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Z10 Integrated Amplifier
The title of this FAQ is a bit misleading (on purpose). Some amplifiers use entirely different sections of the amplifier for the headphone output vs the speaker output. This is not the case with Linear Tube Audio amplifiers.
In all Linear Tube Audio amplifiers, all the outputs - headphone, speaker, and preamp outputs - use all of the same circuitry, tubes, etc. There is no separate "headphone section" in LTA amps. This means you get identical sonic flavor no matter how you choose to listen.
All Linear Tube Audio integrated amplifiers, as well as the MZ3 and MicroZOTL Preamplifier, have a digital control system that allows you to configure various settings on the amp.
In the below video, Nicholas walks you through how to access the menu system and what all of the options and settings do.
If you're hearing a scratchy, static-like noise, or you're not hearing anything, in one channel of your Linear Tube Audio integrated amplifier, there's a good chance a tube has gone bad. The challenge, with ten tubes in each amp, is figuring out which tube has gone bad.
In this video, Nicholas walks you through the procedure to identify the problem tube. Once you find the bad tube, contact us. We warranty our tubes for a full year.
Yes, however, the Z10 Integrated amplifier doesn't have a dedicated output for a subwoofer. The interface to a subwoofer would be via the speaker outputs, which is a common and often recommended solution.
You will need a subwoofer with a "high-level" input, often called a "speaker-level" input, which again is pretty common.
This method of connecting a subwoofer is recommended over a dedicated subwoofer/preamp output because it ensures that your subwoofer and speakers are using the exact same signal.
Don’t take our word for it. REL, maker of some of the finest subwoofers in the world, recommends using this method for connecting their subwoofers to amps of all kinds:
Using the High Level input is always the best option. Using the High Level Input, instead of the Low Level Input, and connecting to the speaker output terminals of your amplifier is one of the unique secrets of REL’s success. When using the High Level input, your REL is fed the same signal that your main speakers are receiving. When connecting to the High Level input on the REL from the amplifier, you capture the sonic signature of your main system, including the tonal balance and timing cues of the entire electronics chain.
The Z10 Integrated amplifier generates 13 watts per channel into 4ohms and 12 watts per channel into 8ohms. This may not sound like a lot, but the Z10 Integrated can drive 90db and above speakers in critical listening environments to thundering levels.
With less sensitive speakers, the Z10 Integrated would be best suited to smaller rooms or non-critical listening environments (say, a living room) at lower volumes. Being an integrated amp, we see this usage a lot, and thus have no doubts about recommending it for such environments with almost any speaker.
If you have less sensitive speakers (<88db) and you have a large room and/or like to listen to music extremely loud, you may be happier with one of our other more powerful amps.
Note that the above are recommendations, not rules. LTA amplifier owners have found great enjoyment using their amps with a variety of speakers, including Quad 57s, Maggie Minis, Tekton Design, Fern & Roby, Voxativ, Janszen, Decware, Klipsch, Silverline, Spatial, DeVore, Daedalus, Zu, Ryan, Living Voice, Omega, and many others.
For those who demand the best, but want to keep things simple. The Z10 Integrated amplifier delivers the magic, realism, and 3D soundstage of our patented ZOTL technology, all in one (gorgeous) box.
