In my case, with the 4-ohm Dunlavys and only one pair of amps, the shortcomings were more obvious. Indeed, my first impression of these amps (Tenor) was disappointment. I could have lived with the softness in the bottom end, but the music just didn't seem to have enough life. And the brightness I heard in the upper midrange at anything other than low listening levels was quite distracting, and made it difficult for me to enjoy the outstanding attributes I knew these amps were capable of. Imagine taking a portrait of the most beautiful woman you have ever seen and painting a large wart smack in the middle of her forehead. After awhile, all you notice is the wart. At least with the Dunlavys, I preferred the vigor of the BAT 75SE amp (with output transformers) that I reviewed with high praise last year.
But I wasn't ready to give up on the Tenors. I remembered those speakers of Israel Blume's I had fallen in love with at my first CES (2001) and decided to take the plunge. And oh what a difference a pair of 16-ohm OTL-friendly Coincident Total Eclipses can make. I couldn't ask for a deeper, tighter, more controlled bottom end with any amplifier. I've never heard a more spectacularly vibrant and colorful display of light, air, bloom and life. When paired with the right speakers and ancillary equipment, the Tenors can make almost any other amp sound like you've been listening in black and white.
