I've received countless emails regarding Steve's choice of Lamm amplifiers for his Zellaton's - and along with numerous comments questioning the partnership of Lamm and Zellaton - I thought to share my views and 15 years experience representing Zellaton.
Let's begin with what fueled most of the controversy (namely the suspicion and countless warnings on this thread) that Steve's 32 wpc single ended directly heated triode ML3 will not adequately energize his Zellaton's. Despite Steve sharing many examples of Zellaton partnered with low powered tubes, most notably Emile's (Taiko) Zellaton Reference partnered with low powered tubes, Zellaton and Jadis, Kondo etc...., it still seems that many were waiting for Steve to get his Plural Evo's in order to truly see for himself. Well..., as he confirmed here, his volume control hardly gets past 9 on the dial, with so much power reserves and authority, with the added benefit of incredible presence and weight even at low volumes. Perhaps some should also consider the
global output of Steve's Lamm notably his high gain/output pre which creates even more energy to balance with his ML3's. While his loaner Plural's are low 90's sensitivity along with his forthcoming Reference's, they are certainly not in horn db range - and Zellaton has often showed their speakers with mega powered solid state. I for one, have partnered Zellaton with high powered and most notably - high bandwidth - designs to maximize the speed and control of their proprietary drivers, whether Klassik, Ultra or Evo line in house unique drivers.
And over the years,(and suggested by forum members), I've combined for clients vintage amplifiers with their Zellaton's. Some of my favorites have been vintage Swiss Physics/Goldmund from the 80's Georges Bernard, Nobile era such as Mimesis 9.2 or Gold Cubes, original Gryphon class A DM100, Antileon, Cello Performance, Krell KMA, KSA and MDA series (KMA my fave), Sumo Andromeda, Threshold SA12e, Belles Audio, Hafler, Bedini and Tandberg 3000 series. Personally I have a fondness for the type of sound stemming from these designs, owing often to the (no longer in production) mosfets and high biasing of the era, legitimate class A et al. Most SS designs these days are missing this quality of musical liveliness, inner dynamic contrasts, immediacy and presence at low volumes. This is why I lean towards Soulution as carrying the torch for this quality of listening. Further, many of the other current brands mentioned here are from boutique companies that may not be here tomorrow and I can't sell that precarious uncertainty to my clients.
For tubes, the combination with Julius Futterman's OTL, Acoustat OTL servo amps from the Monitor 4 1970's era, Graff from Italy (miss that brand so much), original Klimo from Germany and Altec's from the 50s/60s. There's just a special magic when these SS and tube classic designs are mated to the unique Zellaton driver. It's a rare combination of speed, timing but balanced by deep inner beauty - which brings me to Steve's ML3's and why the combination is so special. Because you see..., it's not about power, current, amperes and everything else the members have suggested here. Rather, it's about Vladimir and his soul for music which imbues into his designs. I experienced this first hand listening to Smetana's "The Bartered Bride" together with him. The manner in which music penetrated me was utterly unique and it's not just due to his unparalleled expertise in maximizing the GM70 or the custom output trannies/filament trannies etc..., but more importantly about his understanding of how music is felt. A deeply spiritual man of faith - he was a gem. That's what Steve is hearing and what I experienced with his loaner Plural's in Cali last month. Btw I was never, nor am, a LAMM dealer but always respected and just get it; Vladimir's passing is truly a loss for all those sensitized to this type of listening where every instrument has - what Art Dudley referred to - as "touch."
So just a few of my thoughts on amplification. Sorry if I was too long winded
Gideon
