half:(
 
My search for a suitable amp to drive the Tannoys continues........Not much progress made as regards to a demo on the Luxman. The distributor has not come back to me since I last contacted them a few weeks ago.
Thinking now of heading back towards the vintage route - Leak 20.
What preamps would be a good partner for the Leaky without spending the equivalent amount as the valve amp. Any suggestions?
 
Agree with Dev, the Leak is perfect for a standard passive attenuator.

Creek make some decent units with remote for reasonable money.
 
Should work fine though of course it will need a PSU.

However, the Leak is pretty sensitive and doesn't need much driving which is why a passive pre makes a good match, coupled with high input impedance.

The Naim has gain and the circuit isn't the quietest around so you might get some unwanted hiss. Give it a try though - can't do any harm.
 
hifipete, you're welcome to borrow my spare passive pre. It's nothing special, just an Alps pot in a tiny box. Only one input, but it'll let you test your Tannoys with the Leak.
 
Thank you for the kind offer Dev.

I am hoping to hear back from Luxman regarding the demo so will see if I am happy with the low power SQ-N100 driving the Tannoys.

Have been checking out the prices of Accuphase:eek: mega expensive which is out of reach for me unless the all my numbers come up on the Lottery:)

Are the amps from Accuphase really that special compared with the 'other' high end equipment?
 
No.

They are very good in all respects. Look great, sound great and very nicely made. Won't (can't) sound better than say a cambridge 740A though at around £500.

That's not to say that you shouldn't buy an Accuphase as they are lovely things but don't expect the extra cash to *improve the sonics.




*Yes the amplifiers might sound ever so slightly different but, if audible at all, these differences are such that if the amps were swapped while you left the room, you wouldn't hear a difference on your return. If you sat in front of them for several hours concentrating desperately and playing the same track over and over, yes you might hear something. Just to put things into perspective.
The Accuphase (or CA) against the Leak might be a different story.
 
Whereabouts are you in the UK Pete? You'd be welcome to pop round and listen to my golds and ST20 + diy passive pre combo.
 
la toilette said:
Whereabouts are you in the UK Pete? You'd be welcome to pop round and listen to my golds and ST20 + diy passive pre combo.
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Too far to pop over to Somerset I am afraid. I live in the NW of England. Would love hear the ST20 with a pair of Golds.

The ST20 is an amp I would buy blind without a demo. This is based on the comments made here and on the 'net'...... that they are a good match for each other. The problem is finding one local to me to view.

I have read that the ST20 suffers from mains hum and can be quite noticeable when the input signal is turned down to a very low level.

What is your experience with this issue la toilette?
 
Mains hum audible through the speakers? Not on mine.

Well OK if I put my ear to the speaker then I can hear some low level noise, but I can't hear it at all from my listening position. Thing is though that as these are such old amps I expect some are better/worse than others depending on how well they've survived those decades.
 
No contact from Luxman regarding a demo in my area. Oh well so be it. You would think that they would want to get as many potential customers on board.........considering the current economic downturn, where brand loyalty is a key aspect for many hi-fi manufacturers.

I will now concentrate on a acquiring a Leak ST20.

So if anyone here wanting to sell theirs then please get in touch.

Not ruling out any modern alternative just yet so any other recommendations would be appreciated.

Thanks. Peter
 
hifipete
I have tried my 15" Monitor Golds with various amps.
I started with a Yaqin MC10L, that someone else on the thread has also mentioned.
I moved up to a JLTI modified MC10L.
I tried an Almarro a318b, which is wonderful.
I've tried several SS amps that just don't do the Tannoys justice.
Finally I bit the bullet after finding some Carys on Ebay. I have a SLP05 with 845AE mono power amps running 211s. AMAZING. I would highly recommend the Carys. In fact Cary often demo their amps with Tannoy speakers.
Good luck with the search.
 
The search for an amp is temporary on hold due to some unexpected 'repair' bills for the car.

I've not heard of Carys. Will look into them when funds is saved up for the amp.

Cheers. Peter
 

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