200W into 8 ohms. 100 amperes peak per channel. 45 lbs
@som FWIW Dept.:
The 100A has nothing to do with the output power just so you know. That’s probably the current that flows when the power supply is shorted for 10ms. I guarantee that if 100A flowed through the output section it would be permanently damaged.
The math tells you what is up. Power is mathematically related to speaker impedance and current:
P = R x Current squared
(R is the speaker resistance)
So if we give the amp the benefit of the doubt that it can double power as impedance is halved, and so use a 1 Ohm load, the current squared is then equal to the power. That’s 100 squared or 10,000 Watts. That doesn’t ’square’ with 200 Watts into 8 Ohms if you see what I did there. If it can double power right to 1 Ohm it would be 1600 Watts- to my knowledge no-one makes a 10,000 Watt amp that might be considered hifi.
If we use that current rating as a short circuit value (essentially a measure of how much capacity is available in the power supplies) then this makes more sense. We make a tube amp that has 80Amps available by that measure (the MA-2).
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@atmasphere Thanks. that definitely makes more sense as to how they got those numbers. Good old marketing department hard at work again
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I would recommend the Kinki Studios EX-M1 amp 265 watts. I had one, and installed the Sparkos OP amp kit. Brought is very close to a class A amp. I had it paired with a set of Special 40 speakers, and then a set of Capriccio Continuo ad monitor 311 speakers. They are a more musical speaker than the special 40. I sold the Kinki because I got a smoking deal on a Sugden IA-4 integrated from my dealer. But the Kinki Amp and the S40's were a pretty decent pairing.
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Search out a clean preowned Classe Delta CA-2300... end search, you have arrived. Perfect amp for your Dynaudio speaks!
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Benchmark ABH2? Yes, only 100 watts but
small footprint, lightweight, cool running,
exceptionally clean sounding and ultra quiet. Strap
two together at 360 watts for under $5K the
pair used.
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The NCx500 mono block from Hypex provides high power, high fidelity Class D amplification. It offers extreme power with finesse, precision and ultra low noise, in a very small and light form factor.
Deer Creek Audio in an authorized Hypex dealer.
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@bluethinker Remembering what led up to your purchase of the CJ amp, I think as you’ve already found you’ll be hard pressed to do better than the CJ amp you already have and your Dynaudio Heritage Specials. That is assuming you’re getting enough volume with the CJ amp and Dynaudio, which you should be unless you’re trying to melt the paint off your walls or you’re ready to invest a sizable sum in both your new SS amp and a gym membership. A better approach might be adding a sub if you find after a while you need more bass with the Dynaudio. I also don’t believe you’ll get there with Class D amps knowing what I’ve recently found after purchasing them myself and what you’re expecting sound wise from your amp despite claims of Class D now sounding like tubes. They’re close but just don’t sound like tubes imo, particularly el34’s.
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@bluethinker Check out the thread about the Coda 5.5. I’m not personally familiar with Coda but they get a lot of very good press. Also, weight and heat wise seem to be right on the line of what may be manageable for most people. The comments regarding Class D lacking “soul” is what was most interesting to me as I very much feel the same way when comparing my new Class D amp to either the tube or Class AB Solid State amps I also currently use in my systems.
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The comments regarding Class D lacking “soul” is what was most interesting to me as I very much feel the same way when comparing my new Class D amp to either the tube or Class AB Solid State amps I also currently use in my systems.
@marco1 That has nothing to do with the class of operation and everything to do with how the class D amp is designed.
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@atmasphere I am not necessarily disputing you. It’s an observation on my part based on the Class D amps that I have either owned, or listened to in my systems. My point here is the more I listen to Class D amps and the more I read comments or talk to others regarding their listening experiences with Class D amps, it seems that lack of soul or engagement is a common theme more so than other critiques. This includes the most recent technologies I just listened to at the Capitol Expo, as well. Everyone’s mileage will obviously vary.
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it seems that lack of soul or engagement is a common theme more so than other critiques.
@marco1 I get that- I've experienced that myself. I think that comes from the designer not understanding that just because the amp is high efficiency that they still need to have a really robust power supply. If its not there the amp wimps out when you turn up the volume.
There's more to it than that of course. In exploring class D amps over the last 20 years, my impression is they vary in sound more than the worst to the best tube amps do. That's a pretty wide range.
I've been playing triode class A amps for most of the last 45 years if that's any help in understanding where I'm coming from...
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"it seems that lack of soul or engagement is a common theme more so than other critiques"
Everyone describes what they hear based on their own impressions, so I can only speak to my impressions of the Class D Acoustic Imagery Atsah monoblocks, that I owned for over a year. Those amps were built using the very same Hypex NC1200 modules used in the Merrill VERITAS monoblocks, and in Bruno Putzeys’ own Mola Mola Kaluga monoblocks.
As I wrote in these forums in 2021, the Atsah’s sounded, “dry, or at least dry’ish and lacking in that last touch of "realness," which better amplifiers are able to convey.”
A similar impression was conveyed in a review of the Mola Mola Kalugas, where the reviewer for “Mono & Stereo” wrote, “All notes were there but the illusion of musicians standing in front of me wasn`t convincing at all. The music didn`t sound inviting and involving, it was just… there. The emotional content was missing and the tonal colours were somewhat bleached. For lovers of analog reproduction and concert goers the sound could also be quite fatiguing and plain boring."
To me, those impressions are mostly consistent with the current comment,
“lack of soul or engagement."
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PS Audio S300.
140W/ch/8 ohms
300W/ch/4 ohms
Class D- not heavy!
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I completely disagree with this post and actually find it somewhat amusing, however audio is subjective and is dependent on the listeners ability to listen.
I find the new GaN amplification rivals tube amps in every way and modern tube amplifiers are actually lacking in comparison. These are my subjective findings.
I also don’t believe you’ll get there with Class D amps knowing what I’ve recently found after purchasing them myself and what you’re expecting sound wise from your amp despite claims of Class D now sounding like tubes. They’re close but just don’t sound like tubes imo, particularly el34’s.
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To me, those impressions are mostly consistent with the current comment,
“lack of soul or engagement."
@mitch2 Right- but apparently, only holds true for those examples. They don't represent all class D amps any more than saying something like that represents all class AB amps. And there are plenty of the latter that suffer the same problem and are bright and harsh to boot.
But there are class D amps that are as involving and as musical as the best tube amps, perhaps even better as just pointed out. The ones I'm playing at home are more revealing than the triode OTLs I was playing for years prior but just as engaging so I don't miss the tubes at all.
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@atmasphere - No argument on the possibility of better sounding Class D amplifiers. I think some of the perception problem is due to the level of hype surrounding each new amplifier release, which peaked with those Hypex NC1200 amplifiers when several reviewers declared them "as good as Class A". They were not as good as the two Class A amps I owned at the time, Clayton M300s and Lamm M1.2 Reference. They did some stuff nicely including well-damped (maybe a little over-damped) bass, nice tone, macro impact, and smoothness, but compared to the amplifiers I have enjoyed most, they came out a little flat and uninspiring for $9K amps. I believe I once described the sound as musicians each playing in a separate room instead of a band playing together. There was something about the ambient sounds that was not coherent as it is in real life.
I would love to hear a pair of small, light amplifiers that overcome that issue. OTOH, my somewhat large heavy amps sit in one spot, don't bother anyone and sound great, plus I can lift them if I need to, so I have no reason to change anything.
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No one said you had to change. People said the same about the automobile, my ox cart works great.
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