Here is a question for all you smart guys.
I am waiting for my home theater to be built, so please don't tell me to let my ears decide, I will hope to do that in a couple of months.
But meantime I am getting all my equipment in a row.
I bought a pair of Triton 2s and a pair of Triton 3s. They are still in storage at the dealer. I hope to set up a home theater and a second listening area. I honestly have so many conflicting ideas, this could go one of many ways.
I PROBABLY will put the Triton 2s in the home theater and the 3s in the dedicated listening area in the living room. Problem with that idea is the living room is WAY bigger, high ceilings, etc. and the 3s may not be enough there.
But I sorta had in mind the Home theater would be for BIG MUSIC, concert Blu rays(which I love--Rock and Classical) in surround sound. Rock and roll and classical symphonies to be played here along with movies.
And the secondary listening area for more intimate recordings, vocal, acoustic, some jazz, stuff my wife and daughter will like.
I just bought a Triode TRV-88Se integrated amp, which has 45 wpc, enough to drive either the 2s or the 3s, I hope.
Question (finally):
This amp has a preamp input. Can I run the front main speakers (LF/RF) from my Marantz AV7005 to this preamp input, and use the Triode amp to drive my Triton 2s when I want to play a movie or surround sound concert?
The Marantz should be able to set the volume accordingly accounting for the power and distances of the front speakers.
And then when I want to listen to 2 channel music, I can just take the outputs of my Oppo 95 to the input of the Triode amp and play it with everything else off.
Could this give me the best of both worlds?
Yes, I know I will be running my tubes when watching movies, in a sense, when that better sound will not really be appreciated. But that is OK, KT 88s are not that expensive to replace, unless you go nuts.
Can anyone tell me if this will work or not?
Recommended or not?
Make sense or not?
Anybody have experience with the Triode amps?
OK, thanks and enjoy the music,
Wayne

Hi Wayne,

Does the Marantz have Pre-outs? If so, this will work as described (the Triode amp would always be driving the L/R speakers), but I wouldn't be swapping inputs to the amp, just run analog direct through the Marantz for your Oppo analog L/R outputs and set that up as a separate input (source). The HDMI out is your audio input source for BluRay.

Thanks Moderator Dude,
The Marantz (AV7005) is just a processor, so all the outputs go to amps. I think/hope that the Triode preamp input means it bypasses the pre in the integrated and the volume control. In that case, it should just play what is sent from the processor LF and RF outs. And then I will take the analog L and R stereo outs from the Oppo 95 to another input of the integrated for normal 2 channel play. All exactly as you said.
Thanks for your confirmation that this should work.
Any ideas thoughts on my only having 45 watts for the Triton 2s? I am almost certain this is enough for the 3s, but what do you think for the 2s, should I go this way?
Have you ever heard of anybody using the Triode TRV 88SE with Tritons? Probably not that well known a brand.
Thanks for your kind guidance, all the best,
Wayne

Oops - should have looked up that model number first! I hear lots of good things about that Marantz Pre/pro.

I'm sure that's what the preamp input on the amp is all about. The 45 watts for the Tritons should play them to an average of about 105 dB at 1 meter - you may not be satisfied with that in a big room for big-volume action movies... probably going to have to give it a spin for a while to decide. Since all amps do have a "sound", mixing amps for your multi-channel theater may actually be undesirable.

Sandy uses a 16 watt Triode for 2ch playback on his Triton Twos in a relatively live room - they play quite loud.

Wayne dude :

I noticed you have a Triode integrated amp. Have you heard it? Will tubes in a preamp smooth out woodwind instruments? (saxophone). I've always had problems with saxophones. Brass, especially the trumpet, sounds wonderful...flugelhorn not so much. I've gone through way to many pairs of speakers, amps and everything in between. If tubes placed somewhere in my system (whether it be in the amp, preamp or CD player) would help, let me know.

When is the target date for your house and HT completion? I'll bet you'll be like a school girl going on her first date!!

Post some pictures as things progress. Your an interesting dude.

Wishing you the best...Anthem dude
ome

Thanks guys for the feedback!!!
Moderator Dude, yes, I think the Marantz is a pretty good processor, not the last word for sure but to my less than golden ears, it sounds very good. My home theater is to be 13 X 18. And all made of concrete, so pretty lively I would imagine (I will try to calm it down with some rugs). So I have some hope that 45 watts might be loud enough.
Anthem Dude, you bring up a sore subject about when my house will be finished. Not soon enough. I have only heard the Triode amp in the store, not in my system because I have not actually rec'd the Tritons yet. You can imagine how frustrating it is to have my 2 sets of speakers I am dying to play sitting in a warehouse waiting on my house.
As to tubes, I think they generally improve the sound of everything musical, saxophones included. But, I think sax recordings are pretty inconsistent, and sax music especially so. I won't mention any sax player whose last name is only a letter of the alphabet, but I cannot stand that stuff!
However, I looked for sometime at adding just a tube preamp to get some tube smoothness to my system, and was told that might help, but most people recommended all tubes, pre and power amp. IF you try it, please tell us what you find.
Here are two pics. one of the conduit with speaker cables I am running in the concrete floor, one also shows the hole in the front wall, through which I hope to access the rear of my stereo setup to plug in wires.
You can see, I have a LONG way to go.
Thanks for your support!!!!
Wayne