DIY Tube Amp VS Transistor Amp! Which one sounds better!
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Date: 2021-08-15
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Comments and reviews: 9
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Unless you re a musician who simply can t deal with one of the millions of perfectly fine VST or stomp box modeled tube-overdrive options, then you really don t have much of an argument for a tube anything outside of aesthetic value. Maybe musicians or sound engineers who are driving an all-analog signal path for a project, or picky guitarists who want a classic stack. But most audio tube thingys sold today are of the tube-preamp variety, and are targeted at audiophiles (audiophools, more accurately. They ll insist a tube-pre is necessary to pair with their equally overpriced turntable, else they ll spoil the vinyl experience. Of course, the tube-pres work fine usually, but you could easily replace the guts with a modern high quality pre and they d never know the difference so long as they visually see a pair of glowing glass bobbins.
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Unless you re a musician who simply can t deal with one of the millions of perfectly fine VST or stomp box modeled tube-overdrive options, then you really don t have much of an argument for a tube anything outside of aesthetic value. Maybe musicians or sound engineers who are driving an all-analog signal path for a project, or picky guitarists who want a classic stack. But most audio tube thingys sold today are of the tube-preamp variety, and are targeted at audiophiles (audiophools, more accurately. They ll insist a tube-pre is necessary to pair with their equally overpriced turntable, else they ll spoil the vinyl experience. Of course, the tube-pres work fine usually, but you could easily replace the guts with a modern high quality pre and they d never know the difference so long as they visually see a pair of glowing glass bobbins.
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Rob
I wonder what differences MOSFET class A or AB finals have with BJT class A or AB finals. I think MOSFET could be better off due to the built in low pass filter that the MOSFET should have since it has a series capacitor built in. Then you could try Darlington and Sziklai couples and triplets, different types of feedback loops, multi stage amplification, different kinds of differential pair. Then you have The class D where you can explain PWM modulation and the efficiency that switching architectures mean. I did a course on amp design yet due to my pretty scarce manual abilities i stuck to simulations for my ideas, yet with some of those concepts i was able to get schematics with high passband and some reasonable harmonic distortion across the band. This could be a long series busting a lot of audiophile myths.
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I wonder what differences MOSFET class A or AB finals have with BJT class A or AB finals. I think MOSFET could be better off due to the built in low pass filter that the MOSFET should have since it has a series capacitor built in. Then you could try Darlington and Sziklai couples and triplets, different types of feedback loops, multi stage amplification, different kinds of differential pair. Then you have The class D where you can explain PWM modulation and the efficiency that switching architectures mean. I did a course on amp design yet due to my pretty scarce manual abilities i stuck to simulations for my ideas, yet with some of those concepts i was able to get schematics with high passband and some reasonable harmonic distortion across the band. This could be a long series busting a lot of audiophile myths.
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Ben's
Where valves (or as the Americans call them, tubes) fall down is with the heater circuit. They use relatively small HT current. In a battery radio you find it is the LT battery that needs changing often.
On another note, analogue radios are much much more efficient than digital ones because the tuning circuit draws tiny amounts of current compared to a digital tuner.
However, if you want to be blown away, could I suggest you look at post WW2 West German radio design, where the tax on them was based on the number of valves in the unit. This led to a FM stereo radio by Grundig if I remember correctly) with 3 valves/tubes. Each active device was used a number of times at different frequency bands.
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Where valves (or as the Americans call them, tubes) fall down is with the heater circuit. They use relatively small HT current. In a battery radio you find it is the LT battery that needs changing often.
On another note, analogue radios are much much more efficient than digital ones because the tuning circuit draws tiny amounts of current compared to a digital tuner.
However, if you want to be blown away, could I suggest you look at post WW2 West German radio design, where the tax on them was based on the number of valves in the unit. This led to a FM stereo radio by Grundig if I remember correctly) with 3 valves/tubes. Each active device was used a number of times at different frequency bands.
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Nathan
I'm glad you made this video. I work in both worlds. For myself I have a all tube class A headphone amp. I use a Variac with a 300 watt incandescent light bulb in series as a current limiter. El34 in my experience has a way better low end. Tighter bass, 6l6's have terrific mid and high end sound. I personally use Tung Sol 6l6gc's in my bogan amps. I have rebias them on occasion for Tung Sol 34ELB's for an experiment. I try to listen to as many different types of music as possible when conducting my testing on these restored tube amps. Oh yeah primarily restore Bogan tube amps.
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I'm glad you made this video. I work in both worlds. For myself I have a all tube class A headphone amp. I use a Variac with a 300 watt incandescent light bulb in series as a current limiter. El34 in my experience has a way better low end. Tighter bass, 6l6's have terrific mid and high end sound. I personally use Tung Sol 6l6gc's in my bogan amps. I have rebias them on occasion for Tung Sol 34ELB's for an experiment. I try to listen to as many different types of music as possible when conducting my testing on these restored tube amps. Oh yeah primarily restore Bogan tube amps.
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Tomasz
Your choice of output transformer is more than questionable. For single ended amplifier, like yours, you can't plug any transformer due to significant DC current flowing through primary winding, saturating the core, which results in distortion and loss of lower frequency capabilities of the amplifier. Output transformers for SE amplifiers have an air gap in their cores, which prevents the core from saturating.
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Your choice of output transformer is more than questionable. For single ended amplifier, like yours, you can't plug any transformer due to significant DC current flowing through primary winding, saturating the core, which results in distortion and loss of lower frequency capabilities of the amplifier. Output transformers for SE amplifiers have an air gap in their cores, which prevents the core from saturating.
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gokhanozcetin
In fact the high gain sound quality is not personal but mathematical. Non linear region of transistor tend to create odd harmonics which are not musical where tubes create even harmonics which are basicly octaves. However still design matters: a badly designed output stage of a tube amp can also saturate output transformer where odd harmonics are created.
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In fact the high gain sound quality is not personal but mathematical. Non linear region of transistor tend to create odd harmonics which are not musical where tubes create even harmonics which are basicly octaves. However still design matters: a badly designed output stage of a tube amp can also saturate output transformer where odd harmonics are created.
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emilward85
When you made that previous statement about Tube Amps, I knew what you meant. But I also knew you were going to piss a LOT of people with that opinion as well, lol. I'm a guitarist so I prefer tube amps, obviously, but I also agree with you about wasted power. From a scientific perspective, you're absolutely correct. Oh well. can't please them all. lol
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When you made that previous statement about Tube Amps, I knew what you meant. But I also knew you were going to piss a LOT of people with that opinion as well, lol. I'm a guitarist so I prefer tube amps, obviously, but I also agree with you about wasted power. From a scientific perspective, you're absolutely correct. Oh well. can't please them all. lol
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Jason
amp sound quality depends on the program material. like everything, how good a solution is depends on the problem you are trying to solve and mass produced, 1 size fits all solutions make trade offs and compromises that may or may not create unintended consequences that will diminish the end result depending on what you are trying to accomplish.
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amp sound quality depends on the program material. like everything, how good a solution is depends on the problem you are trying to solve and mass produced, 1 size fits all solutions make trade offs and compromises that may or may not create unintended consequences that will diminish the end result depending on what you are trying to accomplish.
reply
MrAdi2500
Nearly at the end of the video, i wanted to comment right what you said: Tube amps have a unique sound if overdriven. Ive heard so many transistor guitar amps, even digital modelling ones, but i still prefer the sound of an overdriven tube. It sounds softer to me and i would call it the tubes are singing.
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Nearly at the end of the video, i wanted to comment right what you said: Tube amps have a unique sound if overdriven. Ive heard so many transistor guitar amps, even digital modelling ones, but i still prefer the sound of an overdriven tube. It sounds softer to me and i would call it the tubes are singing.
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