Class D amps seem poised to take over. Then what?
Since two weeks I own a Boulder 1160 Amp. It replaced a pair of Nuprime Reference 20. The Nuprimes were heavily modified. Duelund silver Bypass Caps, Neotech UP OCC silver internal wiring, pure silver power wiring, WBT nextgen silver binding posts and rca, synergistic orange fuses... I also heard the new Nuprime Evos in my system. Nuprime are great amps but - the Boulder destroys them. It is so much more revealing, has tons more resolution, is as musical but less coloring, has better Control. The Boulder is my last amp. Main negative point is that it produces a lot of heat but I have to live with that. |
@earlflynn, Go back in this very short thread and show where I've been ranting about Class D and the Technics Su-G700. Asking about something is not ranting, and that sentence of mine that you quoted shows desperation. Something a kid would do. It's looking more and more apparent that your avatar is a selfie. All the best, Nonoise |
Hello, I know their is a place for class D in the world. Their are also really great class D amps like the Rouge Dragon which is a hybrid tube/SS amp. At 300 watts it can power anything. NAD has their Master Series but most don’t know the NAD 298 has the same types of amps as the NAD M33 or M27. The 298 has 185 watts but most people do not know you can bridge them for 600 watts. At $2k per amp that’s great value for money. What I feel is more important is the preamp. That needs to be class A all day long. Put a class A preamp like an Ayre KX-5 on your class D amp and you will wet yourself after you listen to that. Of course if you put a class A/B amp like the Ayre VX-5 you will still wet yourself but you won’t be able to wipe the smile off your face. I am in the Chicagoland area so back in the day your Ayre dealer was Audio Consultants. The new Ayre dealer in the Chicagoland area is: https://holmaudio.com/ The great thing is you can experiment at the store or in your home to see what is right for you. The one thing I find interesting is Hegel is using Class A/B even though they are across the pond. They did add auto shut-off to their latest components per euro guidelines but they are still doing class A/B on the amps. 🤔 Please everyone help the cause and buy a class A of A/B amp so they don’t go away. Just kidding. Maybe not! |
The only truly execrable amp I've ever bought was a Class D from China, for the subs in my home theatre. Thank goodness I put it on the bench first. Same week I bought an old Bryston for the purpose - musical, powerful, bullet-proof - should have started there, with a proven technology and a proven brand. |
"Since two weeks I own a Boulder 1160 Amp. It replaced a pair of Nuprime Reference 20. The Nuprimes were heavily modified. Duelund silver Bypass Caps, Neotech UP OCC silver internal wiring, pure silver power wiring, WBT nextgen silver binding posts and rca, synergistic orange fuses... I also heard the new Nuprime Evos in my system. Nuprime are great amps but - the Boulder destroys them. It is so much more revealing, has tons more resolution, is as musical but less coloring, has better Control. The Boulder is my last amp. Main negative point is that it produces a lot of heat but I have to live with that." I don’t see the relevance here. You have a discontinued modded $7600 amp and you are comparing to a brand new $27,000 amp. I would hope the more expensive amp is better. What if you had done the same mods to the $8000 Nuprime Reference? I bet it would be better but still not in the league with the Boulder. Nuprime, I believe, uses two ferrite core inductors in series with the output signal. One is bad enough....but two? I asked Nuprime a couple of years ago if they were working on a GaN based amp and they said they were and that they were ahead of the curve......well, not a peep from them since. Meanwhile, you have a ton of GaN based amps due to arrive any minute, including the $20K 500 watt mono blocks from Mytek.....(suppose to be shipping in July). Now that would be a good A/B with the Boulder. What if Boulder took its super input stages and combined it with a GaN based class D output stage. Then their amps would be far cheaper (way less heavy) and I bet would still sound just as good. Of course, they are not going to do this because it would piss off all the old customers who paid more for back breaking boxes (but someone else will). Class D is more complicated than class A/B so EVERYTHING has to be done right. You cannot just throw a bunch of cheap op amp inside and think you have something good. The class D revolution is just starting.....within a few years those 100lb class A/B amps will all be boat anchors....he he. |
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I am off the merry-go-round for my entire current system. Woodsong Garrard 301 TT, Triplanar arm, Lyra Atlas SL cart, Atma-Sphere MP-1 preamp, AGD Audion amps, Tetra 606 speakers, Silversmith Fidelium speaker cables, Shunyata Triton/Typhon power, SRA Ohio Class platforms, Polycrystal rack. Only with the Class D AGDs, there is no longer any such thing as a bad LP. Hearing the “essence” of the music makes even very old, previously poor, recording eminently listenable. It’s a new world… |
When I first heard my first Class D amp on my system it was a revelatory moment. Perhaps the biggest single change in sound ever. The sound changed completely leaving me totally disoriented at first. Totally different. Maybe that’s why some can’t fathom it? Where did the bass go? The imaging and soundstage? Then I tuned in. It’s more organic and articulate and encompassing than ever. Had to open my ears. Whoa! Clean crisp detailed and holographic. Vocals clear and easily understood but no artificial “warmth”. Just smooth and clean. No fatigue lake many SS amps. Like a great restraint had been lifted and now the music was living and breathing unconstrained. You know the way music is supposed to sound. You turn up the volume and it just comes to life. You don’t even realize the actual SPL you are hearing. Like a good tube amp. Except none of that tube bloat and artificial flavoring. Efficiency is a good thing in amps just as it often is in speakers. The amp can do more. That’s it in a nutshell. Class D and Ohm Walsh speakers = game over. |
I babysat a friends class D while he was out of country because he didn't want to leave it off. So naturally I listened to it for a while... Well, I wasn't impressed, I left it on as he had requested. I went back to my class A's for listening to music. Class D will not takeover so long as there are people to service class A and A/B's WHEN required. My class A and A/B's have been quite reliable. Three have not been serviced in 42 years. And yes I've checked the electrolytic caps. Actually, some caps are +10-20% over the specified values. I have replace a few caps that have been exposed to excess heat, with 105C caps, no more failures. But NOTHING in the 3 that have not been serviced. I'm not what you would call moderate with my amplifiers either. Only time will tell... |
And your is of the small pond you are a big fish in.That thankfully, your countenance will never reflect in. You'd scare all the fish away. Looks like earlflynn is gonna have a relapse and we're gonna see a redux of his Juneteenth/Father's Day meltdown. Get your popcorn and have the kids leave the room. 👍 @mapman , what you describe is pretty much what I've read about the Technics. Sound with no unnecessary flavoring. Only one reviewer felt that it sounded a bit cooler when running coax from the SACD companion piece. He went onto say that it was like listening to someone who perfected their playing but sounding a bit robotic. All of the reviewers loved playing their turntables through it, but I just use CDs, so there's that. @tvad , thanks. But earlflynn is not gonna change anytime soon. All the best, Nonoise |
The questions the OP asked was will all other amps fade away, no I don’t think so, is class D poised to take over, if having close to 90% of the amplifier market is considered taking over then yes it already has. It’s not what your preferences are everyone’s taste varies even from day to day. Class D amps are everywhere most likely everyone on this forum has a couple of them. I know I have at least a dozen. |
I’m a class A guy. Nothing against class D. I’m glad designers have figured out the shortfalls. I think that will be good for the hobby in general. The more flavors,the better. I also don’t think you will see class A,or A/B fade away to extinction. I’m guessing there is going to be enough enthusiasts like me to keep class A,(and A/B) afloat. |
@nonoise Not going to happen buddy. Guarantee your little pond is so polluted you are the only lamprey that could survive though you are more eel like. Juneteenth funny. How did you know I am a Black American? FYI my son was killed on Juneteenth 2 years ago in his R&P (police car you know the guys you hate) He was hit by an intoxicated driver ( high on meth). Enjoy your evening I am going flying in our C210 need some tudes in my meter. All Noise All the best. |
@earlflynn, are you under the mistaken belief that I and others just hang out on this forum with nothing better to do? None of this happens in "real" time. Sorry to hear about your son but you're sadly mistaken in thinking I hate cops. I have one uncle who was a captain and ran 44th St, Shootin' Newton, Rampart and other divisions. He was also in IA and sorted out the bad cops. He was also one of the lead investigators in the Charles Manson and Sirhan Sirhan cases. The other was an Asst. DA for over 30 years with a 98% conviction record, and while we're at it, another was a fire battalion chief. You know where you can stick it. Besides, it's not the side I support that stormed the capitol and beat and killed police. Were they people you supported? Next, where did you get the idea that I'm a strong supporter of Class D? I'm just asking questions that you need not butt in on since you're all into tubes with your Hungarian Ghoulash amp, so remember, don't drink and fly when getting those tubes. We'd hate to lose you as you're such a distraction. It seems comprehension is not your forte. Why would I ask about the Technics if I've already tried it in my system? Not ranting. Not raving. Just asking. There's no magic in words so saying something stupid doesn't make it so, no matter how many times you say something stupid. Capisce? . All the best, Nonoise |
I switched to Class D 13 years ago, had all sorts of amps and even had a Sonic Frontiers Power 2 SE, that was a amazing beautiful sounding beast, 125 lbs, 8 KT88's, and the size of a coffin and could heat a mid sized home.... Switched to Channel Islands Audio class D amps and never looked back, better tighter bass, all the air, weighs not much and barely runs warm... CI Audio is one of the best out there in the class D realm IMO |
@nonoise I am back and only a fool drinks and fly’s. Multi Engine Commercial and it is only a hobby. So Capisce you are a small fish in this pond son. I am not being stupid unless you feel asking a question is stupid and yet you still have not answered it. Please do not call me stupid a BSME and a MSCHEME and an MBA say otherwise. Like I said big fish in a small pond and that this forum is your pond. Thank you for being respectful of our son. Lets end this. I do not like you would rather play with rattle snakes than listen to you. |
Just as the OP i have the AGD Audion's and i find them to be fantastic one of the best amps i have heard regardless of class. Are they the best i have ever heard NO but i would have to spend 7-10 times their cost to better them. The best amps i have heard were also Class A so i would think it a shame to have these amps fade away. If i could justify the cost yes i would own one of the mega buck Class A amps but i can not so i own the next best thing the AGD amps. |
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I use a
ICEedge 1200AS2 based amp in my main system and a Purifi Audio 1ET400A amp in my bedroom system. Both are tempered by tube preamps and I have absolutely no complaints. I live in the Caribbean so cool running and power economy (electricity is expensive here) were high on my shopping list. I can't really say that I find the class D amps sonically different from the class AB amps they replaced. I assume there are sonic differences, but my 55 year old ears are unable to discern them, so I couldn't care less. |
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Everybody's talkin' at D I don't hear a word they're saying Only the echoes of my eyes Posters stopping, staring I can't see their faces Only the shadows of their I'ds.... (And apologies to Nilsson & Neil, F.) Thanx to @mapman for triggering this...whatever....*G* Happy Sumday, the total what you make of it. ;) |
@nonoise as a Black American I take offense in your racist remarks and will be taking this up with Agon. Also I deleted those posts no one else. I was out of line and apologized. So now you have stepped off with racist comments and there is no coming back from that. You are a child. f or revenge at losing so many arguments. Keep your Dingos away from him when he's like this folks, or he'll be up on charges again. |
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Allnoise, you are seriously twisted, don’t know why you would say that. Dingo’s are one of the smartest dogs ever, and they look great too. (And bonus they don’t bark) we have them as pets. https://www.dogbreedslist.info/uploads/dog-pictures/dingo-3.jpg https://www.wollondillyadvertiser.com.au/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-feed-data/94fe3d47... https://content.api.news/v3/images/bin/f2467edad178698cb5aaa0dbf244b5b7?width=650 https://www.dogbreedinfo.com/images19/DingoTalli8YearsOld.JPG |
