Bryston is way expensive, but superior to the Mac. But not for that reason.
Look for specs that show VERY low distortion: <0.05% over a say 5hz-50khz frequency range. Qualifying amps include: Hafler DH-200, 220; Rotel; ATI; Muse 160; BEL 1001; Bryston; Jeff Rowlands Design Group.
Note these amps vary in price from $200 to $8,000. Yet I defy anyone do discern any differnce sonically between them. Build quality, yes. But the specs are very close compared to their rivals at all too often also very high prices. Many do not show significant specs in their literature. And well they should not :-)
The BEST sounding amp is one you cannot hear. Like speakers. What you WANT to hear is whatever made it onto the source material. The good, the bad, and all too often the very ugly.
But, if you can hear it, and do not deliberatly mask it with inferior components of one characteristic of distortion, or another, you can be more selective in the CD's you buy. If you mask the bad ones, you will also never hear the good ones.
'It not the specs, its how it sounds' is the rhetoric of reviewers to sell high priced inferior products with lousey specs. If a component has superior specs, even they make note of it, don't they :-)
Look for specs that show VERY low distortion: <0.05% over a say 5hz-50khz frequency range. Qualifying amps include: Hafler DH-200, 220; Rotel; ATI; Muse 160; BEL 1001; Bryston; Jeff Rowlands Design Group.
Note these amps vary in price from $200 to $8,000. Yet I defy anyone do discern any differnce sonically between them. Build quality, yes. But the specs are very close compared to their rivals at all too often also very high prices. Many do not show significant specs in their literature. And well they should not :-)
The BEST sounding amp is one you cannot hear. Like speakers. What you WANT to hear is whatever made it onto the source material. The good, the bad, and all too often the very ugly.
But, if you can hear it, and do not deliberatly mask it with inferior components of one characteristic of distortion, or another, you can be more selective in the CD's you buy. If you mask the bad ones, you will also never hear the good ones.
'It not the specs, its how it sounds' is the rhetoric of reviewers to sell high priced inferior products with lousey specs. If a component has superior specs, even they make note of it, don't they :-)