D-SONIC SOA Class-D Core Amps. The best Class-D ?

Subjectivity is a wonderful thing. There are traits within both solid state and tube preamps that may never quite match such as harmonic structure. The preference for one or the other is a mater of personal taste.

Consider that, with all the shortcomings of tubes, a great deal of time is spent on designing components to sound like tubes. The day may come but until then if you like the sound of tubes there really is no substitute.

It's the way tubes distort not their lack of distortion. Regardless of how unmeasurable a solid state devise is, generally its characteristic is still odd order.

It's the same with switching or processing amps. Were class D is about to become superior is in the realm of digital playback. A digital source and something like the Devialet were there is much less conversion taking place and the absence of cabling lowering the chances of jitter.

Most linear solid state amplification has a tendency to get congested and more fatiguing as demand increases which is why they build massively powerful amps. The very first thing I noticed with my first switching amp was it seemed to maintain stability right up to its threshold which was way more power than I would ever use.

Since I use tube amplification in my predominately analog system the last thing I want is the switching amps powering my studio monitors to sound like tubes.

Audiozen, I'm not challenging your exuberance for your D-Sonic, any other class D amplifier, or your anticipation of what they might become. I'm on my fourth switching amplifier myself.

Yes, I want my tube amps to sound like tube amps yet there are some tube designs that are voiced to extremes that do not appeal to me. No, I don't want my studio monitors rolled off at the extremes or embellished at any point in between which is why I'm thrilled with the truly proprietary design nCores.

Currently there is a fundamental difference in distortion characteristics between tube and solid state, weather it be linear, switching, hybrid, or using DSP modeling, as I mentioned earlier. I'm somewhat pessimistic that this will ever be overcome. On the other hand if it is then I agree, the maintenance of a tube amplifier will become an important factor for many tube users to switch to what many consider the class D'ark side. I will be one of the first to do so.