"Jim Lesurf" wrote in message
...
In article , Keith G
wrote:


I see an opportunity here for 'refinishers' - someone to buy Chinese
amps in bulk (it's the delivery charges that bump the prices up) and
swap, say, the OPTs (and possibly power trannies) to enhance their
performance much the same way as a certain Cambridge firm 'rebuilds'
brand new Indian Enfield motorcycles into a much better machine
(rebore/hone, new pistons and electronic ignition for example).

Fark sight quicker to do that and end up with summat that certainly
looks the part than bugger about paying silly UK prices for fancy
fascias and gold knobs......

I have my doubts about how 'quick' the above might be if you actually want
an improvement for the expense and effort. I'd suspect that the electrical
properties of the output transformer of a valve power amp would be an
integral part of the overall design, particularly if there is any feedback
from the secondary or a primary tap. Changing to a 'better' output
transformer might then mean a number of other changes to the design to
ensure stability, etc.

The performance of an amplifier comes from the way all the components work
in conjunction. Just replacing one item with a 'better' one might simply
make the performance worse...


Indeed, 'upset the balance', as it were. In which case one would need to
reverse the changes or move onto different components, which I guess is
pretty much how valve amplifier designs are finalised anyway.

Part of the appeal of valve kit to some people is that it can be 'tweaked'
in a comparatively easy way, making the amplifier a more significant
contributor to the overall sound characteristics of a 'hi-fi' system. Not
that everybody thinks that is necessarily a good thing - I've been so
pleased with the sound I get using my own kit amp, I've never been tempted
to fiddle with it......