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In the Forum: Audio Discussions
In the Thread: SET amplifiers
Post Subject: SS->Ceramic - the only marriage made in heaven?Posted by rowuk on: 12/14/2014
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I have experimented with SS/SET and now DSEP for ceramic magnet horn drivers. I will agree that ceramic drivers with SETs that I have heard being suboptimal, but after a year of DSEP, at least for my use case, I am quite content. I cannot explain it in a technical fashion, but in spite of standard Mundorf caps and standard resistors - but a remappable OPT, I am VERY happy with the sonic result. I have had no trouble with integrating the "sheen" of the violin (especially during the initial attack or the decay), piano or soprano. I never got this result with ANY SS amplifier.


I have no current desire to change my amps. I may not be at the cutting edge of what is possible, but my amplifiers are not drawing any attention to themselves. Further experiments with neodymium midrange and HF solutions may change this, but up until now, each small step is a breath of fresh air instead of a life saving situation. That makes me think that I am at least getting closer.......

 Romy the Cat wrote:
In all those conversations about SET vs SS there is one important element that is allays escapes people attention. People like or do not like this or that type of amplifiers and they are willing to advocate their love. What however they always forgot that their love to a given amps or topology exist only in context of given conditions and circumstances and among those conditions the type of the speaker drivers the amps driving is one of the most critical element. 

For instance you can create as insane as you wish 3W SET and you can use some kind of super capacitors in there, using the octopus sperm as dialectic and making sure that the sperm was collected by a Buddhist monk in 4th generation who was lefty, bling on right eyes, vegetarian but eats peperoni.  Still, even that would not allow you super SET to be effective if it drives a compression diver with a ceramic magnet. Ironically the ultra-low output impedance and current drive is what doctor prescribed for ceramics. With the rare-earth magnets the situation is even more confusing but it truly confusing with estimable alnico.  There are a few version of alnico and they are slightly different but we never know what type alnico is used for a driver. It is not to mention that this specific alnico driver can be insolently charged or discharged to a given but unknown level…. 

So, loving of an Amplifier is like loving a bullet without even thinking what gun the bullet will be filing away and to which target… 

Rgs,
Romy the Cat

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