Class "D" amp? I do not have a clue. Do you?


I have been a serious audiophile for 30 years and class "D" audio is new to me. Most important, what do they sound like?
orpheus10

Showing 2 responses by lacee

I have been an audiophile for over 30 years and after owning tube amps from Conrad Johnson, to Michaelson Austin TV10,VTL,Grant Lumley,AtmaSphere OTL and SET from Cary and a host of good solid state amps, I now enjoy the Red Dragon Leviathan mono blocks-which if you haven't a clue about class D then you wouldn't know anything about my amps either.

All I can report is that I find much to admire about them, little to fault, and that they have been on 24/7 for over a year and no problems.

If they have a "sound" it is something of a cross between a good tube amp and a good solid state amp.
They are smooth, detailed,non fatiguing and have as much power as you are ever likely to need.

They sounded great on Merlin TSMMX,high eff. Tanoy Arden(dc)and on Ref 3a Grand Veena.
They emit no hiss, hum, or any snap crackle or pop.

Noises that most of my tube and solid state amps had.

Th
I don't know if many here address the electricity going to their gear as much as I do, but what I have found is that the D amps that I own need the best power you can give them to sound their best.

That means the less you do to clean up the power to your amps(and whole system)the worse they will sound.

I recently did some more upgrades(I am firmly in the Shunyata camp)and the improvement to the sound of my system only let the clarity of my D amps(Red Dragaon Leviathans)shine thru.
I was pleased before, but really impressed afterwards.

The Red's will sound nasty if you feed them nasty power and sources, they are revealing, and if other D amps have the same traits, then perhaps those who do nothing to clean their power(dedicated lines, power conditioning,power cords)have heard the nastiness and attribute it to the D amp .Thus a myth about the poor sound of D amps is taken as part and parcel of all D amps in all systems.

It would be interesting to hear from others who own D amps of their stories and findings concerning the power being fed to their amps.

And I am curious if those who have found D amps not to their liking use any type of power conditioning , dedicated lines or upgraded power cords.

My Reds use Shunyata Annaconda Helix into a Hydra 2, ,the hydra 2 is connected to a 20 amp wattgate which is wired at the panel with 10 guage Romex of about 10 feet in total length.
Front end gear is on another 20 amp line, into a Venom plug, then 20 amp Annaconda Helix to the Hydra 8.

As I mentioned, before I went this route I was happy with the sound of my gear/amps.
Now I am very pleased.