"RETRO" PUSH-PULL/SINGLE-ENDED 300B AMPLIFIER
Adventures in the Juicification of the Harmonic Space Time Continuum in an Expanded Aural Matrix... Continues....
I am
about to describe one of the most pleasureful experience I have ever
had participating in the audio arts. The gizmo I am about to describe
is, to America's most beloved thermionic techno-shaman, a brave
breakthrough in the audio arts because it, more than any other
amplifier, expresses the highest artistic intent. David, The
Juiceman, Manley must be considered the Abraham Lincoln of our tribe
because, through his genius, he has created The Emancipation
Proclamation of the Triode Revolution. America has wrestled with the
collision of the Master/Slave harmonic for almost two hundred years,
and David Manley is taking this struggle to the highest level,
offering us expanded freedom of expression, freedom of realization
and emancipation from slavish audio processes. Dave is clearly
campaigning on a platform of ..Music Power to the People.
An
amplifier is a device that amplifies our musical intentionality.
Within the home aural matrix we have a blank aural canvas and we can
paint on it any way that we choose. There are masters who would try
to convince us that we are slaves to orthodoxy, and judging by the
nervosa dementia that so many audiophiles feel when they step just
slightly out of the boundaries of normal, these masters have great
power...which you give them to exercise over you. Many audiophiles
are in musical bondage. This is not an indictment against any,
because we, every one of us, have lazy slavish minds, because true
freedom of expression is a tough, dangerous struggle that never
ceases. Most, excluding the readers of Positive Feedback, don't have
the right stuff to endure such a challenge. Which is why, Escape From
Freedom, by Erich Fromm, is such valuable audiophile reading, because
too few of us are free in our relationship to our musical
intentionality, and we need all the help we can to emancipate our
self expression.
The
notion of musical intentionality within the home aural matrix is very
easy to understand because it is so simple. Our musical
intentionality in our home is to enjoy the greatest amount of musical
juice. The level of desire for this musical juice is as strong as our
desire for sexual intimacy and it is the same impulse, only with
audio it lasts longer and comes in many more flavors. I, like you,
want to squeeze and suck every last drop of musical ecstasy out of
every CD, record and tape I play. And the raison d'être of
audio gizmos is to be Mr. Juiceman and deliver to us the juiciest of
juices. But what do I do about the enormous inconsistency in music
production in the wide variety of source material? At least with my
vinyl I have some control over my harmonic destiny by choosing
turntables, cartridges, mats, etc., but what do I do with my rapidly
expanding CD collection? Why should I tolerate being a slave to
digital orthodoxy?
With
musical intentionality the emphasis is on maximizing the pure
viscerality of the musical emotions experienced in our living
rooms....not the number of gold stars our amplifier was awarded. Only
I know what the music is right for me, and that is as a unique
signature of my soul as the cars I drive, the women I love, my
tattoos, body piercing, and my signature. As a free man I therefore
demand the freedom to experience intimacy with a vast array of music
in exactly the way I like it...and sometimes it is very hot, sweaty
and eccentric...but that is what makes America such a great country.
This
type of democratic musical existentialism is not possible with one
amplifier! Why not use twenty different amplifiers, so that we can
pick the right amplifier that squeeze the most musical juice from
each source? Those of you who read The Search For Musical Ecstasy,
know that during one of my 1970s flare ups with my thermionic
addiction I was attempting to own and use one of every tube amplifier
ever made. Fortunately my Triode Twelve Step Program healed me and I
finally settled down with ten. The reason that novice thermionic
techno-shamans must go through rigorous training in all of the
schools of the thermionic arts, i.e., the triology of the thermionic
arts.: the push/pull school, the single/ended school, and the OTL
school, is that each is a unique form of expressive art. Each school
is very different, each with its own special harmonic radiance, and
limitations. The reason the mastery of the three different school of
thermionics is so essential is, not because the circuits are cool,
but rather so that all impediments to our musical juiciness is
removed. What a charming paradox: we must become Masters to free
ourselves from masters.
My
fellow Americans do you understand the operative meaning of freedom
expression? If you do then you will understand why David Manley is a
great American, and a genius audio designer, because he has created a
revolutionary device that encourages and celebrates our musical
freedom. The amplifier I am about to describe is the first tube
amplifier that gives us the greatest possibility of squeezing the
most musical juice out of our source. This is the first piece of
commercial thermionic arts that is brave enough to shout: You know
best, and the only absolute musical truth is yours.
Two
years ago there was a buzz about David's new brain child, an
amplifier that could, on the fly, switch between push/pull and
single-ended and give you the option of how much negative feedback
you wanted. My fellow thermionic savants let's be honest...this is a
considerable artistic achievement! You probably remember that there
was a spirited debate in the pages of PF between David and Peter
Qvuortrop about the merits of single-ended amplifiers, with David
being not impressed with SE. Then shortly thereafter David
demonstrates his trick amplifier, perhaps as a way of kicking sand in
everyone's face. When I auditioned this first version it was obvious
that here we had a device that could finally easily prove the big
difference in the way push/pull and single-ended artified the
harmonic/space/time continuum....and the price you pay for feedback.
Way cool. Of course this amplifier proves that both are right!
Perhaps this is the first description of the difference
in the PP and SE aural matrixes. Think of the musical energy in your
room as a round ball of luminescent energy that can instantly expand
in size. As it explodes out and gets right on top of your it is like
a wave of energy flowing over you. You can feel all over your body
this "wetness, this juice" as a very real physical contact. There is
an airiness to this ball because it floats in the room with great
springiness. This ball of energy can also move all over the room, but
it tends to stay right in between your speakers. The gifted listener
recognizes that this ball is sublimely elegant and transparent, but
of limited volcanic activity. There is a definite limitation of
quantums of musical energy expended. Perhaps this explains why
ballerinas never weigh more than one hundred pounds. This perfection
of musical shape, sublime litheful elegance, and purity of musical
juice is the single-ended specialty. When you switch to push/pull
everything becomes more energetic, visceral, dynamic, more muscular,
weightier, but cruder. Take that beautiful round musical ball and
with PP stretch it out, which means the soundstage becomes much
wider, and not as layered and deep. Voices loose their clarity and
gain a more dynamic delivery. Complex orchestral music is much more
alive and vibrant. As for feedback, use as much as you like and
remember the Triode Guild Cheer...Less Is More, unless you need
ultimate bass control. With push/pull there is also an expansion of
the lowest octaves so that push/pull is like, heavy man, while single
ended is like a lightweight dude.
Am I
suggesting that men with a strong feminine side, like myself, will
prefer single-ended, and men, like myself, with a strong masculine
side, will prefer push/pull. Exactly right on. In the case of the
Manley Retro this is akin to asking if you want to be both Cameron
Diaz and Mel Gibson. Again that is what makes America a great
country...you can have it your way.
When
I called EveAnna Manley, after talking about the ecstasy of the
American road, the paradox of death and art, some of the more
abstract notions of Hume, Descartes and Spinoza, Heisenberg's
Principal of Uncertainty, and most importantly the latest adventures
she was having on her motorcycle, I inquired about the current state
of the amplifier that is equally a man and a women. They had fixed,
in my opinion, an artistic flaw in their first version by switching
from solid state rectification to double tube rectifiers ( Note:
EveAnna points out that with solid state rectifiers the amplifier
sounds faster, with a tighter bass, and that the use of tube
rectifiers were a response to Oriental customers). Well, I agree with
my Oriental bros' because tube rectifiers serve King Tone, and solid
state rectifiers are not as tonally refined. Retro can be had with
genuine brand new 100% American Western Electric 300Bs... originally
created during the time that a Coke and a hot dog cost a nickel.
And
while it is true that a single tube output stage would be more
refined, David must use two or he would have no gizmo, because
push/pull means two...at least. This is definitely a real world
amplifier (The range of power is from 18 to 42 watts depending on the
mode and amount of feedback used) that will drive an extremely large
group of speakers extremely well because it is a swell balance
between harmonic refinement, juice and grunt. Can you imagine the
harmonic refinement of listening to four new Western Electric 300B
serving the Chico Freeman vibe?
This
is also a beautifully crafted machine. Here is an amplifier which
would, without any embarrassment, be the center piece on any fine
table with it's gold plating, gleaming polished stainless steel, and
glowing tubes. I also like the way this amplifier is built in terms
of its electrical construction. This is an amplifier that you can
take into your next lifetime.
Am I
biased about enjoying the unique harmonic virtues of a directly
heated triode like 300B amplifier which gives me the option of
listening to different brands of output tubes, input tubes, and
rectifiers? But be warned, you must adjust the bias according to the
instruction every time you change tubes...which takes about sixty
seconds, and requires a volt meter which cost $20 at Radio Shack. The
Sovtek 300Bs sound great, and yes they are not Western Electric
300Bs, but they are $70 bucks, and you can save your dough and buy
Western Electrics later. My all time favorite tube for rock and roll
is the KR tubes. Once you and your amplifier become intimate, you can
start playing with input tubes, and let me assure you that they make
a big difference. My rave faves are from 1944! And then once you and
your amplifier are really down on each other, start experimenting
with rectifier tubes. ( Note: EveAnna reminds me that there are
undead audiophiles, who when experimenting with tubes, will use the
wrong tubes! Make sure you know what you are doing bros') What I am
describing is a level of freedom that will make most giddy and light
headed with musical delight, and make audiophiles who don't dance run
towards the audio closet to escape this new freedom.
Folk
wisdom is developing around the Retro..push/pull for orchestra music,
and big rock and roll bands, ....you know the big musical juice, and
single-ended for more intimate smaller scale juice...and especially
voices. I prefer SE on jazz.
Tune-able audio systems are the future for gifted
listeners, and that means tunable amplifiers and speakers. The Manley
Retro is a confirmation of this brave new vision of the audio arts
that throws the jasmine gauntlet down and challenges the entire high
end audio tribe. This new piece of thermionic art is screaming...Be
The Master of Your Own Musical Destiny. Clearly, this is a gizmo that
serves our need for freedom of expression/relatedness. Here we have
musical intimacy triumphing over engineering pomposity. I can not
recommend this amplifier strongly enough to those who have large CD
music libraries because here, for the first time, is an amplifier
which is an analog of our analog systems....it gives you a great deal
of control over your harmonic destiny. This is an amplifier that
dancing music maniacs will grock.
David Manley, like all genius is a man wrestling with
titanic forces, and I hope he will focus his enormous creativity more
on the high end audio community. We need him. As you know he is
already a force majeur in the pro-market. EveAnna Manley must be
considered America's Thermionic Goddess, and there is clear
correlation between her creativity and her love of motorcycles.
Behind every great man is an even greater women, and judging by the
thermionic art she is creating EveAnna has become the Madonna, the
Eva Peron, America's Most Righteous Thermionic Babe. While the Retro
is David's inspired artistry, this is a team that is escalating the
tone of the thermionic arts.....and they deserve, The Triode Guild
Award for Thermionic Coolosity.
For more R&R (rantings and ravings) on the 300B Amplifier check out Gizmo's Spiritual Woody
Dr. Gizmo.