Our amplifiers works very well with AE ( Acoustic Energy ) speakers.

We believe that the "3 way" AE ( Acoustic Energy ) Evo 3 + a well designed valve amplifier
forms an amazing partnership, and will easily beat
most ( but not all )  £300 , £600 , £1,000 , £4,000 "2 way" or "2.5 way" speakers
+ "Class B" transistor amplifier
( when there is a human voice + bass drum AT THE SAME TIME. )

Human voices on well designed "3 way" speakers remains clear, and can still be understood,
even when there is a bass drum !

Most people will agree that metal cones / domes work especially well with with well designed valve amplifiers.

One of our customer is using our amplifier with the AE1 Series 2,
and I think that he is happy with the combination,
because he kept our amplifier,
and did not ask for his money back !

AE1 Series 2 are small speakers,
and you cannot use small speakers with 5 inch cones ( regardless of price or hype or BBC tiny toy LS3/5a Studio Monitors, which were never designed for "full range" music )
to reproduce 22 inch kick bass drums in a huge 20 feet by 20 feet room.

12 inch woofers will struggle to reproduce 22 inch kick bass drum in a 20 feet by 20 feet room.
Our Yamaha NS-1000M Studio Monitors with 12 inch woofers just about does it in our 20 feet by 12 feet room.
Yamaha NS-1000M are SERIOUS Studio Monitors with
12 woofers + 3.5 inch beryllium metal dome midrange + 1 inch beryllium metal dome tweeters.
JM Lab have "discovered" Beryllium metal dome tweeters in their £46,000 speakers !
But J M Lab midrange is much less exotic than our Yamaha a 3.5 Beryllium metal domes.
Our Yamaha NS-1000M 3.5 inch Beryllium metal dome midrange is more exotic than PMC 3 inch soft dome midrange used in their bigger studio monitors.  £1,400 PMC FB1 is not the same as PMC £7,500 studio monitors !
Yamaha NS-10M "Nearfield monitor" used in thousands of recording studios are not the same.
Our Yamaha NS-10M "Nearfield monitor" is nowhere as good as our SERIOUS Yamaha NS-1000M Studio Monitors.
If you see a smallish speaker with a white 6 inch cone in a black box in a recording studio , it is probably Yamaha NS-10M

If you have a smallish room 
and you do not listen to "heavy metal" at deafening level,
then small speakers are fine. 

Naim CD players,  and almost any CD players, will work fine.

Our valve amplifiers are will produce sweeter treble with CD players WITHOUT LOSING THE TREBLE !
(or your money back, less £30)

Our valve amplifiers are will reproduce female voices with less sibilance (where a woman saying "his" sound like "Hissssssk")
(or your money back, less £30)

Sibilance on CD seems to be worse than Vinyl.
I and some of my customer really hate sibilance, 
and it is amazing that you could read Hi Fi reviews that does NOT mention how the equipment cope with sibilance
(where a woman saying "his" sound like "Hissssssk").
The 3 most irritating thing about substandard Hi Fi sets are harsh treble, sibilance and boomy bass !

Put a slightly bright CD player + slightly bright transistor amplifier + slight bright metal cone / dome speaker together
and you will have bright treble and sibilance that make you switch off the Hi Fi set within 10 minutes !

Denon moving coil cartridges have an excellent reputation.

If money is no object, we recommend EAR valve phono stage.

There is a clear audible difference between transistor phono stage
versus valve phono stages (that uses a few hundred volts).
(The difference is about 100 times the difference between cables, capacitors, and other "fashionable" nonsense.)

We are authorised reseller of E.A.R.,
and we will be pleased to offer you 1 month home trial , with £30 for return carriage, if you return it. 
We do not want a price war, but we will also be pleased to match prices on EAR phono stage.

Please remember that the cheapest EAR phono stage is not really designed for Moving Coil cartridges,
so it is normally better to buy the more expensive versions.

If you are absolutely strapped for cash,
you can still buy the cheapest EAR phono stage, plug in your moving coil cartridge,
and turn up the volume on our valve amplifier.
( Just as long as you remember to turn down the volume, when playing CD ! )

EAR valve phono stage and our valve amplifier are very quiet, with negligible hum , negligible hiss,
and this trick works fine.

I have tested it with our Audio Technica AT-F5 moving coil cartridges,
and absolutely no audible hum, no audible hiss, at the sofa.
(Just as long as I remember to turn down the volume, when playing CD !)

At a more affordable price , we recommend transistorised £45 Pro-Ject phono stage and £125 Pro-Ject phono stage.
The £125 Pro-Ject phono stage looks beautiful, sound great, reliable and is an affordable price.
The £45 Pro-Ject sound great, reliable and is an incredible price, but the box look a bit crude.  What do you want for £45 ?
Both the £45 phono stage and £125 stage are suitable for moving magnet and moving coil.

We are authorised reseller of Pro-Ject,
and we will be pleased to offer you 1 month home trial , with 65 pence for recorded delivery, if you return it. 
We do not want a price war, but we will also be pleased to match prices on EAR phono stage.

Not sure which one to buy ?
Tell us which phono stage you want to listen to,
pay us for the more expensive phono stage,
and we will send you 2 different phono stage for to to audition for one month.
Return carriage on the Pro-Ject is cheap, and it will only cost you 65 pence for recorded delivery,
and our Freepost label will pay for the rest of the postage.
 

We probably have the widest range of customers in the world.  From 80 year old man to this young lady. 

What on earth is Complex Trance Music and Infected Mushroom ?  No, please do not answer that !
Old Timers might remember "Magic Mushrooms".
Are they the same as "Infected Mushrooms" ?  Please do not answer that either !

Our website has many reviews from many different customers, with very different Hi Fi systems,
and many different taste in music.  Since they have kept our valve amplifier,
and did not ask for their money refunded,  I think that our valve amplifier
is suitable for many different systems and different music !

--------------------------------

The main problem with Hi FI is that we have too many silly "fashionable" overpriced , over hyped components,
and most of them are a big con !

Audio Engineers have been investigating different components for over 50 years
AND EXPLAINING THE REASONS FOR THE DIFFERENCE.

If anybody was prepared to go to a BIG library in a LARGE city
and READ THE OLD BOOKS AND OLD MAGAZINE,
they will learn a lot of facts and knowledge.

Even 50 years ago, audio engineers knew that
"paper in oil" capacitors (no plastic film capacitors in those days) are better than electrolytic capacitors.

Even 30 years ago, I was reading that electrolytic capacitors, without a biasing voltage, is a bad idea.

For 50 years, Audio Engineers have known that ceramic capacitors exhibit piezoelectric effect,
have poor stability, and should not be used in the signal path, or filters.

I was using Elna Cerafine about 25 years ago in my own designs of "Class A" transistor amplifier.
My 15 years old Sony "High End" Esprite CD player have Elna Cerafine capacitors.
About 20 years ago, Mr Douglas Self also measure the low distortion of Elna Cerafine capacitors.
Gee Wezz, so the "fashionable" false guru have discovered "Elna Cerafine".
Please do not expect me to be excited by this miraculous "discovery" !

The problem is that most "fashionable" false gurus do not understand electronics,
AND THEY ARE TOO LAZY OR TOO PROUD
TO SIT DOWN AND READ A TEXTBOOK OR COMPLICATED TECHNICAL MAGAZINES
AND READ AND LEARN AND READ AND LEARN AND READ AND LEARN.
It has to be INSTANT gratification, WITHOUT 30 YEARS OF HARD WORK OF LEARNING.

"Fashionable" people will read one page of a "fashionable" magazine or worst still,
listen to some idiot on some internet forum, who learnt how to use a soldering iron, last month !
(He kept holding the soldering iron, by the wrong end, for one week,)
(until he discovers that he should hold the cold plastic part of the soldiering iron.)

"stepped attenuator" - please read my article on "leave the upgrades to the professional",
which explains, why the "typical" "stepped attenuator" spoils the sound.

----------------------------------------

Anybody who knows anything about electronics, will tell you that 

1. replacing one component with another component of the SAME value, will produce tiny difference
(probably due to tolerance, stray capacitance, stray inductance, etc)
This is what the "fashionable" false guru do, because, they do NOT understand electronics !
Why don't you ask them how an amplifier works ?  They will NOT know the answer

2. replacing one part with another part of DIFFERENT value will produce HUGE DIFFERENCE.
We understand amplifiers ( valves or transistors ) , and this is what we do !

Let us begin with the most important and expensive part of a valve amplifier.
We use big GBP 100 output transformer and huge GBP 250 "potted" output transformers.
The core of output transformers can "saturate" (overload) with loud bass note.
So we use a big output transformer to cure this problem.

Stray inductance and stray capacitance in big transformers can limit the high frequency.
So we use many layers of "inter leaved" winding to reduce this problem.

The bass of a valve amplifier depends on the "output impedance" (plate resistance) of the valve
reacting with the inductance of the output transformers.
A larger output transformer can have high inductance (for deeper bass), without core saturation (for powerful bass)

The bass of a valve amplifier also depends on the "output impedance" (plate resistance) of the valve.
"KT88 Triode Connected" will have lower output impedance (better bass) than "ultra linear" connection.

"KT88 Triode Connected" have EVENLY spaced curves (lower distortion) on the "valve characteristic graph"
"Ultra linear" have UNEVENLY spaced curves (higher distortion) on the "valve characteristic graph"

ALL OF THESE EXPLANATIONS ARE MEASURABLE,
AND WILL PRODUCE DEEPER BASS,
BETTER POWER HANDING OF DEEP BASS NOTES,
LOWER DISTORTION,
BETTER AMPLIFIER DAMPENING FACTOR FOR SPEAKERS,
ETC

Please believe me, the difference in sound
between BIG WELL DESIGNED GBP 100 and GBP 250 output transformers
versus the TINY output transformers used by "fashionable" false guru
is HUGE HUGE HUGE !

Who cares about GBP 10 capacitors ?
Who cares about GBP 20 volume control ?

GBP 250 output transformers are 100 times more important !

Our "KT88 Triode Connection - High End" uses
GBP 250 + GBP 250 of output transformers
GBP 150 HUGE mains (power) transformer
GBP 160 for 4 pieces of KT88 Triode connected
GBP 20 for 4 pieces of American 5670 triode valves.
So we have GBP 830 (about 1200 Euro) of transformers and valves.

Do you think that GBP 830 (about 1200 Euro) of transformers and valves
are more important than GBP 10 (about 15 Euro) capacitors and GBP 20 (about 30 Euro) volume control ?

If we could get the same quality of sound,
with GBP 10 (about 15 Euro) capacitors and GBP 20 (about 30 Euro) volume control,
we could have saved ourselves thousands of Euro !

--------------------------------------------------------------

Why don't you ask the "fashionable" false guru on internet forums
to explain output transformers and "triode connection",
in the manner that I have done.

"Fashionable" false guru cannot explain any technical details,
BECAUSE THEY DO NOT HAVE A BASIC UNDERSTANDING OF VALVE AMPLIFIERS,
so they ask you change one component for another component of the SAME value ! ! !
 

------------------------------------------------------

80 watts Power handling ?
-----------------

Totem Acoustic must joking
when they claim that their speaker with TINY 4.5 inch drive units can cope with 80 watts !

November 2003 issue of Hi Fi Choice tested
the BIGGER GBP 2500 Totem Forest with the BIGGER 6.5 inch drive unit,
and they measured up to 3% distortion for the 13 watts bass.
( Most transistor amplifier CLAIM 100 times less distortion ! )

If the BIGGER GBP 2500 Totem Forest with the BIGGER 6.5 inch drive
is producing up to 3% distortion  for 13 watts of bass,
how can Totem Acoustic claim that
the SMALLER GBP 1000 Totem Arro with a SMALLER 4.5 inch drive unit
can cope with 80 watts !

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Frequency response and 8 db too much treble
-------------------------------------------------

Totem Acoustic frequency response of 40 Hertz to 20 kilohertz + - 3 dB is debatable.

The frequency response curve of the Totem Arro shown in
http://www.audio-ideas.com/reviews/loudsepeakaers/totem arro.htm
tells a TOTALLY different story !

The + 8 db hump at around 6 kilohertz to 12 kilohertz is totally NOT HIgh FIdelity.
This will exaggerate the treble by a HUGE amount !
Inexperienced listeners will say "listen to the treble detail" !
Experienced listener will say "too much treble, too bright, etc" !

To put things in perspective,
"High End" speakers like B&W Nautilus 802 has tiny "hump" & "dips" of 2 dB.
Totem Arro + 8 dB hump is totally unacceptable for "High End" !

It is amazing that there are so many ?professional? Hi Fi reviewers,
whose ears are so lousy
that they do not notice that the frequency response is so uneven
that certain instrument will be exaggerated,
and certain instrument will disappear into the background !

Have the hearing of these ?professional? reviewers been damaged by too much loud music ?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

There is a difference between "High Price" and "High End"
----------------------------------------------------------

There is a difference between "High Price" and "High End".

An example of "High End" speaker is GBP 6000 B&W Nautilus 802
These are HUGE speakers
containing 8 inch woofer + another 8 inch woofer + 6.5 inch midrange + tweeter.
Whether or not they are worth that kind of money is debatable,
but you get a HUGE amount of speaker !

An example of "High Price" but NOT "High End"
is the GBP 1000 Totem Acoustic Arro.
You get 4.5 inch drive unit + tweeter.
4.5 inch ?bass? units are NOT "High End" ! !

A REALISTIC price for 4.5 inch drive units is GBP 1 (Chinese price) to GBP 50 (Western retail price).
Yes, you get middleman selling 4.5 inch speakers for hundreds of pounds,
to earn HUGE amount of profits.
I can also sell our GBP 700 valve amplifier for GBP 3000,
but what does that prove ?
(other than there is somebody stupid enough to pay GBP 3000 for an GBP 700 amplifier !)

If you go to
http://www.audio-ideas.com/reviews/loudsepeakaers/totem arro.htm
you will find the suggested retail price is 1299 dollar , in the year 1999.
"Audio Ideas" is Canadian, so 1299 dollar could be 1299 Canadian dollars.

If you go to
http://www.audioreview.com/Main+Speaker/Totem+Arro/PRD_120706_1594crx.aspx
you will find that the Canadian shop price is about 1200 Canadian dollar,
which is GBP 491 (at exchange rate of 2.44)

GBP 491 is a realistic price for sweet little tiny "life style" speakers,
to keep women happy !

But, I think that the English price of
GBP 1000 for 4.5 inch drivers in a tiny box,
is lousy value for money !

------------------------------------------

If you go to
http://www.audioreview.com/Main+Speaker/Totem+Arro/PRD_120706_1594crx.aspx
you will find a lot of owners saying that they like the speakers,
but they admit that  LOUD DEEP bass is not very good, and the speakers cannot go loud.

Sorry, but if I pay GBP 1000 for speakers (which sell in Canada for GBP 491),
I expect good bass.

I suggest the first thing that you do is to change your speakers
to "High End" "3 way" speakers with 6.5 inch metal cone + 5 inch metal cone + tweeter.
These speakers are "High End" if you use any WELL DESIGNED "push pull" valve amplifier.
The price these "3 way" speakers is a hilarious GBP 250 !
There is a difference between "High Price" and "High End".

Partner these "High End" "3 way" speakers with GBP 3000 Audio Research VALVE amplifier
or GBP 3000 Conrad Johnson VALVE amplifier or our affordable GBP 700 VALVE amplifier,
put on some music with some LOUD DEEP bass, and you will hear a HUGE DIFFERENCE.

As I said before.
There is a difference between "High Price" and "High End".

Of course, our GBP 1800 speakers with 10 inch woofer will have much better LOUD DEEP bass.
But even the 6.5 inch woofer will easily beat the bass of the Totem Arro !
This may not sound obvious,
but 6.5 inch woofer + 5 inch midrange + tweeter adds to up more than 3 TIMES BIGGER moving area.

The speaker designer who has cones with 3 TIMES BIGGER moving area,
had a HUGE design advantage, and can produce a much better sound !
The speaker designer and the accountant who can move the production to a country with cheap labour and plentiful supply of cheap wood (i.e. plenty of forest to cut down. Over the last few hundred years, Western countries has cut down down 99% of their forest, so wood is expensive in the West ! )
has a huge advantage in cost.
That is why the "high end" "3 way" speaker is a hilarious GBP 250 !

1st class speaker designer, bigger cones, bigger box, plentiful supply of cheap trees / wood, cheap labour
adds up to "high end" "3 way" speakers ! 

smaller cones, smaller box, expensive Western prices for wood / MDF, expensive Western labour adds up to "high price" (but NOT "high end") "rather average" "2 way" speakers ! 

We sell the "international" Audio Institute VR-110
for GBP 500

You pay us an extra GBP 200 to modify (in England)
the GBP 500 "international" Audio Institute VR-110
to become our GBP 700 "EL34 Silver"

Dealers who say that the
the GBP 500 "international" Audio Institute VR-110
or the GBP 600 TAC 34
are the same as our GBP 700 "EL34 Silver"
are LAIRS !

If you live in England,
we can send you BOTH the
GBP 500 "international" Audio Institute VR-110
and our GBP 700 "EL34 Silver",
and you can hear and decide if the
GBP 200 that you pay to modify the amplifier
is worth the GBP 200 or not !

----------------------------------------------------------

> Also, I already have the EL34 tubes (they are
>MUllards). I plan to get the other tubes myself.

If you want to tamper with our RELIABLE amplifiers,
please do NOT buy our amplifier.

We are fed up of idiots who tamper with our amplifiers.

If our customer prefer our amplifiers to
GBP 3000 Naim pre/power/power supply
GBP 8000 Chord pre/power/power supply
Quad pre/power
Audiolab pre/power
Michell Alecto power
Plinius 1000 watts monoblocks
I am serious 1000 watts + GBP 8000 JM Lab Mezzo Utopia.
I am serious, these speakers cost GBP 8000
WHY THE BLOODY HELL DO YOU WANT TO TAMPER WITH OUR AMPLIFIERS !

Unlike the usual "bull" from ?valve?experts?
in Hi Fi magazine and internet forum,
about the over-hyped importance of volume control, wires, different type of "plastic film" capacitors, resistors,
and all the other insignificant points,
Mr Williamson said that
the MOST important component is the output transformer !

The high price was cause by
the HUGE HUGE HUGE "proper" Williamson output transformer !

The "proper" Williamson output transformer
is HUGE for such a modestly powered "KT66 Triode Connected" amplifier !

The HUGE HUGE HUGE "proper" Williamson output transformer 
makes the transformers on the Roger Cadet , Leak Stereo 20 and Quad II
look like tiny toys !

Mr Williamson's contemporary criticised the size of
Mr Williamson's output transformers,
but Mr WIlliamson is still remembered,
whilst his contemporaries have faded away !

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

>I currently have ESL63s and wonder how
> your valve amps cope with these?

One of our many "Research & Development" speakers are
Quad ESL 57.

Customer have also bought (and kept) our amps for

Quad ESL 63 ,

the new Quad ESL 989 (or something like that)

GBP 3500 Martin Logan electrostatics with built in 10 inch woofers

------------------------------

However after saying all of that,
you really need a 14 feet by 14 feet panel to go down to 20 Hertz,
so you cannot expect DEEP bass from 3 feet panel speakers !

What is also disappointing is that Electrostatic speakers are
famous for NOT being able to handle power.

So, you end up with a HUGE speaker that
does NOT have DEEP bass,
and cannot go "head banging" loud.

-------------

Needless to say,
SOME of our customers have LOUD DEEP bass that
owners of Quad ESL 57 and Quad ESL 63
can only dream about,
because they use 

GBP 8000 J M LAb Mezzo Utopia with 10 inch woofers + 5 inch midrange + tweeter

Used price is GBP 800 to GBP 1600 for Yamaha NS-1000M Studio Monitors
( with 12 inch woofers + 3.5 inch BERYLLIUM METAL dome midrange + 1 inch BERYLLIUM METAL dome tweeter )
( GBP 46,000 JM Lab speakers and VERY "High End" , insanely expensive JBL use BERYLLIUM METAL dome tweeter )

Linn Isobariks
( 2 pieces of the FAMOUS 13 inch by 9 inch woofer called Kef B139 (one woofer is hidden behind the other !) )
( + 2 pieces of FAMOUS Kef B110 , which is a 5 inch midrange used in the infamous BBC LS3/5a (one midrange is pointing upwards !) )
( + 2 pieces of tweeter (one tweeter is pointing upwards !) )
( Needless to say, this is an unusual design, and some people loves them, and some people are not so keen ! )
( Customer say that the bass is awesome !  )
( This result is to be expected , for 2 pieces of FAMOUS Kef B139 in a HUGE box ! )

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Quad ESL 63 and ESL 57 loses treble above 15 kiloHertz !
Even my old ears can notice the difference.

Quad ESL 57 and Quad 57 sound strange,
because they sound bright (too much treble),
but they loses treble above 15 kiloHertz !

I hope that the DVD Audio people do not "start creating trouble"
with their claims that you need "super tweeters" that goes up to 40 kiloHertz !
Some how or another, I do not think that any DVD Audio people who believes
that you need to go up to 40 kiloHertz will ever buy Quad ESL 57 or ESL 63
which can only go up to 15 kiloHertz, before falling away !

(If you are VERY lucky,)
(some LUCKY samples of Quad ESL 57 and Quad ESL 63 have slightly better treble)

The ESL 63 sound too bright for the frequency response curves,
( even though it loses HIGH treble above 15 kiloHertz ! )
until you realize that
the "one third octave smoothed" frequency response curve has hundreds of "tiny peaks and humps".

A "conventional" "High End" moving coil tweeter would show a SMOOTH frequency response curve
because of the "one third octave" "smoothing".

If the "one third octave" "smoothing" cannot smooth out the frequency response curve,
there must be something dreadfully wrong with the tweeter !

The hundreds of "tiny peaks and humps" is
PROBABLY caused by hundred of resonances ,
and PROBABLY "constructive interference" and "destructive interference"
( which will be a problem, unless you have a "point source" ) 

If the claims for the ESL 63 is true,
and IF the ESL63 behaves like a "point source",
then the hundreds of "tiny peaks and humps" is
PROBABLY caused by hundred of resonances ,
so ESL 63 sound too bright (too much treble)
( even though it loses HIGH treble above 15 kiloHertz ! )

-----------------------

After saying all of that,

OUR VALVE AMPLIFIER WILL PRODUCE MORE BASS ON YOUR ESL 63
(than most transistor amplifiers)

OUR VALVE AMPLIFIER WILL PRODUCE SWEETER , NICER TREBLE ON YOUR ESL 63
(than most transistor amplifiers)