Back in 2020 I was building my SSE and chose Transcendar OPTs for the build. Some may remember that I also got a crazy good deal on these Chinese "Laidys" OPTs https://www.diyaudio.com/community/threads/rolled-the-dice-on-chinese-opts.348858/post-6422961
Recap: They weigh in at 990g, cost me ~$80 CAD total (for both, including shipping) and they are ugly AF. 5K primary and 4/8ohm secondaries (with UL tap). 38 Henries.
I plan to build a TSE-II (w/45s) and I am gathering parts. Apparently, Gery isn't winding the Transcendars anymore. It occurred to me that I could rob the Transcendars from my SSE and use them in my TSE-II build, and swap the "Laidys" into my SSE.
So, that's what I did. This is the first time I have ever even heard these OPTs and I must say they are quite decent. Everything from lows to highs all sound perfectly pleasant to me, even when I push some fairly loud SPL. I will give them a more thorough listen this evening.
I'd like to say it is hard to find fault, but it isn't. They truly are the ugliest OPTs I have ever seen. Would be a great OPT if "sleeper" amps were a thing. You know, like those sleeper cars that look like a piece of junk but have 600hp under the hood and can do 0-60 in 5 seconds.
The bad news? Sellers on ebay seem to be asking around $90 each (incl. shipping) for these same OPTs now.
Recap: They weigh in at 990g, cost me ~$80 CAD total (for both, including shipping) and they are ugly AF. 5K primary and 4/8ohm secondaries (with UL tap). 38 Henries.
I plan to build a TSE-II (w/45s) and I am gathering parts. Apparently, Gery isn't winding the Transcendars anymore. It occurred to me that I could rob the Transcendars from my SSE and use them in my TSE-II build, and swap the "Laidys" into my SSE.
So, that's what I did. This is the first time I have ever even heard these OPTs and I must say they are quite decent. Everything from lows to highs all sound perfectly pleasant to me, even when I push some fairly loud SPL. I will give them a more thorough listen this evening.
I'd like to say it is hard to find fault, but it isn't. They truly are the ugliest OPTs I have ever seen. Would be a great OPT if "sleeper" amps were a thing. You know, like those sleeper cars that look like a piece of junk but have 600hp under the hood and can do 0-60 in 5 seconds.
The bad news? Sellers on ebay seem to be asking around $90 each (incl. shipping) for these same OPTs now.
