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Class D is just Dandy!

I thought it was time we had a pro- Class D thread. There's plenty of threads about comparisons, or detractors of Class D.

That's fine, you don't have to like Class D amps, and if you don't please go participate on one of those threads.

For those of us who are very happy and excited about having musical, capable amps that we can afford to keep on 24/7 and don't require large spaces to put them in, this thread is for you.

Please share your experiences with class D amps!
erik_squires
celo
183 posts
 

@phusis 

I am very very impressed with this amp. It is stupid powerful but that’s not why I like it. It is super balanced. Detailed sound, big soundstage, the instruments sound like live almost, very good vocals. 

However, the fans. Ohh those stupid loud fans!

 

erik_squires OP
16,293 posts
 

I just realized this thread was started in April of 2017!! It has outlasted GeorgeHifi as well as MQA and still going strong.

Thanks to everyone who has made a constructive contribution to this thread!

FYI, I've gone from linear (Parasound) to Class D (ICEpower) to LInear (Luxman) and am about to transition fully to Class-D active speakers based on Hypex amps and DSP.

milpai's avatar
milpai
2,412 posts
 

@erik_squires ,

Which Parasound? How did the sound change from Parasound to Class D. I am wondering why you went back to class AB. And now looking to change to active speakers. I am very curious about NAD M23 since it is not a beast and seems well made. But not sure if I will like it compared to the Parasound A21.

phusis's avatar
phusis
1,219 posts
 

@celo wrote:

I am very very impressed with this amp. It is stupid powerful but that’s not why I like it. It is super balanced. Detailed sound, big soundstage, the instruments sound like live almost, very good vocals.

Great that you like its sound! What speakers are you running them with?

However, the fans. Ohh those stupid loud fans!

I replaced the built-in fans with low noise Arctic dittos. Noctua fans is another option, and while some of them they don’t shift as much air as the Arctic’s (a potential problem with high wattage usage) their noise floor is a bit lower even. Consult MC² Audio for advice with regard to fan replacement. I had mine delivered by the company to a pro dealer I know well and who’s importing the amps, and this way the fans were fitted with the right wire socket type.

celo
183 posts
 

@phusis I already talked to MC2. They are very helpful and responsive. They told me I can do the replacement but I cannot get fans out myself. Looks easy but need an angled/suitable tools which I don’t have. About Noctua, they said it maybe risky to use if you don’t know what you are doing. Because the Noctua has metal parts on the fan and if it touches the heatsink, it will short out and damage the amplifier.

I maybe after a T1000 which has an option to set the back fan to kick in when it reaches to 90 Celsius, the front fan is still on at all times. The T1500 has fans are always on design.

Did you really hear a big difference when you changed it to more quiet fans or is it still there?

I am only using it in my second system for now which is connected to NHT 1.5.

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