Any mid priced SE transformers around?

[lt cdr data]

That's interesting, I base my xp on hammond with the one pair of outputs I had, and they were ok, and sounded good to me in comparison with others.

The small hammond power tx I had was horrid. slightly suprised at a 3 series buzzing, but all they care about is profit, not excellence. If they went after excellence, profit would come naturally as all would buy a good product.

I suppose they deserve to be slated if the build quality was so poor, and measurements so inconsistent, lets hope they have got their act back together, but the damage to the reputation may well have been done, sometimes it seems as if they don't care.

Thanks tubelab, I have seen your site, quite interesting.

So what's your ranking out of the

transcendar
one electron
hammond
and edcor $79?

[tubelab.com]

So what's your ranking out of the
transcendar
one electron
hammond
and edcor $79?

I put the first two in one category. 7 pound transformers that reveal good detail but lack the ability to crank really loud with wall shaking bass (15 watts + into 15 inch speakers). On my lab system these are the transformers to use since the speakers have no response below 70Hz. Of the two I would choose the Transcendars because they sound the same but the Transcendars are much cheaper. I just built an amp for use in the lab, and I used the Transcendar transformers. I believe that he has "improved the design" and I have not tried the new design. He also does not ship outside the USA. Neither have UL taps.

The second category is 10 to 12 pound transformers that do loud and bass very well, but give up some detail. The Hammonds and large Edcors fall into this category. I prefer the Hammonds over the Edcors due to some distortion issues with the Edcors. It cleans up well with cathode feedback. Both transformers have the UL taps. For loud rock music I like UL with cathode feedback, and I get over 15 watts with an Electro Harmonix KT88 in UL. The Hammonds have more loss and cost about a watt over the Edcors, but I like their sound better. I am referring to the new 1628SEA not the older 1628SE. I have a pair of the older transformers, and they are not as good. The amp that I built for my living room system uses Hammond 1628SEA's.

So the answer to your question depends on your musical tastes and your speakers ability to produce deep bass. It also depends on their efficiency and your listening level. Even if your speakers can do 20 Hz, if they are efficient enough that you only need 2 or 3 watts, I would go with a 7 pound trasnsformer since you won't be asking them to produce 10 watts at 20Hz. So if you have a small amp, or use a big amp below 3 watts, I would rank the transformers in the order that you list them. If you need more power, then, Hammond, Edcor, Transcendar, One Electron.

Another caveat, Some rust has formed on the laminations in the One Electrons, even though they have never been taken outside of my air conditioned house (2.5 years). The humidity is very high here, and some water got into the house during hurricane activity, but I have not seen rust in any other transformers.

I have been using Allied Electronics power transformers for about 10 years. They are made by Hammond. I have not had any that buzz, and the only failure was one that got really wet.

Some data:

http://www.tubelab.com/BudgetOPT.htm
http://www.tubelab.com/Output_Transformers.htm