Class D is just Dandy!

Erik, as many others have said, thanks for starting this thread. I've found it extremely informative and quite entertaining. I'm new to the Class D amplifiers but love them because of their sound and ability to run cool which is perfect for the tight fitting cabinet that I have.

By pure chance thetwo integrated amps I've home auditioned were Class D: the Rogue Sphinx and the Peachtree Nova 125 SE. I was interchanging the two in my system which includes Kef ls50s and an old Onix XVD-88 CD player. The sound from both was phenomenal, but different from each other. Instrument representation seemed very accurate and vocals were gorgeous. Of course my descriptions should be taken with a grain of salt since I'm not an audiophile by any means. Both amps in my room sounded great but each portrayed music with their own distinct signatures that definitely made me curious to try some others. 

Given this does anyone have suggestions for a nice Class D integrated that they like?  Price range would be in the neighborhood of the Rogue and Peachtree ~$1500. 

Thanks for the NuPrime recommendation. I'll check it out. 

That's funny Erik, I hadn't noticed people were mud-spelling it!  It helps to have two other acquaintances with the same spelling as you. 

I eont take take this wonderful thread too far off track but I had two follow up questions. 1) anyone know of some good "standardly" equipped integrateds (no onboard dac)?  And 2) as was mentioned in an early post, I had encountered RF issues with one of the amps. Curiously it was only through the line inputs, and while connected to the CD unit. This only occurred with one of the amps and not the other even though all the other pieces including wires were kept the same. Any ideas?

I'm playing catch-up on the posts but thanks for the recommendation on the Wtred gear Scott. That STI has been on my short list as well, most likely the v1 since the used prices sre
mire in my budget. I just haven't been lucky enough to snag one on the forum yet....

Todd, thanks for the reply. Please pardon my ignorance but I'm  not sure what you mean by different input impedance. I'm still a bit of a rookie at the terms and what they mean towards the resultant sound. 

If I may throw in my thoughts on the sound quality of class D amps, I can sum it up in 3 words: I'm a fan!

Whew. Thanks Todd, Erik and Al. That is a lot to digest but I think I understand it a bit more now. This does a lot to explain the basis for such terms "system synergy" and "system compatibility". 

And now, back to our regularly scheduled topic of Class D amps are Dandy!

I was taking a look at the NAD C390DD integrated. I like the concept of being able to change out the boards as upgrades become available. Anyone have experience with the sound quality of that model?

I think Im descending further into the rabbit hole with this but any thoughts on how the  ICE Ncore  and Hypex UCD modules stack up against each other?  Or has anyone noticed any differences? I know there are many other pieces that produce the final sound but will the different modules have an affect?

i was told by an audio manufacturer that they were told by a supplier that Hypex was superior to ICE. What are everyone's thoughts?

Thanks Erik. I think you and others on this thread may find 'this post on ICE modules interesting although it may already may be common knowledge for all of you. 
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/class-d/287308-icepower-differences-asp-asc-asx2.html

On my journey to find a class D integrated, someone suggested I try using a power ampalong with a passive preamp, such as the Schiit Sys.  some of the amps Im currently investigating are the Class D Audio, D-Sonic, red Dragon and Nuprime models. I recall at least a couple of these have been previously mentioned in this thread,but can readers share their thoughts on any of the power amps from these companies?  Thanks for the input as I meander along the path to purchasing a new amp!

This is a brief tangent from the current topic but I wanted to give an update to those that helped me in selecting a class D amp. I was fortunate enough to pick up a Red Dragon S500 power amplifier from a fellow Audiogoner and I could not be happier!  The amplifier is truly all that it has been touted to be. Effortless delivery of power, clean, smooth, extremely detailed with excellent separation but without harshness. I could go on and on, but the end message is: class D is the real deal. Even to my untrained ears there is a noticeable difference in the "feel" of the music (please excuse the lack of the usual audiophile adjectives). I think one of the most amazing things is how good it sounds even though the rest of my system (other than my ls50s) can be considered low-budget components!  Thanks again to all of you that gave input to guide me along this class D odyssey! 

Hi Erik,

i had home demoed a Peachtree Audio Nova 125 SE and a Rogue Audio Sphinx v2. Although I wasn't able to do a side by side comparison, from what I recalled, the Red Dragon sounded the best. I also had my old Qinpu A1.0x integrated that I had in my system immediately prior to inserting the Red Dragon and it was definitely the better of the two.  Of the 4 amplifiers, the Red Dragon had the best overall sound and the most enjoyable sound.

At some point (perhaps Black Friday deals?) I would like to upgrade my DAC, and the preamplifier since both are low budget (but decent)  components. But I figured I could build the system piece by piece as the budget allowed. I'm just very grateful that I was able to obtain the amplifier that had won so many accolades!