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£900 "KT88 Triode Connection - Lim Signature"
valve amplifier for Valve Aficionados


We have already received many testimonials 
from customers who have replaced their
TRANSISTORISED Preamplifier & Power amplifier
or TRANSISTORISED Integrated amplifiers
made by Naim, Quad, Audiolab, Arcam, Musical Fidelity
with our EL34 valve amplifiers ! 
Many valve aficionados will "pooh-pooh" our achievements by saying
"anybody, with half a brain, could develop VALVE amplifiers
that sound better than TRANSISTOR amplifiers !"
Our polite reply to these valve aficionado is
you have our money back guarantee (less £30 return carriage) that
you will prefer our
£900 "KT88 Triode Connection - Lim Signature" push pull amplifier
to most VALVE amplifiers selling for £2,000 to £20,000 !
Price is NOT a guarantee of Sound Quality.
 

Some products are overpriced.

The legendary
Svetlana KT88 valve
 

Our "money back" challenge applies to
almost any other type of VALVE amplifier selling for £2,000 to £20,000
including :-

EL34 Ultra Linear push pull valve amplifiers 
6550 Ultra Linear push pull valve amplifiers
Ultra Linear push pull valve amplifiers
using SMALL CHEAP power valves,
that produces a few watts at 5% distortion !
EL34 Single Ended valve amplifiers
                 (especially the poor quality of bass of many Single Ended valve amplifiers)
KT88 Single Ended valve amplifiers
(especially the poor quality of bass of many Single Ended valve amplifiers)
300B Single Ended valve amplifiers
 (especially the poor quality of bass of many Single Ended valve amplifiers)
"Proper" Triode Push Pull amplifiers should sound similar,
and they are excluded from our money back guarantee.
Unfortunately, "Proper" Triode Push Pull amplifiers sell for £6,000 and upwards !

 
 
 
What is "Triode Connection" ?

"Triode Connection" is NOT a new idea.
The most famous valve amplifier design must be
Mr Williamson's "KT66 Triode Connected" amplifier,
designed in 1947 !
Mr Williamson should know what he was talking about
because he worked for GEC (M. O. Valve Company),
that produced the famous KT66 , KT88 and PX25 valves.
When KT66 or KT88 valves are "Triode Connected",
they behave almost as good as "proper" Triode valves.
Since many of the modern Hi Fi enthusiast are overly obsessed with power,
we have used the more powerful KT88 valves.
Mr Williamson wrote
"It appears then that the design of an amplifier for sound reproduction to give
 the highest possible fidelity should centre round a push-pull triode output stage
 and should incorporate negative feedback.
 The most suitable types of valve for this service are the PX25 and the KT66.
 Of these the KT66 is to be preferred since it is a more modern indirectly heated type
 with 6.3 colt heater, and will simplify the heater supply problem.
 Triode-connected it has characteristics almost identical with those of the PX25."
( GEC PX25 is a triode, which is vaguely similar to the 300B triode. )
Mr D. T. N. Williamson is the most famous amplifier designer in the world.
Many other amplifier designers have copied Mr Williamson's design.
Who am I to argue with Mr Williamson's conclusion ?
Boring technical explanation that can be ignored by most people.
"Triode connected" KT88 valves are very linear (less distortion).
The "valve characteristic curves" of "Triode Connected" KT88 valves
are more evenly spaced than "Ultra Linear Connected" KT88.
( This means more linear, less distortion. )
The characteristic curves of the valves are more "vertical"
so the output impedance is lower,
so you get deeper bass
because of the limited inductance of the output transformers.
Before any "expert" tell me that Ultra Linear connection is better, please could
they compare the "valve characteristic curves" of KT88 Triode Connected
versus KT88 Ultra Linear connected.
And if the "experts" do not know how to interpret "valve characteristic curves",
they needn't waste my time with their "learned" arguments  !

 
 
What are the "Svetlana KT88" valves ?

Ignoring some insanely priced 300B valves,
Svetlana KT88 are the next most expensive popular "current production" valves.

Most sane people will agree that
Svetlana KT88 are amongst the BEST "current production" valves.

The "grid" is gold plated !  This is NOT a fad !
There is a good technical reason.
 

Technical explanation that can be ignored by most people.
The grid is very close to the hot cathode,
so the grid gets hot,
and starts to emit electrons (like a hot cathode !),
and the electron emission is the "grid current" !
Gold plating the grid reduces the emission of electrons
(which causes the grid current)

The legendary
Svetlana KT88 valve
-
McIntosh uses EXPENSIVE Svetlana KT88 in their £10,000 amplifiers.
The "new" version of the £4,000 Quad II-forty uses their own branded version of KT88 valves
(and not Svetlana KT88).
The old Quad II uses the cheaper and lower powered KT66 valves. 
Svetlana KT88 are 50% to 100% MORE EXPENSIVE
than the 6550 valves used in American amplifiers that cost £2,500 to £20,000 !
Why don't you audition
our £900 "KT88 Triode Connection - Lim Signature"
against these 6550 valve amplifiers,
and let YOUR EARS decide "which is the better valve" !

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
What are the disadvantages of KT88 Triode Connection ?

If you switch on the amplifier for 3 hours a day,
you should replace the set of Svetlana KT88 every 2 to 3 years,
at a cost of £160.
If £160 is too much for you,
the replacement cost of valves for our EL34 amplifiers is only £50
We can easily get 40 watts out of the Svetlana KT88,
if we connected it in the popular "Ultra Linear" mode.
However, if you have good quality speakers (of any "normal" sensitivity)
then you will hear the improved quality of the "Triode Connection",
even though the "Triode Connection" will reduce the power from
40 watts to 20 watts.
Before anybody (who has never measured how much power you actually listen to)
complains that 20 watts is not enough,
you have our money back guarantee that
our 20 watts (with good bass) is more than enough to annoy your neighbours !
Beside, the "typical" 6.5 inch drive units will NOT handle 20 watts (with good bass),
regardless of the stupid absurd claims of speaker manufacturers !
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