shortcuttomo
Active Member
Butler Audio has been making their TDB amps for almost a decade now; I believe there was some sort of "deep bias" modification they introduced in the late 2000s that I read was supposed to improve the sound somehow, but that was about it.
People who have them seem to really like them, and there's a couple reviews (6 moons in particular) that are very favourable. Of course, there's also a bit of FUD that really turns me off and makes me think the voodoo magic is getting to people's heads (for example the 6 Moons review goes on about the uniqueness of the "blue glow" of the tubes and what that meant in terms of the amp design - when it's just a simple blue LED trick, which doesn't leave me very trustworthy about the qualifications of that specific reviewer, haha). In general, however, there doesn't seem to be much in the way of reviews on these amps - and there's absolutely no way to listen to one, as Butler Audio is direct-ship only in Canada (and in my area in particular).
In any case, I have some terribly inefficient speakers and in theory love the concept of marrying power and low-end grip with a smooth/buttery tube sound. Unfortunately, almost everything I can find on the internet about these amplifiers is fairly old at this point - there's something to the "if it ain't broke..." concept, but unfortunately in this world new "product updates" every couple years means another round of press to remind people that your product is still good.
So, has anyone owned or listened to any of the Butler Audio amps? Do they really have a different sound than a comparable-powered transistor amp? Are there better ways to spend ~$1500 than on this particular amp in today's competitive market - has it lost an edge in terms of sound quality?
Many thanks for any input.
People who have them seem to really like them, and there's a couple reviews (6 moons in particular) that are very favourable. Of course, there's also a bit of FUD that really turns me off and makes me think the voodoo magic is getting to people's heads (for example the 6 Moons review goes on about the uniqueness of the "blue glow" of the tubes and what that meant in terms of the amp design - when it's just a simple blue LED trick, which doesn't leave me very trustworthy about the qualifications of that specific reviewer, haha). In general, however, there doesn't seem to be much in the way of reviews on these amps - and there's absolutely no way to listen to one, as Butler Audio is direct-ship only in Canada (and in my area in particular).
In any case, I have some terribly inefficient speakers and in theory love the concept of marrying power and low-end grip with a smooth/buttery tube sound. Unfortunately, almost everything I can find on the internet about these amplifiers is fairly old at this point - there's something to the "if it ain't broke..." concept, but unfortunately in this world new "product updates" every couple years means another round of press to remind people that your product is still good.
So, has anyone owned or listened to any of the Butler Audio amps? Do they really have a different sound than a comparable-powered transistor amp? Are there better ways to spend ~$1500 than on this particular amp in today's competitive market - has it lost an edge in terms of sound quality?
Many thanks for any input.