GaN FET Amps vs. Traditional Class D Amps
I'm trying to get a better understanding of GaN FET amplifier technology. Whenever I see a write up on GaN FET based amplifiers they are always compared against class A or class A/B amps. What I'm more interested in is how they compare to the current generation of 'traditional' class D designed amplifiers, both technically and sonically. Can anyone explain it to me?
Thank you.
That blog post by buckeyeamp is your typical ASR tripe. He whines that the GAN transistor shows little measurable improvement over mosfets used in most class d amps. So what? We are interested in how things sound. Like the OP I too am interested in how GANfet based amps SOUND compared to the usual Class-D offerings. The limited amount of UCD and ice power amps I have heard so far were all smooth, clean, and lacking realism or lifelike sound the better class A/B amplifiers can achieve. |
@mitch2 so what what did you go back to after your ncore adventure? I just look at reviewers reference equipment -which is an indication of what they truly like- and barely any of them use class-d on a daily basis. It never satisfies. Although some of the recent GAN reviews may change that. Time will tell after initial enthusiasm wears off. |
@phillyb everything you said is what I hear. And it was exactly like that when the popular Nuforce class-d amps appeared 20 years ago. Then you hear traditional amplification that has ‘realism’ and you notice the weakness. However there have recently been some ultra high end brands, such as Tidal and Aavik, who now claim to have cracked class-d in sound quality and the reviews seem to concur, so I keep hopes up.
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