Decware amp thread, Zen Triode / Torii / Mystery / Taboo / CSP

Adds extra smooooothnessss AND lets me adjust the damned things better. How the hell did you use the gold knobs… :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

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The screws that keep the knobs on were my indicator. I lined them all up at the same angle when the pots were at 0. So then adjust them close enough and fine tune by ear. Easy.

You and your fancy EYES that can see so well… :angry: Those of us greying and going blinder by the year need good old fashioned chicken knobs. I actually purchased a bag of the things and put them on everything I can :joy: for some reason i also insist on checking the position of them every few minutes, you know just in case the knob goblins try and mess w/ me when i nap off and stop paying attention.

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No excuse, my beard has tons of grey, and not by choice. :grimacing::zipper_mouth_face::new_moon_with_face:

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It’s time to show some love for an easily overlooked Decware amplifier, the 341.5 Rachel. There is currently a newer model the 341.6 being offered. First things first, I am NOT encouraging anyone to get on the current 2 year plus wait list, but more and more used deals have been popping up, it’s simply a numbers game at this point, more customers, newer models, all means more folks are finally parting with some of their older pieces.

Decware has an excellent warranty transfer program and they turn upgrades and repairs around fairly quickly. I have used their repair and warranty transfer program 3 times now, it’s not cheap but I felt that I was getting solid value for my money so the cost is fairly relative to the equipment value.

I own plenty of used equipment, so let me be crystal clear, having a manufacturer that WILL, service, repair, transfer a warranty, and make upgrades as possible to older pieces is as good as it gets in this hobby :ok_hand: Please note I have paid my own shipping back to Decware and they have charged me shipping to return the equipment but those pieces were NOT under warranty, they were older and the one time I was getting a repair they replaced parts free of charge, even though I had not paid to transfer the warranty, but I paid for the shipping both ways, very fair in my opinion.

I have owned 6 varied pieces of equipment from Decware, I’ve enjoyed each and especially for their cost, they were all solid performers, not perfect, but absolutely enjoyable for what each piece was designed to do and good value for the cost. Really, really nice stuff costs money, so let’s not compare potatoes and oranges, used Decware and even the new stuff is a good value IF you know what you are playing with and getting into depending on the power class.

This is a class A single-ended-triode amplifier with around 6 watts per channel and the ability to drive speakers between 4 and 16 ohms. Mine has dual volume control, 2 pair of input jacks, a dedicated Headphone jack, and maxed out internals. I purchased a new base, some matched tubes, had some parts replaced and thus I think I’ve got almost $3 k into it, not cheap but also not prohibitively costly for a piece with a decent warranty that’s semi-custom to my desires. Mine was a used purchase so my wait time was minimal, 3 weeks total.

The amp is based on one triode-wired EL34 output tube per channel driven by a direct-coupled 6N1P-EV for the input on each channel and using a single 5U4 or 274B, it’s a joy to tube roll and you can safely use EL34, 6L6, KT66, KT77, KT88, 7027, 6550, and 807 power tubes.

Long story short, the amp is sweet, its sound character overall sits squarely in the middle ground of the various tube signatures I am up to this point personally familiar with. Some tube combinations exhibit better results than others, I have still not settled on any particular favorites, it’s simply too easy to drop so many varieties in it, the combinations are almost endless, that’s part of the fun :pinched_fingers: It exhibits very nice spatial abilities, not laser etched, and certainly not mushy or muted, it’s got a lovely musical character, some folks hate that description, but it fits and it’s as good as you’re gonna get outta me :man_shrugging:

When I set this amp up in any of my various systems it’s usually to listen to the music and not the equipment. The one exception is now currently, I am using it to audition a pair of speaker cables and I was pleasantly surprised at the positive results which encouraged me enough to finally put some of my opinions and thoughts into words for posterity :hugs:

In direct comparison to some of its brethren, the Taboo mk4 was a much richer leaning amplifier, it had a thicker bottom end and midrange and even felt more subdued on the upper end. That was one amplifier I would possibly consider syrupy in its general sound character. My SE84UFO 25th anniversary model amp was of completely different character. I did not own it long enough to get more than the most basic feel for it and absolutely did not have it long enough to tube roll, that amplifier had a very high quality sound character. My only regret and reason for selling off that amplifier is that I wanted a pair to use as mono-blocks and I kicked myself in the ass for not ordering 2 when I had the opportunity. Rather than keep beating myself and working to find a second amp I blurted out, that I would be willing to sell it and that boy sold so quick I did not have a chance to change my mind and keep it…:rofl:

The 341.5 is a nice amplifier for someone who wants a solid performer that can multi-task. I very much enjoy it w/ all my Grado and ATH HP’s. It did the little Decware Tiny Radials justice :muscle: which were awesome for a simple uncluttered desktop system. (My thought process, writing style, nor my desk shall ever be uncluttered or simple :rofl:)

I’m also a fan of dual volume controls, if I can get them, I want them on a piece, it’s a personal preference and learned functionality. I enjoy the minute and fine control they offer, it’s simply a feature I have learned to use and appreciate. Please note, as far as I know Decware no longer offers the fancy RCA inputs, the dual volume controls, or even a choice of particular internal upgrades on the newest model :man_shrugging: Possibly if you ask nicely and are willing to wait an extra year or whatever, someone may be willing to customize a piece for you to that level, but I don’t think they are doing that anymore.

If you stumble across a used Decware 341.5 amplifier and have the desire to play with high sensitivity speakers or simply want a very good SET amp for those old Grados’ or maybe fancy wood ATH HP’s you have sitting around, I can recommend this model easily.


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I did not expect the owner and founder of Pearl acoustics, Harley Lovegrove, to sit down and do this personal opinion piece on a Decware amplifier, :man_shrugging: not sure why it seems weird to me but it does. If feels good though to have someone properly trained in music and fully embedded in the business speak about a piece the same way i do about other pieces :thinking: :hugs: I watch his videos once in a while, he does similar videos for other products and yes his speakers are a great match for just about any Decware piece. Yes he has a product to sell, his tastes simply follow my own and i enjoyed this piece. It’s just something about all he said and mentioned in the video that verified my own feelings and opinions towards listening that simply renewed my vigor for the hobby this morning…

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So this is a Decware product, but not a Decware amp. They are the unsung hero of Decware in my humble/meaningless opinion.

I will preface, I am not a fan of Decware for no reason other than they don’t do it for me in terms of sound, looks, and noise floor with headphones. That is okay because we have the freedom to choose what we like and what we don’t like.

What I do like from Decware, low cost and readily available book shelf speakers known as Zen Tube Tots: https://www.decwareproducts.com/zentubetots

Thank you to @NickMimi for letting me try these in my set up for the last week or so, he was kind enough to also supply me with the Line Magnetic tube amp I used for the majority of my listening; LM-216IA

Chain: Roon Rock → Some crappy leftover ethernet cable that was the right length → totaldac d1-core w/streamer → Line Magnetic LM-216IA (KT88 in triode mode) → 18 year old Monster speaker cable → REL T5 subwoofer + Decware Zen Tube Tots

The above is powered by a PS Audio P15 PowerPlant, power cords were Furutech through and through.

Some initial thoughts that I am jotting down for provenance…

Fucking blended for small low cost efficient speakers

Built really well and heavier than they look, placement is easy, don’t require toe-in or anything as the sound disperses nicely in front of them depending on how far apart they are. Currently I have them at 6.8’ and 2.8’ from the side walls.

Imaging is spot on, using tracks suggest by Nick to highlight a speakers capability such as how certain pieces in the track are not stationary, I found my head began moving left to right, to left to center to left, to right without thinking about it. Like falling back into a comfy chair

Low volume listening, off a 30 watt tube amp the volume need not be past 8pm

Subwoofer integration was more a result of the space than the speaker’s capability, though I prefer a fuller sound from top to bottom with speakers I would add a bit more on the low end if I had my the option.

First time I heard these, was in a very large space, talking about a two story room which could be a venue for a small rock club, these little suckers had no problem filling the open space and literally disappears in front of us. Caveat the room was treated and running dual subwoofers. That night I was lucky to bring them home on loan for a bit, and thought these are great, will be just like how they sounded earlier.

Nope, and not because of the speaker but the damn room!! I know many of us say this often, yet it bears repeating every time we share our impressions of a speaker. In the adapted words of the Ragin Cajun, Jimmy Carville “It’s the room, stupid"

So yeah I was a bit blown away at these low cost, efficient suckers which effortlessly filled the echo infested room I have my set up in. My normal speakers are very inefficient, like solid state power and can have sharp midrange in a poor room. The Zen Tube Tots pushed my beloved Bowers & Wikens aside, literally moved them into the dining area to get them out of the way.

Perhaps I will write more, though unlikely as I would rather be listening and not typing out impressions. Merry Christmas and ask Santa for some Zen Tube Tots next year if you want a very good low cost speaker to dip your toes into the 2-channel fleawort amp world.

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Steve Deckert, founder and creative mind behind the Decware brand of audio equipment doesn’t need me or anyone else praising his creations at this point in time, they are officially backed up 3 years +/- on their waiting list for new products and I’m sure it takes a pound of butter, judiciously applied, to squeeze Steve’s head through a doorway nowadays …:rofl: Anyway, a couple of months ago I packed up my Rachael 341.5 amplifier, spent a bunch of money on shipping and lightly argued back and forth w/ Steve on what was annoying me about the amp. His test equipment said the amp was dead silent, my ears said something inside was off and i could hear it :rage: We compromised, i had him remove the HP output and he swapped in new fancy foil caps and completely re-soldered and rewired the RCA’s. I was enjoying the HP output BUT it was at the cost of some annoying tube clicks and pops on the stereo end and ultimately i could not accept that so the HP jack had to go, thus along w/ some other things he modified we are back to extremely clean 2 channel output :smiling_face_with_three_hearts: I paid the man for his services, nothing is free and i have to thus do my part now and talk about how good this amplifier can be in its performance.
I’m running single driver speakers off the amp and it’s got excellent weight, bass grip and power output. The midrange output is simply perfect to my taste, my top end is only limited by the output my speakers are capable of providing. It’s the overall spatial presentation that really plasters the smile on my face. I can’t get enough of how beautifully the music suspends in the air and fills the room. It’s such a beautiful presentation and I’ve got to give allot of credit to the Sonnet Pasithea DAC for doing her part too in bringing out the best of the back end. In particular last night and today, I know i’ve been enjoying myself because I’ve had the volume up more than usual.
Fleawatt systems aren’t for everyone, 3 wpc and transducers playing full range have all sorts of drawbacks, but when you manage to hit their sweet-spot the pleasure and entertainment they provide is exquisite :pinched_fingers: Lastly, there’s nothing budget friendly about these systems either, it’s all an effort of love and dedication to the hobby. There’s probably 3 or 4 thousand combinations of speakers, amps DAC’s etc that will replicate the beauty of what I’m enjoying, these pieces are mine and it’s taken me years and many hours fiddling around constantly to come up w/ combo’s that please me, YMMV Happy listening always, have fun while you still can…



Edit: I forgot to include this info.
Innuos Zenith Mk3 streamer > Ideon Absolute Time re-clocker > Sonnet Pasithea DAC > Decware 341.5 Rachael Amplifier > Charney Audio speakers > REL T7/i subs

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