High end Class D amps?

I brought my first proto of the mono IceEdge amps over to a guys house last year and we A/Bed it with his mono IceEdge amps from Mivera Audio. When we were listening to his amp the sound of the bass was rather "tubey" and I told him so. He said he liked that sound. However, when we put my super modded monsters in (same module with the same output stage with the same damping factor).....the bass now was way tighter and better and he remarked as such....he liked it much better with my amps. There were so many things different about the amps.....not just all my mods but different platform and feet.

No one ever thought my super modded IceEdge amp was overdamped or dry sounding......espeically once I did the last 7 mods.......which is what I released and what Tweak 1 has. Not saying that it is as liquid as tubes or whatever.......just another perspective.

Here is a link to a review by Herb Reichert......about his experience with the Harbeth 30.2.....He found no dry overdamped sound from the Bel-Canto amps Ncore based amps......though he did like the liquidity of tubes best.

https://www.stereophile.com/content/harbeth-monitor-302-40th-anniversary-edition-loudspeaker-page-2

However, enter a zero feedback input stage Purifi amp and now Herb thinks the Bel-Canto is dry.

https://www.stereophile.com/content/lkv-veros-pwr-power-amplifier-page-2

By the way, the Bel-Canto amps he has are simply stock NC500s with the stock switching supply from Hypex and an op amp for a buffer on the input....very basic...and way overpriced. You can buy a pair of mono blocks from VTV with the same configuration for $1300 delivered......Bel-Canto Ref 600s were $6K!!!!!

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/review-and-measurements-of-purifi-1et400a...

Scroll down a little and you will see the insides of the ref 600s


Both the Bel Canto and the LKV use stock super low output impedance Ncore or Purifi modules. You should hear my modded Purifi modules with air core coils and super caps oriented correctly and modded Wima bypasses.....and with all the other mods too! So many ways to change things. Never ending fun! BTW, I can modifiy Purifi modules in your LKV or whatever amp.....and do other mods, as well.

When I first received my EVS1200, elements in my system were not worthy of it. In the last 9 months I have upgraded interconnects and speaker cables with WireWorld Eclipse Series 8, I also unplugged the 1200 from the CorePower 1800 PLC, now direct to my 20 amp dedicated line. Speakers updated from Emerald Physics KCIIs with Wire World and clarity cap upgrades to EP 3.4s with upgraded outboard XOs and WW jumpers, but I was still using my Oppo 105 with LPM and EIC mods direct to the amp so that I could flip between red book and SACD/DVDs on the fly. Redbook sounded detailed (but I now realize dry). A week ago I decided to reinstall my Audio Alchemy DDP -1 + PS 5: this was right after Peter Madnick left designing really high end kit (I forget whose), but the AA line was/is a mega-bargain.


So no longer able to play SACD/DVD-As without reconnecting the 105 direct to the 1200 BUT... DAMN my jaw drops, re-listening to disks like Jennifer Nettles Playing with Fire, some of the songs are very poorly mixed (3s), now sound like (8s). Is it that the AA is warm,a better impedance match, or just that the dac does a better job playing red book? Perhaps ricrevs will chime in


Obviously my 105 could benefit from additional mods (but I would need to send it out), or replaced with a better universal disc player, but in the mean time... I’m a happy camper playing red book


hth

I have Martin Logan CLX's which are difficult to optimally drive due to their capacitive load  which produces very high impedance in the bass and extremely low impedance in the upper treble.  I have used a number of good amps to drive them ranging from Class A Pass amps, the Pass Labs 100.5's, the Coda 15.5, to class AB, Krell Evolution 402e and Rowland 625's, and a good tube amp, the ARC Ref 150.  All had good points but one could criticize each depending on your tastes.  I also used a single Benchmark AHB2 which could not handle this speaker; however, two AHB2's in mono are surprisingly excellent and give away nothing to the previously listed amps.  The AHB2 is an overperformer but not Class D.  

Of the Class D amps I have personally auditioned on the CLX's, clearly the best was the Merrill Element 116's which can clearly handle the CLX's  providing transparency and detailing equivalent to the AHB2's,  a neutral tonal balance,  images extremely well and has excellent dynamics l.  It does not sound like any of the Class D amps I have previously heard.  I have not auditioned the Technics amp nor the most recent Purifi based amps or every Class A or Class AB amp out there, but I suspect that the Merrill Element amps would compare well against any amp near their price range.  In the end it comes down to your own preferences.  It is a platitude, but each of us may prefer one flavor or the next and how each amp's idiosyncrasies will interact with your room.

Atmashpere, how would one ever test that variable independently outside of other amplifier qualities? Plenty of seasoned audiophiles and reviewers alike that would argue subtleties in how a woofer is damped is second only to an amps ability to provide current into load variance in determining the best match.

@petland  Actually its pretty easy to determine if a woofer or other driver is overdamped with a fairly simple circuit. An amplifier does not need to be involved. This was demonstrated by the chief engineer of Electro Voice back in the late 1950s (it was EV and MacIntosh that led the way using the voltage rules for driving speakers). The physics of course hasn't changed since then.


Here's D.J. Tomcik's article, in case you are interested:

https://pearl-hifi.com/06_Lit_Archive/07_Misc_Downloads/1385_Critical_LS_Damping.pdf

I A/B tested LTA, Odyssey and Lyngdorf in my home. I auditioned them for my wife, with exceptional hearing as tested, and my Daughter, also excellent hearing, and neither having any idea about the technology. The Lyngdorf 2170 was the overwhelming choice for all three of us. I was very surprised. I've since constructed a Pass "First Watt" F5 power amp and B1 Korg preamp. The Lyngdorf sounds better than the Pass too. And that includes both digital and analog inputs. Just offering my personal experience.